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Portsie
01/13/2014, 07:19 PM
Hi all,
I just purchased a used 90g tank and stand. I have the tank on the stand in the garage. I know that the floor in the garage is sloped a bit, but the tank is not sitting level on the stand. There is about 1/4 inch of wobble from the front right, to the back left. When I picked up the tank and stand, the guy I bought it off had a 1/4 inch thick piece of ply wood about 3"x1" long under the front right corner. Is this the proper way to shim it up? Any advice on how to get it level?
Thanks in advance,
Jeff

davocean
01/13/2014, 07:21 PM
Sounds like the stand is off.
You want to be able to shim the stand, not the tank.
Might want to post pics.

Portsie
01/13/2014, 08:05 PM
Thanks for the reply, ill try explaining a little better, and can post pics tomorrow if necessary. The front left corner, and back right corner, are always in contact with the stand. But if the front right corner is touching the stand, then there is a 1/4 gap between the stand and the bottom of the tank and vice versa.

Mateous
01/13/2014, 08:12 PM
If the top of the stand is uneven you could put a piece of Styrofoam under the tank

Cdodge1
01/13/2014, 08:15 PM
Get some engineering shims from home depot. You can level a tank when it's full with those babies. Be sure to evenly space out the shims or you risk damaging your stand

syrinx
01/13/2014, 08:26 PM
If the top of the stand is uneven you could put a piece of Styrofoam under the tank

Only if the tank manufacturer says to do so. This will void many warrantee- and can be a problem on rimmed tanks with floating bottoms.

davocean
01/13/2014, 08:43 PM
Yes I understood what you meant, the top of the stand is not level or warped or something of that nature.
I would not rely on foam, or weight of tank filled to resolve that issue.
It's ok for the floor to be out, most are, but the surface of your stand should be level enough for the tank to sit clean w/ out rocking.
It may or may not be a quick fix, seeing it helps a great deal(I am a contractor/carpenter just FYI)

Portsie
01/13/2014, 08:54 PM
Ok, what specifically do you need pics of? I'll do my best to get some up tomorrow. Keeping my fingers crossed this is one of the quick fixes :)

Ryan2013
01/13/2014, 09:02 PM
If it is indeed the floor that's off, you could use the self leveling compound that homedepot sells. If its the stand, I agree with shimming the stand until level.

Portsie
01/13/2014, 09:04 PM
Ok, sorry, I think I might have left out an important note, the tank and stand are not in their final location, I will be moving it inside this weekend hopefully. However, I think the fact that the guy had the piece of wood "shimming" the tank when I picked it up shows that something is off up top.

davocean
01/13/2014, 09:09 PM
^^ yep, that would be suspicious to me of a sloppy built stand or possibly warped, so seeing what was built or how at least helps in pointing out possible corrections.

syrinx
01/13/2014, 09:12 PM
The unlevel floor could cause the stand to rack a little. Once you get it into the house, shim the stand to it is level. If the top rim of stand is out of whack Then you are going to have to use a full length shim, or even out the high spots. The tank needs a flat level surface- so you cannot just spot shim the tank.

Portsie
01/13/2014, 09:22 PM
Ok, thanks for all the help everyone. Here are a few pics of the back corners on the back of the stand, inside and out, and a front view, there is trim on the front above the top of the stand so pics of that side are hard.
http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/97B539F2-6202-46EC-9E62-C493AF7BBB04-6165-00000B720FA4A6CA_zps4b3b5749.jpg

http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/A23356A7-81BD-48FC-BFD8-C3CD5CE1105D-6165-00000B72139DB20F_zps0fc0bc66.jpg

http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/504BBE8C-BDB5-4187-B752-9EDE8F285B22-6165-00000B7216FEA997_zps9623b872.jpg

http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/E6B54F70-5163-401F-B00C-5A55E920D053-6165-00000B721D77D2D6_zpsd9b6e067.jpg

http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/3E8B9A2C-3BAE-4333-A860-B1A76EBB9F7E-6165-00000B7221E88308_zps0ede128c.jpg

http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/22CFD962-DF97-4A7C-BD2D-7DEB66053893-6165-00000B721A1CA5D3_zps93a183f3.jpg

GroktheCube
01/13/2014, 10:54 PM
If the tank is unlevel on the stand, rather than the stand being unlevel on the floor, return it. The stand is defective. Not worth risking trying to shim it, IMHO. The LFS will definitely switch it out for a properly made one no problem.

davocean
01/14/2014, 09:18 AM
Those links did not work for me

Portsie
01/14/2014, 09:27 AM
I'll try this

http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/97B539F2-6202-46EC-9E62-C493AF7BBB04-6165-00000B720FA4A6CA_zps4b3b5749.jpg

http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/A23356A7-81BD-48FC-BFD8-C3CD5CE1105D-6165-00000B72139DB20F_zps0fc0bc66.jpg

http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/504BBE8C-BDB5-4187-B752-9EDE8F285B22-6165-00000B7216FEA997_zps9623b872.jpg

http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/E6B54F70-5163-401F-B00C-5A55E920D053-6165-00000B721D77D2D6_zpsd9b6e067.jpg

http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/3E8B9A2C-3BAE-4333-A860-B1A76EBB9F7E-6165-00000B7221E88308_zps0ede128c.jpg

http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/22CFD962-DF97-4A7C-BD2D-7DEB66053893-6165-00000B721A1CA5D3_zps93a183f3.jpg

