Navigator Posted October 29, 2009 Report Share Posted October 29, 2009 Okay, so here is my problem. The tank is going in the basement and poured concrete floors aren't all that level. Currently, the stand has about a 1/4" gap on each side so it wobbles a bit like a seesaw. My plan is the following, and I would love suggestions and opinions! I plan to take those fit together rubber mats that are about 1 inch thick that you use under exercise equipment and for kids play spaces and put those down first. I then will put 3/4" plywood down in a size to match the mats (I expect it will be about 3 feet by 4.5 feet) to exceed the footprint of the stand. Stand, high density foam, then tank. My hope is that the give in the mats will correct the hump in the floor as they have give and the plywood will keep the stand from just sinking through the mats. Thoughts please! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JORG Posted October 29, 2009 Report Share Posted October 29, 2009 I would use cedar shims on the stand Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boom Posted October 30, 2009 Report Share Posted October 30, 2009 Navigator, how thick are those rubber mats? If they are 1/2" thick or over, I would just use them, and skip the plywood. Unless your painting and completely sealing the edges of the plywood, it will just warp on you if it gets wet anyway. Just use the rubber alone should be enough to level things out. Boom :boom: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T Dawg Posted October 30, 2009 Report Share Posted October 30, 2009 A pair of the DriCore subfloor pannels and the related shim kit might be what you are looking for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ishkabod Posted October 30, 2009 Report Share Posted October 30, 2009 Unless you have the plywood and rubber handy the Dricore sub floor panels and shims are you cheaper option. Not to mention if there are any spills the Dricore will alow air for it to dry out. Just paint the top as they are plywood i believe. i live in a basement too but my only problem is the slope tilts the stands away from the wall. Shims are your best bet though if the floor is just unlevel one way. And i'd also like to know How the High Density Foam will help since i'm thinking of using it on some of my tanks and allready have it in use on my 80 gallon project. Hope this helps L P.S. I'm pretty sure i saw the Drycore sub floor panels at Home Depot for 6-7 dollars each Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T Dawg Posted October 30, 2009 Report Share Posted October 30, 2009 Unless you have the plywood and rubber handy the Dricore sub floor panels and shims are you cheaper option. Not to mention if there are any spills the Dricore will alow air for it to dry out. Just paint the top as they are plywood i believe. i live in a basement too but my only problem is the slope tilts the stands away from the wall. Shims are your best bet though if the floor is just unlevel one way. And i'd also like to know How the High Density Foam will help since i'm thinking of using it on some of my tanks and allready have it in use on my 80 gallon project.Hope this helps L P.S. I'm pretty sure i saw the Drycore sub floor panels at Home Depot for 6-7 dollars each Sounds about right. The top has an acrylic sealant so painting is optional. They claim to be rated for the weight even when shimmed, but I am waiting to hear back (was looking to use them in thtebasement, and figured why not add a few more) since thw website claimes they support 4,000 lbs but I was worried how shims would effect that number. My 90 is 18" x 48" so the should be hidden underneath or have a slight rear overhang. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Navigator Posted October 31, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 31, 2009 Thanks for all the advice! I used the mats and the plywood since I already had both. I used to use the mats as "squish" in my previous basement, and the plywood was under my 55 gallon tank to spread the footprint over the joists properly. I shimmed the plywood just a bit, moved the tank over some and now it's level. The subfloor is a super good idea though for next time, if I hadn't already had the supplies, I probably would have gone that route. I looked at some in Totem today and it's pretty nifty looking stuff! However, I've discovered that the problem is a little less about the floor and a bit more about the stand - the stand itself is a smidgen warped on the base so when I move into my new place (about a year) I'll buy/build a better stand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc_Polit Posted October 31, 2009 Report Share Posted October 31, 2009 It might not be a bad idea to shim the stand in the meantime. Alot can happen in a year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PacMan Posted November 24, 2009 Report Share Posted November 24, 2009 you could also go to home depo or something like that an get some plexi glass and just score and snap some shims that way. ive done this a few times now. looks alot cleaner then wood ones..just my 2 cents. Good luck with it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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