Polystyrene a good idea?

[Viper]

I'm still finishing up my DIY tank stand and haven't placed the tank on it yet. Today, I saw an image of a cracked aquarium glass bottom panel. One of the comments said it's a good idea to have polystyrene foam under the tank to help with weight distribution. I had seen before that it's good to have polystyrene for acrylic tanks to help prevent bowing, but is it just as helpful with glass tanks to prevent cracks? I plan on having driftwood and maybe a semi-large rock in my tank eventually.

 

[DavidAl]

Hi Viper,

I have used both styrofoam and cork as an underlayment for tanks with a solid base. If your tank has a floating base, you really don't need it. In other words, if the tank's perimeter brace is what's going to makes contact with the stand, an underlayment is really not needed. However, if it'll make you sleep better, go for it! By the way, the cork is a whole lot easier to cut than the foam, which is a big plus.

Both can be found at your local home improvement store.

David

 

[Mumma.of.two]

Any small steps that can be taken to avoid potential disaster are a good idea IMO.

 

[Viper]

Thanks for the replies!

I ended up painting the foam and putting it underneath the tank. I decided to go with it because I wasn't sure if all of the lumber along the top frame of the stand was precisely even (which may have caused more stress in one area than another).

I tried my best to find the least warped pieces of lumber at the store, but when you're buying the cheapest 2x4's they have, you can't be guaranteed exactly straight pieces. I probably average about 5 pieces that I didn't want to use for ever piece that I decided was straight enough.

So to hopefully fill in any minor height differences in the lumber, I went with the foam. The stand is leaning slightly forward, probably due to the floor. So this weekend I'm going to perform a large water change and put some shims (wood wedges) under the stand at the front corners to even out the stand.

 

[T1KARMANN]

If the tank is small just use the poly tiles


People must be crazy not to use poly

It may look fine without water but when the water is added even the smallest thing can crack the bottom

On my 1000 gal I have 4" thick poly