Levelling Solana 34g on carpet?

[tgunn]

I'm looking for ideas to level my Solana on carpet. I need to raise the back up a bit, so I tried little squares of composite shim under the back feet. But it seems to have made the stand a little bit less stable. I imagine once the carpet compresses down it'll be okay. I've got a couple 35lb bags of sand in the tank right now to weigh it down.

Any other ideas of how best to level a stand on carpet like this?

Thanks,
Tyler

[jewcy240]

You could always put a sheet of plywood down, i've done it in the past, the only down side is if you move the tank you have a flat carpit, nothing a fork cant fix. now that i think of it you would have a clean spot of carpit too.

[tgunn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14700767#post14700767 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jewcy240
You could always put a sheet of plywood down, i've done it in the past, the only down side is if you move the tank you have a flat carpit, nothing a fork cant fix. now that i think of it you would have a clean spot of carpit too.

My only worry with that would be stability. The Solana has a very high center of gravity and a small footprint..

Hmm. I will have to think about it more.

So far the tanks seems relatively stable with the feet shimmed as I've got it. It's pretty level right now; left to right the bubble on my level is almost perfectly centered, just a bit to the left (1/16"). And front to back the bubble sits a tiny to the back (1/16" off center).

Perhaps I'll try filling it to see how the extra weight settles it.

Tyler

[KH971]

The padding on your carpet is 1/2 inch, shimming it where it leans a little forward, and I mean a little. Then fill the tank and let it compress the carpet, then check it. It will take a good 24 hours to compress the carpet fully. Also check you level, it may be off. I always doublecheck all my levels I purchase, just because it was an exspensive one does not mean it is correct. Also watch your water level, that will tell you how the tank needs to be adjusted.
After the tank settles and the carpet compresses then shim it.
Using shims made from hardwood is best, shims made from spruce or pine will compress also. I know this becasue i make wood shims!!!

[tgunn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14703208#post14703208 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by KH971
The padding on your carpet is 1/2 inch, shimming it where it leans a little forward, and I mean a little. Then fill the tank and let it compress the carpet, then check it. It will take a good 24 hours to compress the carpet fully. Also check you level, it may be off. I always doublecheck all my levels I purchase, just because it was an exspensive one does not mean it is correct. Also watch your water level, that will tell you how the tank needs to be adjusted.
After the tank settles and the carpet compresses then shim it.
Using shims made from hardwood is best, shims made from spruce or pine will compress also. I know this becasue i make wood shims!!!

Hmm, I never thought about the fact my level could be off. :lol: Good point! How would I go about verifying the level?

Watching the water level is an obvious one, i'll make sure to check that as i fill the tank. Sounds like I should probably start with a freshwater fill and see how it looks based on that.

I'm using composite shims at the moment (what I have on hand). Only downfall is it could be hard for me to lift the stand to shim once it settles. But I guess I could just drain out most of the water, reshim, and refill and let it settle again.

Definitely not doing this with saltwater. :)

Thanks!
Tyler

[cthedaytrader]

When I had carbet under my tank I used some spare carpet to shim it where I needed and it worked great. I used long strips so it wasnt like small shims. I had thinner carpet, maybe a doormat can be cut up to help you level it. Depends on how off level it is.

[tgunn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14703734#post14703734 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by cthedaytrader
When I had carbet under my tank I used some spare carpet to shim it where I needed and it worked great. I used long strips so it wasnt like small shims. I had thinner carpet, maybe a doormat can be cut up to help you level it. Depends on how off level it is.

It wasn't off by much. The problem with this carpet is its a pile carpet so it kinda has to crush down.

I never thought of using carpet for a shim though... Good idea.

Luckily I have 4 distinct feet to work with here so it's a LOT easier to shim.

Tyler

[ol1]

I personally used pieces of cardboard for my tank and carpet situation. As said earlier wait a day or two to see how it settles, and adjust as needed.

[KH971]

Is sand in the tank? If not pour a very small amount of water in the bottom of the aquarium and watch how it levels out in the bottom of the tank. Water is the perfect level, and you can adjust it very easy with there being no weight.

[tgunn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14704344#post14704344 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ol1
I personally used pieces of cardboard for my tank and carpet situation. As said earlier wait a day or two to see how it settles, and adjust as needed.

The composite shims I used are a similar kind of thing. I'll see tonight how its levelled out after sitting with 70lbs of sand bags in it over night.

Tyler

[tgunn]

Well, what'dya know, I have the tank half filled now and I used a ruler to measure the water level at all 4 corners. The back is less than 1mm (0.0394 inches) off from the front. GOOD enough for me. :)

[KH971]

make sure your ruler was not sitting on any silicone and throwing your measurement. and congratulations you are on your way.

[username in use]

they use this method for leveling large speakers n carpet with very high centers of gravity. Cut a sheet of 3/4 ply the size of your stand. Than add a leveling spike on each corner. You can get them at partsexpress for like ten bucks. They all screw in and out to level it and hae a locking nut. That way you can take the carpet out of the equation and have a rock solid, perfecty level tank.

[Future]

1/4" plywood placed directly under the carpet will eleviate any flaws in the floor itself thus allowing the stand to have a level seating on the carpet.

