# Aquarium Levelling Question



## RevoBuda (Sep 3, 2011)

I was wondering, I have 2 tanks (150g and 100g) that are about 1/2" off level due to the slop in my floor, not the stand or anything like that (They are in the basement). I am reading conflicting opinions about this, do I really need to go through the trouble of levelling the stand by adding shims underneath it? Some people say as long as the tank is only off by 1/2" that it shouldn't be a problem... can I get some opinions here? 

I will not use foam... I would only shim the base. 

if I have to go the route of shimming, should I be adding shims only to the 2 off level corners or do I have to shim further down the stand?

I wonder sometimes when reading these shimm methods if it actually weakens the stand... 

Please give me advice as I have NEVER shimmed a tank, and I've had up to 90 gallon units before.

Thanks in advance.


----------



## Zebrapl3co (Mar 29, 2006)

You seem to have all the answers already. It looks like really can't decide. I think the better question is. Does it bother you to see the 1/2" unlevel in your tank.
Personally, I will try to level it off if I know that I will be running the tank in that configuration for 10+ years. If it was for a year of 2 and it's a new tank. I can leave it like that; as long as it's less than 1/2".
You never shim the tank. You always shim the stand. The only time you might worry about shimming a stand is, if you have a crappy wooden stand that wobbles. If that's the case, get a new metal stand.

*Never pay again for live sex! | Hot girls doing naughty stuff for free! | Chat for free!*


----------



## RevoBuda (Sep 3, 2011)

Hey Zebrapl3co, 

Thanks for your reply! I wish I had all the answers :S ... I do plan on keeping the tank in that configuration for about 10 years. Do you think it's an issue if not? I mean, I don't really care about the off level water, I always keep the water up high enough to be covered by the plastic rim.

Do you shim only the 2 corners? or do you slide additional shims around the area? I have a great wooden stand that is not wobbly at all.

Thanks again!


----------



## Mlevi (Jan 28, 2012)

I'd definitely go with leveling as best as possible. I have yet to get an exact center on all four planes for any of my tanks, so I just aim for 'close to center' using a water bridge.

The reason I try to level is because all my tanks are second hand acquired, and I don't want to add stress to one side or pane of the tank anymore than I have to. When you consider water weighs about 8 pounds per gallon, it can add up. 

I have those furniture protectors (metal disks with carpet on one side) from the dollar store under the metal legs of my stands, and small pine shims I whittled under those. I found that works better for me, as those disks spread the pressure. I was using pine shims directly under the legs before, but the legs compressed the pine over time due to the weight. If you use a sturdy wood like oak for your shims, most likely should be ok. I have also seen plastic shims at dollarama. Don't know how sturdy they are.


Al.


----------



## Dman (May 1, 2012)

Hey frank! 

I read your post as soon as you type it and thought I my aswell think of a idea first, what if you build a wooden frame around the bottom and leveled that to the ground, then put your stand on that, would be a bit more work but that's the only way I could think of doing it without the shims, or you could always put a peice of half inch styrafoam under the half that's lower and hope for the best would def bring it down alot  if ya ever need a hand lemme know I'm just down the road


----------



## RevoBuda (Sep 3, 2011)

Sweet deal Andrew! Thanks for your input! I think shims would probably be the easiest method. I honestly would love avoiding doing any of this if I can... I will wait and see as I have never done it before, but am kinda crapping myself to think of 250 gallons of water all over my basement!


----------



## Fishfur (Mar 4, 2012)

Better the basement than the upper floor . Hope there's a drain handy, just in case. 
I've got two 30 G tanks resting on the top of a bookshelf I built about 20 years ago. I meant it originally for books underneath and a very wide plant shelf on top. Used 3 stacks of paving blocks for verticals, two layers of 3/4 plywood for the top, particle board shelves under it, with dividers that support the shelves between the piers. Two large adults can walk on the shelf, to clean the windows, without anything shifting. 

So when I got back into fish, I put the tanks on this shelf. It is not level. It wasn't quite level when I made it, because the floor, which is parquet over concrete, was not level, so I shimmed the top it as best I could. Over time it has settled some. So my tanks have about a half, maybe 5/8ths inch difference between the high end and low end. This is covered by the rim if I keep them full. If not, it shows a bit, but does not bother me. Both tanks were purchased well used, but they show no signs at all of stress. They are, however, supported entirely on their bottoms, on the rims they came with. If your tank is supported entirely along it's bottom or bottom rim, I very much doubt a slope of that degree will put any significant stress on the tank. 

It would be different if one end of the tank was propped up a half inch higher than the other end, leaving the space in between hanging unsupported in air. In that case, it might well cause a big problem, because too much of the weight would be on the short edges only, and at an angle. 

