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It could be shimmed, would be a bit more difficultly. Just make sure your shims are placed under the preasure parts. In other words, under the areas that would be the corner of the base of the stand. Depending on how much difference there is, you can also try paint sticks, especially since you have a wider area to shim. I have many times shimmed flat bottom tanks, no problems really.

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There is always a bigger fish...

Keith, take out the intermediate struts in your drawing, add a base plate, and make the whole so that the tank stand can fit inside it, and you effectively have part of the construction details for my plan. Fill the gap with a supporting medium (e.g., concrete) levelled in situ so that when the tank and stand are placed therein, the tank is level once more.

But your idea (build a base plate with a compensating slope) would also work nicely. And be less messy vis-a-vis mixing concrete


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

To take up any slight adjustments add a thin strip of rubber under the base frame this will give it a perfect level on the floor.

If you want more info PM me

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
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Sorry missed drawing

Keith

keithgh attached this image:


Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
VOTE NOW VOTE NOW

Being a cabinet maker shimms would be a waste of time and possibly very dangerous as far as safety for the tank you will have to make up a base frame like this. It will take some basic wood working skills.
It is just a matter of shaping the base to the floor level. A good long spirit level is required not those little toy things.

Have a look in [link=My Profile]http://
www.fishprofiles.com/interactive/forums/profile.asp?userid=6741" style="COLOR: #00FF00[/link] for my tank info

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Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
VOTE NOW VOTE NOW

To check the soundness of your tank vis-a-vis build quality, you could also obtain a set square, and make sure that ALL corner angles are EXACTLY 90 degrees. Any measureable deviation is a cause for concern.

As for levelling the stand, since the problem is the floor (as those stands tend to be made to pretty exacting standards as regards being level on a properly level floor) one other possibility is this.

Either obtain, or have constructed, a walled wooden tray that is slightly longer and wider than the stand. Fill the tray with very fine gravel, and use a spirit level to level the gravel in the tray. Then, sit the stand on top of the gravel. The gravel should take the weight quite adequately, and should also level the entire setup without the need for complicated cutting of diagonal shims.

If you want the stand to be really robust, fill your walled wooden tray with concrete and level that off on site, where the aquarium will be situated. You shouldn't have any trouble with concrete taking the weight of the tank! In the case of concrete, you'll be looking at a ½ inch depth at the 'shallow' end, and however much is needed to make the entire construction level at the 'deep' end. Make sure that the concrete is levelled with a spirit level before it is allowed to set!


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

You can support any part that you want to, to prevent any warping of the structure. The main thing is though, that you shim or support the weight bearing areas. You have to remember, water is app 8 pounds per gallon, a lot of weight there that is at a constant. If the tank is twisted in any way, like one corner lower than the rest, then you are putting much more stress on what was designed just for the stress of the weight of the water. This will in its self cause warping over time, and can cause the seals of the tank to leak or completely break loose. Which in the end is not only a danger, but a disaster waiting to happen.

Now if the tank itself is level to its self (in other words, not twisted, or by all angles other than level it is square) then the added danger is very low. Just a slight added stress point to one end over the other. But this added stress is no more than what the tank is rate for. So it is OK. But the tank must still be square and not twisted.

The easiest way to test this, is to take a perfectly flat board of some kind, and lay it on top of the tank. If the four corners of the tank all touch the board at the same time, it is square and safe. If the flat board rocks then the tank is not square and is in danger of breaking. The problem is finding a perfectly flat board of some kind. Personally I have an old piece of glass I use to check things like this.

Another way, is to take a tool called a square (wood workers and shop workers use these, it is the big "L" looking thing) and place it on each and every corner edge and see if there are any that do not touch it completely. All name brand tanks are are placed in square molds when they are made, so they will be square when you get them. The only difference when doing this way with larger tanks, is they have a bow you have to take into account for, which is natural, but a whole other way of doing things, lol.

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There is always a bigger fish...

I agree that the stand can still be shimmed, just takes a little more effort to get it done. The main issue is to make sure it is supported properly across the entire base so no sagging or buckling occurs.

You could build a sloped base as Keith suggests, but I don't think that is absolutely necessary and would be quite the job to accomplish if you have little or no experience in this area.

Jim

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Water, taken in moderation, cannot hurt anybody. -- Mark Twain

you don't find it warps the structure of the stand? The top remains flat?

Hi, I just set up my new 90 gallon. It's set up in my basement, with a wooden fish tank stand. After setting it up, I noticed that it is not perfectly level ( the basement floor slopes a little towards the drain ). The lower corner is about a 1/2 inch lower than the upper. Everything looks great though. Could this cause any problems with the aquarium or the stand?

something sort of like this:

http://valentine.blogware.com/fish/tank%20and%20stand%20web.jpg

Don't have a camera handy, but the stand is a 4 foot by 18 inch wood base, with upright boards ( shelves ) and another 4 foot by 18 inch wood top. The stand might be 2 and a half feet tall.

To save any confusion post a photo of the base of the stand.

It could cause a problem being uneven but not necessarly so.

If you decide to level it up the tank will have to be emptied and taken of the stand.

Can you clear this up first are you saying there is no base/plynth just a flat sheet sitting on the floor. If this is the case a support base will have to be made to fit the slope.

You can PM me if this is not clear.

Have a look in [link=My Profile]http://
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Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
VOTE NOW VOTE NOW

also, the left front corner is the highest and the right back corner is the lowest, with the right side being lower than the left. It appears to be sitting completely flat on the floor, and the tank is completely flat on the stand.

would shimming it work if the stand is a flat bottom? There are no legs on the stand.

yes, as old timer there has said. And to shim it up, just go to your local hardware store, and ask them for some shims. They will have wooden shims. Use these to level it off, lifting the corner(s) up with some help, and sliding the shims under them until it is level. Once you have it leve, then you proceed to cutting or breaking off any part that sticks out, once it is level.


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There is always a bigger fish...

It depends. Does the floor slope evenly from back to front or is just one corner lower than the others. If it is just the one corner that is lower then it could cause some stress to the tank which could possible cause a seal to break. Not something you would want to happen I'm sure. You really need to try and get it level all the way around. You can possible shim up the one corner if this is the case to make it level.


Jim

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Water, taken in moderation, cannot hurt anybody. -- Mark Twain