Need HELP!

cadbury

cadbury

Member
Here is the situation, I just put up my 180, its completely full with sand, rock, and water. I used the level to make sure everything was ok, once I put the water in I noticed that it was about a 1 inch unlevel, i did'nt think it would be that big of a deal with a acrylic tank, anyway I have a uneven flow going from the prefilter to the sump, the right side has a abundant water pressure and the left is just trickeling? I have a feeling I'm going to have to drain the tank again to shimmy up the right side?
Any Advice? :( :mad: :confused:
 
melbournefl

melbournefl

Member
Bummer :( well, if it were my tank, I'd definately drain the tank and level it. What on earth causes a 1" sag, is it in the floor? I'd be concerned about the tank location if I'm getting a 1" sag under the weight. I'm afraid you're going to have to drain the tank no matter how you decide to fix the problem.
Sorry, just my opinion,
Paul
 
cadbury

cadbury

Member
It's on a cement platform, I guess I just have to empty it and just shimmy it. I just have to face the facts!!!
 
melbournefl

melbournefl

Member
okay, let me see if I understand. Your stand is on a cement floor, you put tank on the stand, checked the top of the tank rim using a level and it was perfect? is this correct? If I'm understanding this correctly then you stand *must* be bending at one end. Now this makes NO sense to me but it sounds like it's either that or the cement hadn't hardened completely when you put the stand on it LOL I'm sorry I don't mean to laugh but there is certainly *something* very screwy going on. More info?
Later,
Paul
 
cadbury

cadbury

Member
Alright Paul, Look I went ahead and put the aquarium on the stand, I placed the level at multiple points of the tank to check for the balance. The level read correct and it looked to be fine, I added the water to the aquarium and it was about a 1inch differance from right side to left, I can't explain it. I also had one of the guys thats also my friend over from the Pet store and has done hundreds of these. Its puzzeling to us too, we could'nt figure out what could of went wrong. Instead of emptying it out and refilling it I'm going to try to purchase some "Shims" from Home Depot and see if I can raise it a little that way, it just may work?
 
melbournefl

melbournefl

Member
The shims probably won't be able to compensate for more than 1/4" of the slope :( I really think it's fairly important to figure out why on earth you'd get a 1" variation between empty and full. It might be something more serious than we can speculate right now. Did you check the floor for level? I know I have about a 1/4" slope over 9 feet of my floor, but 1" over the length of your tank seems awfully extreme. What is the stand constructed of?
Just tossing random thoughts right now,
Paul
 
melbournefl

melbournefl

Member
Okay here's a dumb thought but is it possible that the acrylic is bending under the weight of the water? Again, is the floor level? Here's my reasoning thus far:
1) Floor is level
2) Stand on floor is level
3) Tank on stand on floor is level
4) Add water and now:
A) Floor is level
B) Stand is no longer level (which of course means tank is no longer level either)
Not much help probably but since I've never worked with an acrylic stand, it's the only thing I can think of.
Sorry,
Paul
 
cadbury

cadbury

Member
Thanks again Paul, I'm going to go home today after work and just start from scrath and try to look at every possible aspect.
 
melbournefl

melbournefl

Member
LOL Jester, good point, and one I completely missed! Try taking a glass of water and filling it half way and then check various points on the floor once you've drained the tank. Just eyeballing it should tell you if you need a new level or not. By the way, this is not as outrageous a possibilty as it may first sound, I found out the hard way that once the kid's drop your square a few times without telling you, the square ain't square no more! :mad:
Good luck,
Paul
 
surfnturf

surfnturf

Member
While the tank is still full, check the sides of the stand with your level to make sure it is plumb, the idea being that the stand is somehow leaning. Weird situation, any chance you could post a picture of the stand so we can see what you're dealing with? If you have a good length of clear tubing you can fill it with water and put one end of the tubing at each end of the stand and make sure it is level that way to rule out your level being unlevel;)
 
N

newreefers

Guest
sounds like your set up is about a half a bubble out of plumb, LOL, but seriously, when you do it the 2nd time, set a good level on your tank while filling it to monitor the levelness (don't think that's a word) but this way if something goes wrong early in the game you won't waste a lot of water and time.
 
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