Sump won’t fit through front of stand

Willie Villasana · Mar 16, 2019

Go with your gut, If you drain 1/2 the water you'll cut the weight basically in half and if you can remove some rock work that will lower the weight even more. Water weighs approx 8 lbs a gallon and if you can remove some rock work that will lower it even more. The stand may be stuck to floor so if you have piece of wood for leverage you should be able to move it without jerking the contents left in the tank. I have done this a few times until I built my own stand with removable panels.

Bato367 · Mar 16, 2019

If it was me I would not cut the stand. I would drain the water down nearly completely, put some sliders or felt under the stand and slide the tank and stand forward. Try to put the sump in from the rear of the stand? Move back into place and refill. Corals are fine out of the water for a bit. Or find some helpers to do it right if you have to lift tank off of stand. You don't want a disaster from a failed stand. I know it sucks but sometimes the best way is the right way.

OPhelanK · Mar 16, 2019

I’m a female... I would most definitely cut up countertops and cabinets to fit a super nice range or fridge. With it being a cube tank and my footprint being super small I am limited on options of sumps that fit my needs. I have a “basic” sump in there now and I can’t reach my filter socks. Any sort of tank maintenance is a total pain getting this sump in is a bit of a pain but in the long run maintenance and such should be easy.

Mastiffsrule said:
+1
My opinion, this got way complicated. It does not fit thru the front. Can it get in thru the back, if you are willing to try. If it can fit, and you are willing to try, the. All is good.

Otherwise, get something that you like that fits. I do not see starting to cut up undamaged items to make something work. (Would most of us start cutting up our countertop or cabinets to fit in a refrigerator that was too big?)

Oldsalt · Mar 16, 2019

I think every opinion has been voiced - the majority recommend drain, pull out stand and put sump in from rear. Perhaps you should take a poll and decide based on the numbers. Having said that, almost everything I buy for my tank has something that requires a mod of some sort. It's what we do in the name of our passion.

Sarah24! · Mar 17, 2019

Hello,

So, wow read the whole thread and it was interesting so I have to follow along for the end. Me personally as a female also, I would do it the hard way.

If this was me (and my choice only lol). I would completely drain and move everything out of the old sump First and un hook the plumbing. Then I would make sure nothing is in the way of the old sump coming out or new going in. Once this is ready I would drain half the water into buckets or bins right next to the tank. Any rocks or corals that are exposed and easy to move since on top, I would place in the bucket carefully.

Once you have half to a little more than half of he water out, I would then use a 4x4 as a lever, (if enough room) then place a 2x4 against your wall. Use the 4x4 on the very bottom of the stand to slide it away from your wall. Do not use the 4x4 against your wall. Make sure the 2x4 is there also. I would do a few inches at a time, and do one side then the other. Keep moving it out until you can slide the old one out and new one in from the back.

Now that this your stand is out in the middle of your floor you will have to push it back. Make sure you push on the very bottom of the stand. It may take two of you to make it move and it will be slow and harder unless you have something heavy to pry back on the other side. Worse case you may have to drain another 1/4 of water out.

I had to move my 125 out a few inches before I went to my 240. After draining little over half the water I was able to move it on my own with the 2x4 and 4x4 which was about four feet long. Granted I didn’t have to push it back, just needed enough room to fit in the back a little more. I also have hard wood floors, if you have carpet hmmmmm that’s a whole different game.

I would not cut into the stand for any reason, yes it’s easier but with how much risk? Our tanks are not made to be moved, lol, and if I ever have to move my 240 it’s going to be a major major pain in the rear.

PhreeByrd · Mar 17, 2019

A lot of amateur engineers here (not that some of them don't make some sense, of course). However, if the stand image posted by the OP is correct and reliable, then it should be obvious that those cabinet stiles that would need to be cut serve little if any structural purpose in terms of load bearing. If you look at the image below and the red 'circled' area, you will see that those stiles exist only on the front face of the stand. At the back of the stand, the only structure is the cabinet sides and the back rail -- those components are supporting all of the load. The top ledge helps to uniformly distribute the load around the perimeter of the stand. In reality, the cabinet sides are doing almost all of the work. The inset stiles at the front, although they could add some structural support, are only infill framing for the door. You could cut them out completely without affecting the structure of the cabinet. The outer corner stiles at the front of the cabinet do add some structure and rigidity, but there is no need to bother those.
My only big concern with cutting out a portion of those front stiles is that if you cut away too much, you'll be able to see through a gap into the cabinet with the door closed. Those cutouts could be refilled with removable pieces to make that issue go away, but I'd first look at cutting both front stiles about 5/8" to see if that would still be an issue. Likely it would be, since the overlay on cabinet doors is typically less than 1/2".

I wouldn't hesitate for one second to make the cuts in this cabinet if that's the most direct route to achieve the goal.