Never trust the level of a floor, concrete floors are eye leveled, all other floors go through settling phases where they slightly shift over time, get wear spots, etc...

[tgunn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14710209#post14710209 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by KH971
make sure your ruler was not sitting on any silicone and throwing your measurement. and congratulations you are on your way.

Nope, made sure it was right on the stand surface. :)

So far so good though. :)

I just double checked the water surface against the top of the tank. OH NOES I'm 1/32" off from being perfectly level. :lol:

Tyler

[tgunn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14710673#post14710673 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by username in use
they use this method for leveling large speakers n carpet with very high centers of gravity. Cut a sheet of 3/4 ply the size of your stand. Than add a leveling spike on each corner. You can get them at partsexpress for like ten bucks. They all screw in and out to level it and hae a locking nut. That way you can take the carpet out of the equation and have a rock solid, perfecty level tank.

Awesome; thanks for that. I am going to have to get some of those. My tower speakers have NEVER been particularly stable on the carpet and those would work perfectly!

The tank is already filled so I think I'll leave it alone for now. Good to know those exist though.

Thanks!
Tyler

[tgunn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14710927#post14710927 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Future
1/4" plywood placed directly under the carpet will eleviate any flaws in the floor itself thus allowing the stand to have a level seating on the carpet.

Never trust the level of a floor, concrete floors are eye leveled, all other floors go through settling phases where they slightly shift over time, get wear spots, etc...

That would be similar to how I put 1/2" plywood down before laying the tile in the bathrooms. Surprising how unlevel the floors are!

Tyler

[tgunn]

Okay, I'm curious. For those who have Solanas, how stable ARE the stands really? I mean, is the stand rock solid on a hard floor? The stand seems stable, but it is possible to push on it and make it lightly rock. I am not sure I'm 100% comfortable with that. Would the speaker spikes help that? Isn't 300-400 LB a LOT to have on 4 sharp points?

Thanks!
Tyler

[vresor]

I'm in the market for a Solana and have observed the same wobbly trait of the Current USA stand. It does seem like it should have some more reinforcement to hold up nearly 400 pounds.

[tgunn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14714288#post14714288 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by vresor
I'm in the market for a Solana and have observed the same wobbly trait of the Current USA stand. It does seem like it should have some more reinforcement to hold up nearly 400 pounds.

As in its wobbly even on a stable floor? Hmm, that's not good.

[vresor]

It may have been the assembly technique (or the assembler), but I opened the door on one at AA in Columbus and thought it was going to collapse. The glass was held in by cheapo tabs like those on cheap frames and the drawer had no runners; just wood on wood. It's a neat looking stand, but I will be shopping for something else.

[tgunn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14715554#post14715554 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by vresor
It may have been the assembly technique (or the assembler), but I opened the door on one at AA in Columbus and thought it was going to collapse. The glass was held in by cheapo tabs like those on cheap frames and the drawer had no runners; just wood on wood. It's a neat looking stand, but I will be shopping for something else.

Yeah, now that I look at it I think I see what the problem is.

FRONT to BACK the stand has ZERO wobble, its side to side where the issue is. And seeing how it goes together I can see why. The back panel that prevents the stand from turning into a parallelogram is screwed in at the TOP and the BOTTOM by little tiny screws. It just sits in a groove and nothing really ties it to the left and right legs at the back. So the wobble I'm seeing left to right is because the back panel isn't preventing the stand from going into a parallelogram shape left to right.

My fix will be to cut a piece of 3/4" plywood that fits INSIDE the stand between the back legs. I'm going to cut it for a SNUG fit and glue it in. If all goes well this should mostly eliminate the side to side sway the stand exhibits.

Of course, you are right, I was REALLY expecting a lot more for the stand. But I guess i'm used to the welded tube steel stand from my old 140g; that thing was STABLE. :)

Tyler

[vresor]

Sounds like a good mod Tyler. I'm sure the wood itself is fine, so shoring up the joints should make it solid.

[tgunn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14715619#post14715619 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by vresor
Sounds like a good mod Tyler. I'm sure the wood itself is fine, so shoring up the joints should make it solid.

I'll be sure to post pictures of the mods I do so that others can get ideas for their setup.

It IS still quite disappointing that I have to make these modifications. I had hoped this setup would work perfectly out of the box. Oh well, such is life.

Tyler

[username in use]

i like that your going to put the spikes on your speakers. Believe it or not, it will make the speakers sound better. opens them up a little because it eliminates vibrations going into the speakers from the floor, and eliminates vibrations going down to the floor from the speakers. You can go onestep further and get cones for under your reciever/dvd/whatever player.

[tgunn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14724135#post14724135 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by username in use
i like that your going to put the spikes on your speakers. Believe it or not, it will make the speakers sound better. opens them up a little because it eliminates vibrations going into the speakers from the floor, and eliminates vibrations going down to the floor from the speakers. You can go onestep further and get cones for under your reciever/dvd/whatever player.

I'm even more curious about how the sound will change the more I read about it. I'll also have to try it on my 12" HSU sub. Though I don't know if I want to reduce the amount of bass that gets transferred to the floors; it is strangely satisfying to have the floor shake when I watch a movie. :)