Placing a Tank on an Uneven Floor

[Reef Man Dan]

So I picked up a 120g (4x4x2) setup from a local reefer here in Edmonton. Tank is really nice, in great shape and sits on top of a square tube steel frame, that is solid like a tank. The load sits on a 4x2 square of tube, as opposed to legs.

The place that I have in mind for the tank is in the living room on the second floor of our townhouse, sitting directly above a floor beam, with the joists running perpendicular (so parallel to the long length of the tank). Left to right, the tank is perfectly level, however it lists considerably coming off the wall. Please see pictures to see what I mean.

I'm wondering what my option are, as I've never had to manually level a tank before. Is shimming part of the stand an option? The stand its on a laminate floor, so I'm a bit concerned about the significant weight resting on shims, possibly denting the floor. Really I'm just looking for some feedback, see what you guys think, experience you've had and what my options might be.

Thanks!

[Reef Man Dan]

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[Reef Man Dan]

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[morgank]

I always use playing cards to shim, and try to get it as level as possible. If you don't you risk putting stress on the tank and you may bust a seam or develop a leak.

[billdogg]

You can easily shim under the stand using cedar or my go-to, composite shims.

Once you get it level using a few shims, place as many as you can under the rest of the unsupported part of the stand to spread the load as much as possible.

You also need to remove the foam between the tank and the plywood. It will do nothing to help the tank and can possibly compress enough to press up on the bottom glass and cause the seam to fail.

NEVER NEVER NEVER shim between the tank and stand!!!!

I would rethink the food bowls next to the sump - any spillage/splash will end up in your tank.

hth

[kegogut]

I used shims to level my 220 when I set it up. I work with acrylic at work so I made some shims out of acrylic,but playing cards seem like a great idea.

[Reef Man Dan]

I know the guys who had the tank before me had the foam under it. There seems to be fairly mixed reviews on whether foam should be used below a tank or not. The dog bowls wont be there when the tank is running, just a temporary home :)

[ca1ore]

I know the guys who had the tank before me had the foam under it. There seems to be fairly mixed reviews on whether foam should be used below a tank or not. The dog bowls wont be there when the tank is running, just a temporary home :)

Using foam is 'contraversial' certainly, though I always have used it under even rimmed tanks. Assuming one uses an appropriately stiff foam, it's quite surprising how little a tank settles into it. I had a 180 sitting on the pink foam that you can get at HD for a decade, and when removed the tank had sunk in about an eighth of an inch.