# Preventative measures to not break your tank.



## nerbaneth (May 1, 2008)

I just bought a 90 gal tall and after reading several posts about people's tanks breaking just randomly, I am scared that this might happen to me. The biggest tank I have ever had prior to this is a 20 gallon. What are ALL the things I can do to keep from hearing that dreaded *CRACK* followed by 90 gallons of water destroying the carpet of my apartment (I live on the bottom floor).


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## rwolff (Mar 13, 2007)

keep your tank leveled...and usually before any 'crack' there is always signs, some not obvious.
But i have learned a lesson that to keep ur tank good leveled is a good and the best first precaution against cracks and leaks.
Tanks that lean more to a front or back side are more vulnerable to rupture.

other things are not to play ball in the house, or throws things, no running near the tank yata yata yata and or put ur tank in a low traffic zone as it has less chance this way of getting tilted 'accidentally'.


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## alicem (Jul 26, 2007)

I think you should be extremely careful when stacking rocks. 
If rock piles are unstable you can knock them over when cleaning or whatever.

If you put rocks stacked against the back glass, I would put padding of some 
sort to cushin it, but that's just me.

Alot of people use light diffuser, commonly called "egg crate," in the bottom. 
It can help protect if you drop a rock. It will help keep a rock from scratching the bottom glass.


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## Rick_Lindsey (Aug 26, 2002)

rwolff said:


> keep your tank leveled...


And perhaps more important than keeping it level, keep the top of the stand *flat*. You want the weight of a glass aquarium spread out nice and even across the perimeter (though i've seen a couple large aquariums with supports across the front and back of the tank, but nothing front to back). I believe an acrylic aquarium wants to be supported across the entire bottom, and again keep it flat!

-Rick Lindsey (the armchair aquarist)


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## nerbaneth (May 1, 2008)

thanks guys! this has been very helpful! my tank is full (hehe for the second time.. I didn't rinse the gravel out well enough and i needed to empty 90 gals with a bucket! hehe then clean 100lbs of gravel.)

my tank is leaning, but very sightly from left to right. it is a four foot tank and the difference between the water level at the far right side and the far left side is half a centimeter. It is not leaning in any other direction. is this ok? I couldn't for some reason achieve much more level with my shims.

once again - thanks for being so helpful guys!


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## rwolff (Mar 13, 2007)

mine was leaning the same direction and by that much, i didnt think much of it or it wouldnt do any harm, but in as little as 6 months, it leaked...and i believe its the culprit of the tank leaking...and mine was a 55G urs is a 90G, id be scared..so id be more safe than sorry.
But u can just always try and see how it goes. Somethings can be fixed simply...maybe you can put a half a cm piece of triplex or somewhat cut to fit like that under the stands footing. dunno depends how the stand is. cuz it may just be that ur floor is not leveled as well and just by putting something on one side of the stand can 'fix' this.

....just sometimes flintstone's logic can solve things.


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## houstonhimself (Oct 20, 2006)

rwolff said:


> mine was leaning the same direction and by that much, i didnt think much of it or it wouldnt do any harm, but in as little as 6 months, it leaked...and i believe its the culprit of the tank leaking...and mine was a 55G urs is a 90G


Nerb, I have had my 90gal leaning a little to the left for almost two years now and I haven't had any problems. One of the main things you should be worried about is weight distribution of the rocks on the bottom of the tank and having a good solid stand. I also put a sheet of styrofoam between the stand and the bottom of the tank to help with the weight distribution.

Have no fear... :thumb:


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## nerbaneth (May 1, 2008)

that is relieving to hear. I also used Styrofoam to distribute the weight. I put a good 3 inches of gravel in so the rocks (err rock..for now). would not put too much pressure on any particular spot. **** if I ever get the chance to make a DIY aquarium I am going to build a glass tank around an acrylic tank - best of both worlds right?!

thanks everyone!


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## cichlids _killer (Apr 13, 2008)

houstonhimself said:


> rwolff said:
> 
> 
> > mine was leaning the same direction and by that much, i didnt think much of it or it wouldnt do any harm, but in as little as 6 months, it leaked...and i believe its the culprit of the tank leaking...and mine was a 55G urs is a 90G
> ...


having rock on the tank that not a problem just make sure to put some egg-crate that will help ...as i was told glass tank you dont really need a foam between the stand and the tank ( only arcyclic tank will need it) with glass tank just put the plywood under it will be fine the tank was design to stand by itself


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## aritg3 (Feb 18, 2008)

Take shims that you can either make or get from Home Depot to use for leveling the tank. A friend helped me with the leveling process. We were pretty picky about the leveling. It sounds like you are ok if you at .5 cm. If you want to used shims under the stand make sure to use several across the tanks edge to distribute the weight. You may have to remove the water and rocks to put the shims in place. Too much weight and you won't be able to adjust the tilt. I did keep my gravel in with about 2 inches of water so I could measure how level the water was by comparing the height of all 4 corners from the bottom of the tank.

I'm like you in that I was scared about the whole glass cracking thing. Once I did what I could to prevent any breaking (what everyone else suggest above) I decided to be ignorant about the issue. At this point I place my fish's lives and my home's floor in God's hands now. Be a kind person and God won't mess with your tank!  

-Ari


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