Gap between cube 20 and stand

Saltbøtta · Jan 16, 2023

Hello, I recently moved my tank, the move was a bit hectic, and I didn't have time to find the perfect piece of furniture on which to sit my waterbox 20.

I'm not worried about it holding the weight, but I noticed some slight gaps inbetween the tank and the stand on the left side. I can fit a few postcards in there. (see pics).

There does not seem to be increased weight on any of the corners, judging by the mat. Unfortunately the tank is already filled, but I am considering draining most of the water into buckets, lifting the tank, and sliding a thicker JBL aquarium mat beneath the one already attached to the waterbox cube 20. Any thoughts?

crusso1993 · Jan 16, 2023

Saltbøtta said:
Hello, I recently moved my tank, the move was a bit hectic, and I didn't have time to find the perfect piece of furniture on which to sit my waterbox 20.

I'm not worried about it holding the weight, but I noticed some slight gaps inbetween the tank and the stand on the left side. I can fit a few postcards in there. (see pics).

There does not seem to be increased weight on any of the corners, judging by the mat. Unfortunately the tank is already filled, but I am considering draining most of the water into buckets, lifting the tank, and sliding a thicker JBL aquarium mat beneath the one already attached to the waterbox cube 20. Any thoughts?

Probably will not be an issue. However, with as little work as it will take to empty the tank a bit and place something with more support under it, I’d recommend doing it. As the saying goes, “Better safe than sorry.” Especially if you plan on keeping the tank on the current piece of furniture.

Saltbøtta · Jan 16, 2023

crusso1993 said:
Probably will not be an issue. However, with as little work as it will take to empty the tank a bit and place something with more support under it, I’d recommend doing it. As the saying goes, “Better safe than sorry.” Especially if you plan on keeping the tank on the current piece of furniture.

Thank you. Then I think that is what I will do. What worries me is that I don't know how deep the gap goes underneath the tank. The JBL mat looks pretty thick, I think it will do the job...

crusso1993 · Jan 16, 2023

Saltbøtta said:
Thank you. Then I think that is what I will do. What worries me is that I don't know how deep the gap goes underneath the tank. The JBL mat looks pretty thick, I think it will do the job...

Is the tank level from side to side and front to back where it sits now? I would suspect the JBL may will be thick enough to close the gaps. Believe it, or not, I’ve also used yoga mats in the past.

Saltbøtta · Jan 16, 2023

Yep! Its level, and there appears to be equal pressure on all corners from what I can tell.

FlyinAg · Jan 16, 2023

Hard to say if it's the furniture surface, tank or mat (or combination of all three). If it were me, I'd get a new thicker mat. I bought the one one bulk reef supply. I went thru this with my stand build. Waterbox recommended I change the mat since my tank was used, and they said a thicker one that wasn't their brand was fine. In my case the old mat was deformed from the previous surface it was sitting on, and the new surface was unlevel and irregular.

After new plywood, a new thicker mat, and lots of shimming/sanding/adjusting, I had a flat and level stand surface and a fresh mat ready to take up the rest of the irregularities.

In my opinion this isn't something I'd want to cross my fingers on. I love the rimless tanks but glass doesn't like to bend and it's being held together by silicone... Thinking about how much my tank or the stand surface was going to flex under load to take out those gaps definitely didn't give me a good feeling. I wanted everything to be flush and level before adding load so I knew the glass was properly supported and could handle the design load when full.

Saltbøtta · Jan 16, 2023

I'm fairly sure its caused by the furniture. Does that mean you think I should remove the old mat? That makes the operation quite a bit more complicated!