Stand not level

[fox01]

Hello All,

Noticed over the past few days as my water level dropped due to evaporation that my tank might be slightly off level. Took a spirit level to it today and that confirmed my suspicions. The tank is leaning slightly forward, as is the floor underneath it (but not as much so). The tank and stand were purchased new from Petsmart in August. There is no evidence of breakdown of the front legs, or separation at any of the joints, or really any evidence of damage to the stand at all. I measured around the tank and we are looking at ~1/8" difference between the front and back. I have a 2 year warranty on the tank and stand. My questions for the community:

1. Has anybody had experiences with warranty returns for Marineland/Petsmart? Anything I should watch out for?
2. Do you have any specific recommendations for fixes? Would a 1/8" shim work? Or should I just replace the stand itself?
3. If I have to replace it, any good ideas on how to move the tank to the new stand? It's 60gal, with 60lbs sand and 30lbs rock. I estimate the full tank to weigh approximately 700lbs full. I imagine the tank wouldn't tolerate moving full, so how much am I emptying? all the fish/livestock/water? Half of the water and rocks?

I understand this question may give more anecdotal answers as opposed to tried and true solutions, but I'm new to the hobby and would prefer to deal with problems as they arise and not wait for bigger ones.

Thanks in advance

 

[Big G]

Not a good idea to move a glass tank with anything within. All it takes is the glass to be torqued a bit and crack! Been there, done that

 

[sfin52]

May need to get a shim to level it. I had to do that in my basement.

 

[fox01]

Not a good idea to move a glass tank with anything within. All it takes is the glass to be torqued a bit and crack! Been there, done that

Excellent advice. Thank you. Any thoughts on the stand, shims vs new stand?

 

[fox01]

May need to get a shim to level it. I had to do that in my basement.

Really hoping that this is what I will be able to do. Any drawbacks you have experienced/heard of?

 

[sfin52]

Welcome to reef2reef. Mine is doing well up for 1 1/2 yr. it’s a 55g fowlr

 

[Caseyoidae]

I would only level it empty. Take everything out and shim the stand not the tank itself. Floor may be out of level? I know mine are! lol homedepot has cheap shim packs just be just to support it everywhere. 1/8'' over the depth of the tank really isn't that bad at all. If it were me I'd just leave it

 

[cracker]

I "think" as long as the back is level ,corner to corner & the front corners are level also. I would think it's OK. A 1/8 drop back to front isn't a big deal. If Ya gotta have it perfect, take out as much water/ weight possible before lifting & shimming .

 

[fox01]

Thanks for the feedback all. I decided to leave as-is and monitor it for now. The floor isn't level either and I suspect this is part of the problem. If it continues to change, I think the shims will serve as a sufficient temporizing measure until a new stand is obtained.

 

[MikeO5422]

If it helps my tank is not level from front to back slightly, about 1/8. Been that way for almost a year. I talked to a few ppl with not perfectly level tanks and most have had no issues with 1/8. Just make sure it's not getting worse and keep am eye on your seems. If its getting worse definitely fix it.

If you are evenly not level (if that makes sense) from front to back it's much better than being dipped to one corner. I also had an engineer calculate the force and it's not that much at 1/8 (at least for my 50 gallon).

 

[davocean]

1/8" out is not a big deal, but I'd probably mark where it's at w/ marker or tape to make sure nothing changes.

Most all of us have shims under our stands, not many floors are perfectly level.

I agree, do it empty if you do, pretty easy to siphon water into brutes, shim, pump water back in.

 

[mike321]

I agree with post above. 1/8” really isn’t a big deal. Grab a couple shims and try to level it as best you can. Did the same for my tank and it’s now leveled. Good luck

 

[EmptyWallet]

if your floor isn' level a new stand won't change anything. I've got an 8 foot tank on uneven ground using shims to level and all good (my shims are rated to 20 tonnes). Moving a tank with any weight from water puts heaps of stress on the glass and joins especially if it's swashing around like a wave motion

 

[Porpoise Hork]

You could also try leveling mat like this one. http://www.innovative-marine.com/auqa-gadget/diy-mat.html They work really well at leveling the tank as well as a sound isolation mat for the sump.

 

[NemHost]

Before you use a leveling mat contact the company and verify it’s acceptable to be used with your specific tank. Most tanks that have a bottom plastic trim only contact the stand around the parameter and the glass in center isn’t supposed to be touching anything underneath it.

 

[Porpoise Hork]

Before you use a leveling mat contact the company and verify it’s acceptable to be used with your specific tank. Most tanks that have a bottom plastic trim only contact the stand around the parameter and the glass in center isn’t supposed to be touching anything underneath it.

For tanks with trim the leveling mat does not come into contact with the glass at all, it only contacts the trim. Much the same as if the tank were sitting directly on the stand. This is not to say that you shouldn't verify the stand and tank are relatively level to start with. The difference is the mat more evenly distributes the weight from the tank leveling it out once water is in it.

 

[Billdogg]

A few things come to mind here that need to be checked out.

1. Was the floor out of level before the tank was there or has the floor sagged under the weight? If it's the latter, you need to put a floor jack or two under it in the basement to prevent further sagging.

2. Shims - either cedar or composite work fine but I prefer composite - they won't compress once in place. Shim under the stand, not the tank. Use plenty. If you leave a couple inches of water in the tank you have nature's perfect level right there - use it! Measure from the top of the stand to the water level and shim until even at all 4 corners. It will be easiest (and safest) to drain most of the water out into a trusty brute or two or other suitable containers. You can leave them near the tank - the water will be out of all of 10 minutes - and then just pump it back in.

3. If there were something wrong with the stand your tank would have already failed. Replacing it with another won't change a thing other than the amount of $$$ in your wallet.

Most would say that 1/8" isn't worth worrying about, but I'm a bit OCD about things like that. Even if nobody else knew, it would bug me.


hth

 

[WVNed]

Is it sitting on carpet.? You may have a tack strip under the back of the stand. If so shim the front and you will be fine.