GroktheCube
01/14/2014, 09:27 AM
Ok, thanks for all the help everyone. Here are a few pics of the back corners on the back of the stand, inside and out, and a front view, there is trim on the front above the top of the stand so pics of that side are hard.
http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/97B539F2-6202-46EC-9E62-C493AF7BBB04-6165-00000B720FA4A6CA_zps4b3b5749.jpg

http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/A23356A7-81BD-48FC-BFD8-C3CD5CE1105D-6165-00000B72139DB20F_zps0fc0bc66.jpg

http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/504BBE8C-BDB5-4187-B752-9EDE8F285B22-6165-00000B7216FEA997_zps9623b872.jpg

http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/E6B54F70-5163-401F-B00C-5A55E920D053-6165-00000B721D77D2D6_zpsd9b6e067.jpg

http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/3E8B9A2C-3BAE-4333-A860-B1A76EBB9F7E-6165-00000B7221E88308_zps0ede128c.jpg

http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/22CFD962-DF97-4A7C-BD2D-7DEB66053893-6165-00000B721A1CA5D3_zps93a183f3.jpg

The pictures seem to be showing up OK in this reply. The IMG tags didn't get applied in your post for some reason.

davocean
01/14/2014, 09:56 AM
Well, looks like that stand either warped(lots of open end grain showing that is not sealed) or possibly the guy built it w/ bowed lumber, or maybe even both.
I would just rebuild the stand if it were me.
It's possible you could remove the ply top, and maybe pull a string or straight edge to see where the framing is out, and then correct that in kind of long rip shims/solid wood ripped, then new ply top, but it's almost harder to do that than just rebuild it.
You could try, maybe it could be a fairly easy fix for you, maybe.
I would not do what last guy did and just shim the tank though.

ca1ore
01/14/2014, 10:00 AM
I would just rebuild the stand if it were me.

Agreed! Starting with a shoddy stand is not the best path to long-term success. Shimming should be done between the stand and the floor NOT between the tank and the stand. The latter should be flat and coplanar.

Portsie
01/14/2014, 10:33 AM
Ugghhh....that's what I was afraid of. I plan on keeping this tank for a long time, so I want it to be done right. I think I'll try taking the top off and see what I'm dealing with, and try some of those long shims first. I'll probably post some more pics later and look for some more advice. Thanks all!

ca1ore
01/14/2014, 12:41 PM
What I would do if I were you is to take off the trim, top and sides and inspect the frame. You may find that replacing a bowing 2x4 or 2x6 or even just squaring up the frame will solve your problem and you can then just reinstall the sides and top.

davocean
01/14/2014, 04:32 PM
Depending on what's going on w/ framing, you might even be able to hand plane or belt sand, or ugh...hand sand w/ a block to knock down what's high.
Either way it's gonna take some elbow grease to make that stand right, but that is the least expensive way I guess.

Portsie
01/14/2014, 06:39 PM
Ok, I got the top off and the issue is still there. It is pretty level everywhere except in the back left to right front diagonal. I had a buddy who knows a lot more about wood working than me come down and have a look. He suggested ripping a 2x4 into a shim that would be about 24 inches long and put that along the long edge, then ripping another one about 9 inches and putting that along the short side, and then screwing the plywood top back down on top of them? Seem like a reasonable, and safe long term solution?

Portsie
01/14/2014, 06:41 PM
http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/B76F22E7-65F1-4DB0-BDFF-867F603C2374-6873-00000C983EEE972B_zps11a296d0.jpg

davocean
01/14/2014, 08:17 PM
That should work.

Portsie
01/14/2014, 08:50 PM
Ok, thanks a lot for all your help. Really appreciate it!

foundnemo11
01/15/2014, 05:19 PM
When u use shins put in corners since that is where the load of weight will be

Portsie
01/20/2014, 08:03 AM
So I got the top nice and flat, and have the stand in place in the living room. It is not quite level, I imagine due to the floor. It slopes from front to back about a 1/8 of an inch. Is shimming the back corners the way to correct this?

davocean
01/20/2014, 09:23 AM
That should do it.

Portsie
01/20/2014, 08:23 PM
So I tried shimming between the stand and the floor, and ran into a few problems. With no shims, its perfectly level side to side, and out 3/16 of an inch front to back. If I shim the back up, there is a gap from the back corner all the way to the front corner on both sides. Is 3/16 within the acceptable tolerance of level? Or does it have to be perfect. If it needs to be perfect, is it ok to have that gap?

davocean
01/20/2014, 08:47 PM
Normally I would stick shims along that gap as well, cut them flush, and then cover that ugliness w/ shoe moulding or quarter round.

Portsie
01/20/2014, 08:53 PM
What about the length along the entire back? Would it need to be shimmed as well? I'm assuming the 3/16 gap would be the entire length... sorry for all the questions, first time doing this, I appreciate the advise.

davocean
01/20/2014, 09:08 PM
It would be preferable to get a couple/few shims across the back as well, yes.

don_chuwish
01/21/2014, 10:54 AM
I think you're getting to the solution. But it's just sad that someone made such a strong stand that is so far off! It's a beast otherwise.

Portsie
01/21/2014, 05:53 PM
Woo Hooo! Thanks for all the help everyone, especially davocean.

http://i1270.photobucket.com/albums/jj610/Portsie12/51F2E523-EE3B-4681-873D-FBF2C55085A5-10301-000011FEFA28B487_zps85fddafc.jpg

davocean
01/21/2014, 08:08 PM
You're welcome, now get some water moving and post some pics!