Aquarium stand bowing in the middle

[MeisterDonkey]

Hi,

I have a 20 gallon tank 60x36x36cm on a JBL AquaPad mat and a Lido SBX 120 cabinet. I added a vertical board in the middle to strengthen it. But now after i filled the aquarium with water the cabinet is bowing in the middle. It is a little less than 1mm. The mat is clearly more compressed on the edges. The aquarium itself is not bowing as far as i can see. As i understand it is the mat bowing my cabinet.

Do i need to fix this? I am not so keen to take any risks 🙂

Thanks in advance!

[nabokovfan87]

That's a bit nuts! The stand by default doesn't have any center support? I feel like this stand is missing parts or something....

At worst case talk with the stand manufacturer regarding the issue. You should not have to add your own supports to the stand. 1mm bow in the middle is pretty common and not too much of a concern, but the issue here is that's after you added your own brace. I don't see a brace across the back or the front to support the length of the tank. The stand may be intended for rimmed/framed aquariums and not for a rimless aquarium.

The difference being that for a rimmed/framed aquarium it means you only really have to support the corners. When it comes to the rimless aquarium you support the entire base of the tank, bottom glass, and if you don't the tank can crack on you.

If you can take the stand back to the store, explain it's defective for this setup, and potentially they have another option. Barring that, talk to the manufacturer and go from there.

On 8/12/2023 at 11:47 AM, MeisterDonkey said:

As i understand it is the mat bowing my cabinet.

I wouldn't think the mat itself is doing that. Ultimately when you think about how a tank is loaded the glass bows outward (longest pane being the worst case) and that deflection has to go somewhere. Usually there is a downward arc of stress and an outward arc of stress. The mat would just compress as things are loaded.  It's not really designed or intended to be a stress bearing part. It's meant to absorb any imperfections and spread, even out, the load.

From the website, shows a rimmed/framed aquarium.

 

[Galabar]

It does look like it has a support in the back (I think I can see it in your image).  I'm just assuming that the tops of particle board stands like that will bow somewhat.  I wish ACO would come out with their own line of aquarium stands that are made from solid wood and plywood... 🙂

If you look at the diagram below, both the top and bottom are the same.  So, when you added the center support, the bottom might have drooped just as much as the top (it looks like there are feet and the bottom isn't resting directly on the floor).  You could add plywood and framing lumber in various places to that stand.  However, it might be better to just find a better quality one.

https://www.juwel-aquarium.de/website/Anleitungen/Aquarien/Lido_Line/GB_SBX_Lido_120_200.pdf.pdf

Edited August 12, 2023 by Galabar

[MeisterDonkey]

Yes there is a support in the back its exactly like in the pdf you linked. I removed the feet so the bottom board is resting directly on the floor.

The quality seems pretty poor. A tank with a feame works probably somewhat better i guess..

[nabokovfan87]

On 8/12/2023 at 10:17 PM, MeisterDonkey said:

Yes there is a support in the back its exactly like in the pdf you linked. I removed the feet so the bottom board is resting directly on the floor.

The quality seems pretty poor. A tank with a feame works probably somewhat better i guess..

It's a bit different in terms of the stress loading.  It's hard to say what is "correct", but ultimately I personally wouldn't feel comfortable with a rimless tank on that stand.  For whatever reason it doesn't seem to have the structure needed to fully support this type of tank.  To give you an idea....

This is just a generic stand photo.  This piece of wood seems to be missing from the above design.  It's probably pretty critical to spread the loud out properly. (for either aquarium type, honestly, but especially rimless)

[MeisterDonkey]

Thank you for your detailed reply! My main concern is the tank i think/hope the stand will not bow more. The vertically board i added feels pretty stable but a better way to strengthen would probably be like you pointed out to even add a horizontal board.

Can the tank handle to have most of the weight on the sides over time?

The tank has 6mm glas, 17 gallons of water and 10kg of sand. So its not too heavy.

[Shadow]

On 8/13/2023 at 1:46 PM, MeisterDonkey said:

Thank you for your detailed reply! My main concern is the tank i think/hope the stand will not bow more. The vertically board i added feels pretty stable but a better way to strengthen would probably be like you pointed out to even add a horizontal board.

Can the tank handle to have most of the weight on the sides over time?

The tank has 6mm glas, 17 gallons of water and 10kg of sand. So its not too heavy.

Not too heavy, yes, but still heavy enough. 6mm glass 17 gal rimless is around 28 pounds with water is over 225 pounds. Add in sand, rock(if you are using rock) and other hardscape, it'll be over 250 pounds likely. 

P.S. When I moved I had the same issue but after I established the tank. Dropping the water, moving it and resetting it up while moving fish/other livestock was super stressful. @nabokovfan87 remembers I am sure as they helped me greatly. Just always would rather be safe than sorry as the headaches for feeling something is adequate and then them falling apart is more trouble often times than it is worth. 

[Galabar]

Interesting.  Maybe the supporting board that you added isn't quite long enough? In that picture, and if the bottom board is directly on the ground, I don't think the top board would bow at all (if the support board you added was the correct length).

[JChristophersAdventures]

@MeisterDonkey Here is a YT video you might want to watch... your issue happens even to experienced fish keepers.

Hope this makes you feel better. I would, however, look into a long term solution to keep your aquarium safe. Thanks.

[nabokovfan87]

On 8/13/2023 at 11:46 AM, MeisterDonkey said:

Can the tank handle to have most of the weight on the sides over time?

That's the thing.... rimless tanks you MUST support the entire base of the bottom glass.

Bowing or lack of support is not great for rimless situations.

[nabokovfan87]

On 8/13/2023 at 4:33 PM, JChristophersAdventures said:

@MeisterDonkey Here is a YT video you might want to watch... your issue happens even to experienced fish keepers.

Hope this makes you feel better. I would, however, look into a long term solution to keep your aquarium safe. Thanks.

pretty sure this is the same stand in question, just a different model.  The latches for the doors look identical.

[MeisterDonkey]

Thanks for your input! I was hoping to use/fix the current cabinet but it seems to be the safest route to buy a new one. Lesson learnd 🙂 Think i better invest some hundred euros in a safe cabinet than a new floor..

Edited August 14, 2023 by MeisterDonkey