Leveling Mat?

[phytofish]

I have a 57 gal deep blue rimless tank.. it's only rimless on top. There is a black brace around the bottom that crosses in the middle..
The tank is on my homemade stand and it wiggles ever so slightly.. the top of the stand is level but i guess isn't perfectly level across..

I guess this means i should get a leveling mat. Would Lowes or an ACE Hardware sell something that I could use for a leveling mat?

Or are there any other suggestions for fixing this?

 

[Big G]

Yoga mats cut to fit work pretty well. Those guys at Bulk Reef Supply sell rolls of neoprene. Both work. The yoga mats also work good to put down in front of your tank when doing some wet maintenance.

 

[phytofish]

Yoga mat seems like it'd be too thick.. i wonder if i could rip it in half and make it half the thickness

 

[Salty1962]

It will compress down after you fill it up[emoji6]

 

[phytofish]

It will compress down after you fill it up[emoji6]

Ya know, I guess with 500lb on top of it, you might be right haha! I didn't think about that!

 

[mattstanks2016]

I am in the exact situation, however unknowingly I purchased a mat. I am yet to use it but I would think a yoga mat would be much nicer.

 

[Big G]

Yoga mat seems like it'd be too thick.. i wonder if i could rip it in half and make it half the thickness

My wife buys the "thin" ones.

 

[jsker]

Shim it, or a new top for the stand. Over time the mat will compress and the tank will be out of level again.

 

[cracker]

Please tell us about this "wiggle" You mention. I'd be more worried about that than the tank not being level.

 

[phytofish]

Please tell us about this "wiggle" You mention. I'd be more worried about that than the tank not being level.

Do you know how to post a video on here? I could show you. It's barely off at all. Two diagonal corners sit on the stand and it barely rocks back and forth between the other two diagonal corners.. maybe an 1/16" off.. the bubble of the level is in-between the lines of the level either way that it rocks, that's how small of a wiggle is has.

The tank's glass doesn't touch the stand at all.. there is a brace that wraps around the entire bottom of the tank and also goes across the middle..

 

[Big G]

Good shims can be made from cutting pieces from one of those flexible plastic kitchen cutting sheets. I used to use playing cards for shims, but these work better and are waterproof.

 

[Forsaken77]

Do you know how to post a video on here? I could show you. It's barely off at all. Two diagonal corners sit on the stand and it barely rocks back and forth between the other two diagonal corners.. maybe an 1/16" off.. the bubble of the level is in-between the lines of the level either way that it rocks, that's how small of a wiggle is has.

The tank's glass doesn't touch the stand at all.. there is a brace that wraps around the entire bottom of the tank and also goes across the middle..

It may seem like not a lot, and even though it's still level, when you have water moving around the tank it could make it rock back and forth. Could cause a seam leak from the extra stress or worse. Why take the chance? Because if it does fail, you're gonna have a heck of a mess to clean up.

Also, and I don't know if Deep Blue is one of them, but some manufacturers won't warranty a tank if it's on a mat because, they say, the tank will compress the outer edges and the middle could fracture the glass. They also won't warranty the tank long when it's not on their stand. So keep that in mind if it does fail.

I would shim it to keep it from moving, especially when the water starts flowing.

 

[phytofish]

It may seem like not a lot, and even though it's still level, when you have water moving around the tank it could make it rock back and forth. Could cause a seam leak from the extra stress or worse. Why take the chance? Because if it does fail, you're gonna have a heck of a mess to clean up.

Also, and I don't know if Deep Blue is one of them, but some manufacturers won't warranty a tank if it's on a mat because, they say, the tank will compress the outer edges and the middle could fracture the glass. They also won't warranty the tank long when it's not on their stand. So keep that in mind if it does fail.

I would shim it to keep it from moving, especially when the water starts flowing.

I bought the flexible cutting boards that i'll use as shims along with a thin yoga mat to go underneath it all. But if i use shims is there any need for a leveling mat?

 

[aarbutina]

I have a very similar problem with my new tank. There was one board in the hardwood floor that caused the stand to rock.

I got one for these from home depot:
http://www.homedepot.com/p/TrafficM...rcial-Door-Mat-60-169-0900-30000400/206498907
cut it to size and it worked great.

 

[mibwb]

I've always use foam board...to level and pad a tank

 

[hart24601]

Call deep blue and see what they recommend. If you know who made the tank and they are still in business I always recommend calling them for questions like this. Hobbiest advise is great, but when it comes to the proper course of action idk why you wouldn't follow whatever the manufacturer says to do.

 

[BigJohnny]

You cannot level with a mat or foam, it will only absorb surface imperfections. You need to either level the stand all the way across with shims, or put a piece of plywood on top of the stand and level between that and the stand with shims so that the tank sits flush and level

 

[phytofish]

I've emailed Deep Blue and i'm going to wait for a reply before I do anything else. Thanks for your help everyone! I'll let you know what they recommend. I'm just worried they'll say something like "you should have bought our stand"

 

[phytofish]

Deep blue said to skip the shims and use a neoprene mat.. hmm

 

[hart24601]

Deep blue said to skip the shims and use a neoprene mat.. hmm

Well there you go!