styrofoam board under tank necessary?

[sqwerc]

Hi bros,

I have been keeping a tank for sometime now have four 2ft x 1.5 x 1 tanks in my room. Recently I heard that it is necessary to place a styrofoam board as over time without it the tanks will start to leak.

Is this true? As my tanks are planted it will be very difficult to lift and place a board right now. However if it is necessary to prevent leak I will have to perform this task over a weekend!

Looking forward to hear your inputs/advice.

[edw7636]

It depends on the four corners of the tank whether they are sitting well enough on the edges. Of cause foam will eliminate the risk of tiny stones or pebbles underneath the tank as over time will cause crack eventually leading to leaking etc. And if you want to put the foam, might as well lay newpapers over the foam so any leaking you can detect straight away. But sometimes evaporation or condensation will also cause the newspaper to be wet so dont be alarm if you saw the newspaper is wet haha.

If your tank is sitting nicely for quite some time, then better dont shift it unless its a new tank or you gonna decom or something.

[Jianyuan]

If your using a rack, its also used to spread the pressure point on the glass as the load will be spread out to the styrofoam sheet instead of just depending on the edge of the racks.

[stormhawk]

If you want to know whether it's necessary to put the styrofoam below your tanks, get a spirit level. It's a tool that has 1-2-3 axis with a greenish liquid and an air bubble in each plastic or glass part. This allows you to check whether the surface underneath the tanks are even or not. You can also place this at all 4 edges of the tanks if they are on a stand. If the measurement is uneven then you have to place the styrofoam underneath the tanks.

A thing to note, in our climate, the styrofoam board will deteriorate over time as it comes into contact with moisture. This causes the board to produce this fine white dust which can be unsightly. If you do use the styro board, wrap it in a clingwrap or some plastic wrap over to keep those white dust in.

[sqwerc]

Does size of the tank matter? My tanks are relatively small.. the opinions are mixed regarding this issue online such as glass tanks should only be supported along the edges and the faom places pressure thoughout the enitre base of the tank.

Really confused on what to do. Does anyone have any experience on a tank leak? What is it like does water slowly leak out of a weak joint or does it like explode out?

[limz_777]

Does size of the tank matter? My tanks are relatively small.. the opinions are mixed regarding this issue online such as glass tanks should only be supported along the edges and the faom places pressure thoughout the enitre base of the tank.

Really confused on what to do. Does anyone have any experience on a tank leak? What is it like does water slowly leak out of a weak joint or does it like explode out?

usually its slowly leak out

[stormhawk]

Since your tanks are 2 ft, it's probably wise to place the styrofoam boards underneath them. The board acts as a cushion for any uneven surfaces as it spreads the weight of the tank equally. Supporting the tank only at the edges can be a recipe for disaster if the glass base gets cracked due to a sharp point pressuring on it. For example the sharp edges of some rocks.

With leaks, it can be fast or slow depending on the problem at hand. If it's a fine crack on the glass, the water will seep out slowly. The bigger worry is not so much the glass, but the silicone joints. If they give way due to age or other reasons, you'll be looking at a messy flood.

[sqwerc]

Thanks for all the input! I spent all night putting the foam under 2 of my tanks. I think I runied my planted tank in the process hahaha!! The tank with substrate was too heavy to handle.. Decided to replace the substrate since it's a year there abouts as I had some unused ANA and ADA substrate. However I realised after disposing the old substrate that I did not have enuough! HHAHA my substrate layer is only 2 cm thick.

[edw7636]

Haha planted tank ruin can replant. Fatalities of livestock can be replaced.

Most important thing is tank ok. Just like computer, without the motherboard everything is useless

[sqwerc]

Thanks for all the replies!

I have one question, how do you know when a leak is going to spring? Is there anything we can do to ensure that it does not happen?

While I was placing the foam under all my tanks for one of the tanks I notice places where the silicon is much thinner and closer to the tank seam than the rest. In addition as I ran my hand along the base to feel for leaks some glass chipped off.

[edw7636]

Hard to detect unless you work in those tank makers factory. If buy second hand tank. Best if you can reinforce the silicon one layer just to be safe. But of course it will be abit messy a little bit haha.

[tetrakid]

If we reinforce the joints by applying silicone at the OUTSIDE corners of the tanks, will the silicon stick better on the smooth area of
the glass or the rough edge ends of the glass? I intend to do this as a preventive measure to prolong the life of the tank. I have a
feeling the silicone may not stick well to the rough end parts of the glass. Will appreciate any help from anyone.

Hard to detect unless you work in those tank makers factory. If buy second hand tank. Best if you can reinforce the silicon one layer just to be safe. But of course it will be abit messy a little bit haha.

[stormhawk]

If you are doing this externally, you might want to consider using angle irons and putty as reinforcement along with the silicone. This is the old school method but tanks made with this method last nearly forever. I have a tank that is nearly 20 years old, made of this construction and it has not leaked yet.

They were very popular in the 80s and probably much earlier.

[tetrakid]

I agree with you fully.
Actually I'm on the lookout for smaller aluminium angle strips for the same purpose,
since angle iron is overkill for smaller tanks. I intend to do this to all my tanks in future.
Any idea specifically what putty material is best for this purpose?

If we reinforce the joints by applying silicone at the OUTSIDE corners of the tanks, will the silicon stick better on the smooth area of
the glass or the rough edge ends of the glass? I intend to do this as a preventive measure to prolong the life of the tank. I have a
feeling the silicone may not stick well to the rough end parts of the glass. Will appreciate any help from anyone.

[stormhawk]

I have no idea on which putty is suitable though you can probably try those that are used by reefers for attaching coral frags. I think it's called AquaStik. This product causes some foaming to occur if you were running a protein skimmer but in freshwater tanks that should not be a big issue.

You might want to do some research on Google for other possible choices.

[tetrakid]

I'll look around for a suitable long-lasting waterproof putty/adhesive.

This is important to me as I am aware of the dire consequences of a leaking aquarium.
This problem is real since the silicone sticking the glass panes together do deteriorate over time.