Sweetysmum Posted January 27, 2007 Report Share Posted January 27, 2007 I am very worried about the polystyrene under my six foot fish tank that I have set up. The water stones and plants are all in. Also some fish. I was hoping to move Sweety in to her new home but I cant help feeling concerned about the polystyrene. It is a six foot tank and when the pet shop got the tank made and it was delivered, what they had done was glued two pieces of 10mm polystyrene together to make a total of 20mm and placed this under my fish tank. They were originally only going to supply 10ml but I asked for a thicker piece because I was advised it was best for this size tank. I was a bit surprised when I discovered all they had done is glued 2 pieces together. The two pieces, top and bottom, were placed reasonably even, on top of the other, although not perfectly even, ie about 1 mm overhang from the top to bottom in some parts. Sorry for rambling. Anyway the shop I purchased this from is a very well known reputable shop, so I did not like to question them any more. However I have just received some High density polystyrene from another supplier, for another purpose, and since receiving this, have discovered the polystyrene the pet shop placed under the tank is not high density - but 'alot' softer. The tank and polystyrene are sitting on a very solid straight wooden base, but I cant help feeling very concerned that something will go wrong. The water has been in the tank about 4 weeks now and there have been no problems. Along the front end between the tank and poly, I guess because I am taking extra notice of it now, I have discovered that I am able to slip a thin piece of paper a wee way underneath the tank, not sure how far it will slip along, as I dont really like to try too far. SO I guess in short does anyone think I may experience problems in the future due too soft poly being used instead of high density, under my six foot tank, which is sitting on a solid wooden base. I posted this in beginners too as I wasnt sure where the best place to put this concern would be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidb Posted January 27, 2007 Report Share Posted January 27, 2007 due to the surface area of the tank there shouldn't be any problems based on the density and thickness of the foam- as long as it covers the whole of the base. The foam is to make up for the unevenness of the stand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren Posted January 27, 2007 Report Share Posted January 27, 2007 10mm or 20mm will make no difference. Polystyrene does not fix much if any of the unevenness or twist in a stand. It's only purpose is to stop a piece of grit or a screw head creating a pressure point on the bottom glass causing it to break. If you put your hand on a piece of polystyrene and push, you will find it takes quite a bit of force to squash it even a little bit. The force per square mm your tank applies to the polystyrene is not enough to deform it. Therefore it does little or nothing to fix bung stands. That's why it is so important to get the stand as perfect as possible. Any errors in the stand cause extra stress on the glass in the tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidb Posted January 27, 2007 Report Share Posted January 27, 2007 haha warren you say it so much more proffessionally than me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren Posted January 27, 2007 Report Share Posted January 27, 2007 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweetysmum Posted January 27, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2007 It does cover the entire base of the tank except for say about 2mm on one of the ends, where it overlaps the poly. Could that cause problems. It took two men to lift it even when it was empty as it is made of 12mm glass. And when the men were placing the tank down, one of then got there hand/glove caught underneath the tank, which ended up leaving an imprint on the poly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren Posted January 27, 2007 Report Share Posted January 27, 2007 No, it will be fine as long as the base is good. With 12mm glass you have extra strength as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.