do I need to worry?

[dustbuckets]

I have an old AGA 72x18x18 plastic framed, but braceless aquarium with 3/4 inch glass that a friend gave me. When sitting on a flat surface there is a gap of about 1/8 inch between the center of the tank and the surface it sits on. It is shaped like a small bow from one end to the other. I have checked the level of the surface and it is perfectly flat. I have filled the tank with water and the gap remains. I have put styrofoam under the tank and filled it, but the gap remains, albiet a little smaller. Is this something I should be worried about or was the tank originally designed this way?

I am getting ready to start my first reef with this tank and just want to make sure it isn't gonna crack or something 6 months after set up!

 

[Anonymous]

Just to be clear, is it a bowfront aquarium like the one in this link:

http://www.petsr4u.com/proddetail.asp?p ... 950&cat=84

In other words the front glass curves outward normally and if you are looking down into the tank from the top, it looks like a letter " D " rather than a rectangle.

 

[dustbuckets]

nope, it is a normal rectangular aquarium, but the center of the bottom plastic trim does not touch the stand or any flat surface I sit it on. It has me kinda worried that the bottom glass will get stressed by this since it is not being supported by the stand, but only by it's own strength and the plastic trim.

 

[Anonymous]

Doesn't sound right at all in that case.

I wouldn't want to take the chance of it cracking. I've been there and the few bucks I saved by using an old tank was not worth what I lost when it failed!

 

[T.Maxima]

Put something with a true edge on the inside of the tank on the bottom glass. See if there is a gap. If there is I don't think this is a good thing. If no gap ( no bow in bottom glass ) just shim it up and go with it.

 

[HClH2OFish]

Put something with a true edge on the inside of the tank on the bottom glass. See if there is a gap. If there is I don't think this is a good thing. If no gap ( no bow in bottom glass ) just shim it up and go with it.

I disagree with shimming it up. The weight of water in a 6' tank is going to be such that the weight bearing down on that area is going to be distributed to the bottom sides of the tank. Unless the frame were specifially designed for this, you're going to be putting too much stress on it which would be a recipe for disaster...esp. with a tank this large..

Just my thinkin...

 

[Anonymous]

I think you be thinkin' right, HCl.

 

[Rikko]

That's actually a very normal situation - I constantly stick things under our tanks at work to freak people out. Thing is, I was sure that was a stand phenomenon and not a tank phenomenon.
Ok, so glass *is* technically a liquid (or so I've been told by those "learned" folk), but it's not going to be bending on you... Flip that sucker over and put a straightedge on it and see if the glass surface is actually bent. I'd be rather surprised if the glass were curved. If your surface is guaranteed level and the glass is level, then the only other possibility we've got is that the plastic frame is flawed in some way.. You could try prying both off and replacing the top frame on the bottom frame.

Hrm. If the tank can hold water, I'd still use it. Lay it on a sheet of styrofoam before you set it up to allow for better weight distribution.. There's just no way the tank "bent" itself and all of a sudden became an odd shape.

 

[Anonymous]

I still say it isn't worth the potential of failing. Why would you take the chance of losing livestock much less the damage that much water would do to your house?

 

[dustbuckets]

It appears the tank was made this way, whether on purpose or flawed, I'm not sure yet. I flipped it over and noticed there is a progressively larger space between the glass and the plastic trim going from the center to the ends with a corresponding larger amount of silicone between glass and plastic. The glass is perfectly flat according to my 4 foot level, btw. It has held water in the past, so maybe it was made that way. I'm gonna contact AGA in any event.

 

[HClH2OFish]

Forgot you had said AGA...yeah, I'd def. give em a call and get the definitive answer!

Please post what they say, I'd be most interested.

Thanks!

 

[dustbuckets]

This is the response I got from AGA.....

The frame could just be warping with age, and the support of the tank is actually the four corners that hold most of the weight. This will not be a problem for support, so you do not have to worry about this. Thank you for checking.
Sincerely,
Customer Service
All-Glass Aquarium Co.
#414-421-9670