But if it is supported on the entire bottom, I think it would have to be much more out of plumb than it is to have any effect on the tank's integrity. I read a long thread somewhere on this very topic, I'll see if I can find it. I think a couple of structural engineers chimed in, and they figured being a half inch or so out of plumb really would not endanger the structural integrity of a tank, provided the bottom was fully supported. Since most tanks have rims on the bottom, most are supported by those rims no matter what kind of stand they are on anyway.. puts all the weight on the edges only, rather than on the flat bottom, but it's still supported all around, evenly, so it's ok.


----------



## Mlevi (Jan 28, 2012)

Fishfur, that's quite interesting to know. The bottom of my tanks are fully supported. What concerns me, though, is when you have a tank out of center (say the front is lower than the back), then the slant is towards the front (the water will be higher at the front than at the back, as the back is lifted more). That translates to more pressure against the front pane than the back, and by extension, more water pressure against the front of the tank and on the two seams connecting it to the side panes. Since my tanks are rimless, there is no top frame to hold it together. What scares me, is the additional pressure, over time, having an effect on the seams. 

I've seen so many tanks with the top plastic frames cracked, or even the center braces cracked or broken. To my layman's mind, I've always attributed that to uneven water pressure on the tanks due to the tanks not being balanced. With rimless tanks, I am scared to take that chance  Hence my being anal about balancing my tanks *grin*. 

It does relieve my mind to know that it was overkill on my part, coz if my tanks end up flooding the floor, that'd be the end of 'harmonious relations' on the homefront, and I'd have to move my tanks to the garage (along with my folding bed) 

Al.


----------



## Fishfur (Mar 4, 2012)

Try reading this link.. it's not the one I was looking for, but it addresses such things as Point loads and twisting forces, which are the two main things that could stress glass to the breaking point. 
http://fins.actwin.com/aquatic-plants/month.200311/msg00396.html

In the end, if you decide peace of mind is worth leveling, I'd go with putting a level base under the whole stand. Plywood, or even one of those self leveling filling compounds would do. I built a rolling trolley for a cupboard on my balcony. Being a balcony it slopes to the front, for drainage. So I built the trolley level on top, but sloped on the bottom to match the drainage slope, then put my cupboard on it. Works a treat.

It would work for a aquarium too, just don't make it mobile .

Btw, if you read the link, I think the points he makes about twisting and the way tanks normally carry their loads are the most compelling. Glass tanks are designed to carry all their load on their four corners only.. which is why those skinny metal stands are ok to hold them. Acrylic tanks, otoh, must carry their load across the entire base, flat, not on rims or their corners.

But if you get twisting, that's really bad news for any tank. If the tank is not level, so long as it's in a single plane, you're probably ok and it's not hard to check and see if the uneveness is only side to side, front to back or diagonal. Diagonal is going to cause twisting and that is super bad news for glass, which can shatter or even explode, so to speak. But in single plane, that is, if you take two pairs of sides, either long or short and the water is the same distance from the top at both ends on one pair, but maybe not on the other pair, you are ok. But if one pair shows a high and low side that is different from the other pair, then it's twisted and you are going to stress it and likely break it eventually. Levelling a twist is essential.

I hope that is understandable.. I am certainly no kind of engineer and I'm rotten with math too ! Just grew up with a Master Carpenter grand dad and a perfectionist engineer handy dad.


----------



## Mlevi (Jan 28, 2012)

Fishfur said:


> ...Levelling a twist is essential.
> 
> I hope that is understandable.. I am certainly no kind of engineer and I'm rotten with math too ! Just grew up with a Master Carpenter grand dad and a perfectionist engineer handy dad.


It is perfectly understandable, especially if one visualizes the tank.

This is what i love about this forum! The things I get to learn
I had never considered a twist, although it would make it way more dangerous, with pressures going against each other on the same pane. We'd be talking pressure on glass, instead of pressure on the seams (which had been my focus in the past). Leveling that would be a pain and a half, I'd think.

I have yet to see that on any of my tanks, and I hope I never do. Nevertheless, it is definitely something to be aware of and mindful about.
Thanks for sharing, Fishfur.

Al.


----------



## RevoBuda (Sep 3, 2011)

Hey guys,

Thanks again for all the input. I have elected to not shim the tank... only reason being is that the tank itself isn't off level, but the floor slopes. I am not concerned with it causing any issues. The stand is great, so I know there is no issue there.

Once again, I love the input and I greatly appreciate everyone who chimed in!

Cheers!


----------



## BillD (Jun 5, 2006)

Your tank isn't level, if it is on a slope. Whether it is a problem remains to be seen. A bigger concern would be torquing of the tank.


----------



## Riceburner (Mar 14, 2008)

I've had tanks off by 1/2" before...for years. Never had any issues. If I bothered, I'd level the stand by shimming the bottom.


----------



## tom g (Jul 8, 2009)

*shims*

i have had issues with leveling my tanks but what i do is do a huge water change .then shim with door shims that u can get at home depot .once the tank is level i snap the shim and use a exacto knife to trim the shreds of wood
no issues with the shims or tanks .
just my two cents worth 
hope that helps 
cheers


----------

