padding under acrylic tanks? / silicone question?

[mattseattle]

Should there be a pad or foam or something under acrylic tanks? I know for glass you should but haven't seen anything regarding acrylic.

if you do, what is recommend to be placed between the tank and the stand?

also, what silicone is safe to glue down starboard to the bottom of the tank? i'm assuming you can get a big tube of it at Home Depot?

Thanks

 

[Willy]

I used 1/2" polystyrene.....the stuff that has the little balls in it compresses a lil better than the blue or pink foam. BTW I have a glass tank, I think Nikki used some under her tank

 

[mattseattle]

thanks Scott.... did you buy the foam at home depot? or where'd you get it?

any others with input on foam under an acrylic tank?

 

[Krish]

Not sure what to put under the tank, but for silicone, I just used the aquarium silicone you guys can probably get at like a petsmart or something like that.

 

[mattseattle]

ok, the expensive stuff? usually the stuff at petsmart is crazy expensive. i thought there was probably a silicone at home depot you could use for tanks.

 

[Krish]

ok, the expensive stuff? usually the stuff at petsmart is crazy expensive. i thought there was probably a silicone at home depot you could use for tanks.

LOL...We don't have a Petsmart here. I used that underneath cause I had a tube lying around and then just sealed around the edges to look neat and prevent anything from going underneath with silicone from the hardware store. Fish are still kicking

 

[mattseattle]

well i have my starboard and ready to silicone it. probably do that this weekend as well and let it sit for a few days to cure. does your starboard reflect a lot of light upwards? that is one reason i went with white starboard instead of black.

 

[jesshimom]

Well I used and love the black but it's almost covered in coralline already so it probably wont matter what color since I know how the coralline normally grows in your tank!!

 

[Krish]

well i have my starboard and ready to silicone it. probably do that this weekend as well and let it sit for a few days to cure. does your starboard reflect a lot of light upwards? that is one reason i went with white starboard instead of black.

I opted for pvc board instead of starboard because it is less glossy. Couldn't say for sure what the starboard does under lights...

 

[Willy]

Use GE 100% silicone found at home depot/ lowes and yes i bought my polystyrene at home depot.. I think...or was it lowes ) LOL

 

[Scooterman]

You can use silicone I, not II let it cure well.
I don't think it is necessary to use foam under the tank, some glass tanks you don't because of the design of the stand, the glass sits it's weight on the edges, so most acrylic tanks do also but IMO it shouldn't hurt using it.

 

[15milerd]

What is the purpose for using foam board to place a glass tank on?

 

[Willy]

What is the purpose for using foam board to place a glass tank on?

To make up for any varitions in the top of the stand. My stand has a solid top.

 

[Scooterman]

What is the purpose for using foam board to place a glass tank on?

Custom tanks & stands may have slight uneven edges so the foam makes up for that & distributes the weight evenly, otherwise CRACK!:shock:

 

[mattseattle]

thanks - so use silicone I and not really necessary to have foam under the tank for acrylic tanks.

i have a soild top stand that i've sanded it down well to make sure it's even.

 

[Scooterman]

If you level your stand & have a smooth level surface on top you should be fine, even with glass that is true. My old 100g tank didn't have a bottom except the outer parameter, that is where the glass distributed weight but this tank had plastic straps top & bottom. Silicone II (GE brand BTW) has mildew inhibitors in it, I didn't know this when I made my sump but it didn't seem to cause problems that I could tell.

 

[mattseattle]

yeah, i'm definitely going to have to level the stand as the floor it's going on is relatively uneven. i figure you can use stand shims from home depot or is there something else i should use? on my 55 gallon i used small pieces of wood to level it and so far it's worked but then again with a 120 gallon tank it has even more weight so i want to do it right.

 

[Scooterman]

The only other way would be to cut a custom shim or trim the bottom the exact difference but that may be very difficult if uneven in more than one direction. You can shim it level then fill in the voids with more shim pieces if necessary. I remember wood dood (another board) said something similar, I'd have to search for that it was a few years back.

 

[mattseattle]

yeah, that is what i was thinking.....i'm just going to get quite a few. the only other thing is for me to redo the floor!

 

[Scooterman]

Yep I just check back then, they said cut and shim as much as you can, even weight across. There was one other option on a tile floor or concrete, build a box the size of your stand base, then use self leveling gypcrete i think is what they called it, then after setting up you place the stand on top it, if you had carpet you could use from under it to help level it off, good thing acrylic tanks are forgiving.