Clicking Aquarium.

[graceinhim]

I have a 120 Gallon 4X2X2The aquarium seems to be level. the stand rocked a little before maybe an 1/8 of an inch I filled it but settled I have foam under it. But It seems to click randomly every once in a while. This is with every thing unplugged. it Is brand new. is this normal, what should i do so I don't end up with 120 gallons of water on my floor.

It is on an Iron Stand, on carpet on concrete.

 

[asudavew]

Saltwater or Fresh?

Silly question I know... but which?

 

[thatmagicguy]

Not much you can do at this point. If it is a concrete floor then it won't fall through. It will not tip over if it is mostly level and no one or nothing pulls it over. When glass cracks it can make that noise. Also, I know you said it is brand new, but if there are fish in there and a heater then sometimes fish will knock the heater and cause a noise, but I'm betting you don't have fish in there yet.

Just pay attention to the tank. Anyone who owns an aquarium should have a contingency plan, eg. buckets, stored away in the garage. If a leak were to start you can siphon water into buckets faster than it leaks hopefully and then you will deal with a smaller mess.

Good luck. Bill

 

[graceinhim]

It is Freshwater Planted, I quick Cycled it with media from my other tank so yea there is fish in it.

It clicked with or without fish, I am not sure if it is just the top expanding and contracting, or if it's the stand or the aquarium itself.

 

[Sicklid]

My light fixture clicks and clunks as it heats up or cools off on start up and shut down...

 

[thatmagicguy]

Well then in this case you are your own best detective. Just keep an eye on things and have a plan.

 

[graceinhim]

at this point what would be the best way to check if it is diaganally torqued.

And it is definitely not he light. It does it anytime night or day and did it before I even had the lights on the tank.

 

[thatmagicguy]

If it is a normal rectangular tank sitting flat on top of the stand then there are no reasons for it to be torqued. If it were shoved into a wall crevice or something like that then maybe.

 

[thatmagicguy]

Did you correct the 1/8th inch rock in the stand? I wasn't clear on the foam, the foam is between the tank and the stand correct?

 

[graceinhim]

The stand rocked a bit diagonally 1/8th - 1/4 inch before I Put the tank on it and filled it. There is foam between the tank and stand now. and it doesn't really rock at all anymore. Mind you there is 1400lbs on the stand now. Didn't fix the rock in the stand, Just assumed it would level itself out and it seems to have except for the creaking/clicking.

 

[thatmagicguy]

Well then assuming it is nothing else due to process of elimination I would suspect the noise is either the stand or the tank settling on the foam. Is the stand rated for a 120 gallon aquarium?

 

[graceinhim]

it was built with a 120-150 in Mind, It's 1 1/4" Square tube steel.

Can the stand bend a significant amount to cause problems in the aquarium, and if so why would the noise be random?

 

[thatmagicguy]

If it was built by someone who knows what they were doing then it shouldn't be a problem. But if it has a tendency to torque(the stand I mean) then a heavy 120 gallon aquarium could crack if things twist and go uneven. Obviously a smaller tank, say,,a 29 gallon on a home made stand wouldn't be in as much danger. But you said the tank was 4 feet long. So a reasonable amount of torque could cause stress on it. Again, in this case, you will need to be your best detective, it is hard from where any of us are sitting to say it will definately be ok or not. Tanks make noise after they are filled sometimes. But if it continues past a period of time that a tank is settling on the stand, minutes in most cases, then you need to be wary. I think it comes down to the stand and who maed it. Bill

P.S. I am out of the loop on your sized tank. Is it a home made tank as well? All of the 120's I have been exposed to are 6 feet long.

 

[jsoong]

Didn't fix the rock in the stand, Just assumed it would level itself out and it seems to have except for the creaking/clicking.

That may be a problem. If the stand is rocking without the tank, it is safer to shim it so it is steady. <Although a stand that is off level by 1/8" is OK, a rocking stand makes me nervous!> Once you put the tank & water in, the weight prob deform the stand enough so it can't rock. The deformation is what worries me. It might be nothing, and 1/8" is not a lot, but metal that is deformed might just crack with metal fatigue .... <Personally, I like big wooden stand with really big tanks ... a well built wooden stand will flex a bit to adjust without breaking.>

I think you will need to find out where the sound is coming from by careful listening. <Also, does the sound comes during a temperature change .... say furnace or A/C coming on .... metal will creak & groan with contraction & expansion .... my heater ducts do that all the time .... > Also, you might want to try sliding a card under the legs to see if any are floating free in the air & not resting solidly on the floor.

 

[graceinhim]

It is a brand new tank/2" square tube steel stand built by a pro here in Calgary who built my 180 a long time a go. (whom I don't have access too anymore because he has gone wholesale ) I have decided not to worry about it as I have had 180's tilt etc and never had a problem. The only reason is am hearing this now is I have fluval FX5 on it and it is very quiet. which is conducive to hearing all the creaks and groans that you would not otherwise hear with a noisier filter. I will definitely keep and eye on it and check with my insurance company. Thanks Guys for all your input. I really appreciate it.

Hopefully we'll talk more soon. This was a great welcome to a new bulletin board.

 

[Floyd R Turbo]

Why the foam under the tank? If you check out Ziggy's build thread http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f11/ziggy953s-150-build-errrr-120-build-104073.html he had some kind of issue along the line with foam under the tank pressing up on the bottom glass (which does not need support) which caused the bottom glass to crack and leak everywhere. Might want to read up on that one...

 

[Sicklid]

Just to throw this out there, I know when I listen to an motorcycle engines' internals with a screwdriver tip on the engine somewhere, and my ear up to the butt of the screwdriver handle, I can use the screwdriver as a stethoscope of sorts to narrow down the source...

 

[Copepod]

I agree with Turbo...better read Ziggy's thread and if it were me, I would get that foam out from under the aquarium yesterday !!!!! Not a good thing for a glass aquarium. Good luck.

 

[Jacko]

I've got to ask, what type of fish do you have in there already?

I've never had an aquarium click on its own, I've had fish that do it, a few botia species (most notable being skunk botias) make a really rather annoying clicking noise that if you're not accustomed to can freak you out.

 

[graceinhim]

I Have some angels / Comets / danios. But it was doing it after the first fill but before the fish. I have some time tonight to really get to the bottom of the sound. So that is what I am going to do. I will keep you all posted.