Uneven floor

[Joejoe]

What is the best way to level a tank on a floor that's not level ?

 

[jgraz]

I used popsicle sticks under mine. works good. But my floor was just a bit off.

 

[panmanmatt]

How far out of level is it? What type of floor? Easiest way would be to shim the stand if it's less than an inch out of level.

 

[thirty5]

Get shims... They even sell the composite ones that will not get effected by water... Shim the corners first and get the tank level in both directions. then fill in around the stand with shims to make sure that you are not supporting by just the corners.

 

[mnat]

I have had to use these on several tanks, they work really well and can be found at any hardware store.

http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?productId=202305811&storeId=10051&langId=-1&catalogId=10053&ci_sku=202305811&ci_kw=%7bkeyword%7d&cm_mmc=shopping-_-googleads-_-pla-_-202305811&ci_gpa=pla

 

[redfishbluefish]

Ah you young people today, always taking the easy way out. Unbolt your house from the foundation and jack up the house and shim the foundation.


You don’t need fancy shims….just buy the “standard” shim-pack from home depot. You get a bunch…maybe 20. If it’s a wood stand, and it’s a decent size, you’ll need a bunch of shims. As stated above, level the stand by shimming the corners. Once this is done, shim the entire length of the raised sides. You cut off the excess shim (the part sticking out of the stand), by scoring it with a straight edged razor and snapping it off.


If it’s a metal stand (or one with corner legs), you only need to shim the legs.

 

[Nickjr000]

Get shims... They even sell the composite ones that will not get effected by water... Shim the corners first and get the tank level in both directions. then fill in around the stand with shims to make sure that you are not supporting by just the corners.

+1. Simple project, if u have a brain and a level

 

[Joejoe]

Cool thanks guys. It's only a 55g. I figured I could just shim it. Just wasn't sure if I had to shim the hole side or not.
However I'm going to ask the landlord if I can unbolt the house and shim the foundation. I want to do it right. LOL

 

[thirty5]

Cool thanks guys. It's only a 55g. I figured I could just shim it. Just wasn't sure if I had to shim the hole side or not.
However I'm going to ask the landlord if I can unbolt the house and shim the foundation. I want to do it right. LOL

You do not need to shim the entire side you are talking about, But just realize that when you shim up one side it may throw off the level in the other direction. So you will need to make sure that you check both directions each time you shim. Then you should shim it every foot I would say but mostly where there are any vertical supports. So in teh case of a wooden stand, then you just need to shim it on the 4 corners and then the front and rear vertical supports. Now technically you should not be shimming all 4 corners since one of them should be on the floor.

It is quite easy to do

 

[The_Codfather]

How far is it off? and make sure the level isn't off

 

[Joejoe]

I haven't moved the tank yet. I'm just eyeing it up, and trying to anticipate any problems I might run into.

 

[AngelPete]

I used the composite shims and they worked great.

 

[Joejoe]

It looks like if it isn't level it would be leaning towards the front of the tank. Which I would have to shim the front. And the tank is going to be on (unfortunately) carpet in the living room.

 

[thirty5]

It looks like if it isn't level it would be leaning towards the front of the tank. Which I would have to shim the front. And the tank is going to be on (unfortunately) carpet in the living room.

It is hard to level a tank that is on carpet .

Using shims will be very very difficult once you get water in the tank since the padding below will crush and push down the carpet..