Is It Okay If The Tank Goes Over The Edge Of My Stand?

[Captain Retardo]

Hi, will it be okay if a tank (20 gallon) goes over the edge of my stand (just a household furniture item) by 2.5 inches (on both sides)???

 

[Shelly_Otterkin]

NO
The tank must be supported on all sides or it will break.

 

[Captain Retardo]

I mean on the sides of the tank, i am just wondering because i have seen pictures of it like that, but i have read on a website that you cant do that.

So i need the whole base entirely supported? Will it matter if its glass or acrylic?

 

[fishfishfish]

id get a thivk peice of ply wood sort of thing and measure and cut it to give the tank at least .05 inches left over

 

[Torrean]

I don't know about the plywood idea. Seems kinda iffy to me. And I think it would look bad. What sort of furniture item are we talking about? a 20 gallon is surprisingly heavy. It would be awful if the whole thing came down and ruined all the furniture in the room as well as damaging flooring. I recommend buying a stand or building a nice sturdy (level) one yourself.

 

[wendywc]

Do not have your tank go over the edge.

A 20 gallon tank is not that big. A stand for that size is very affordable.

 

[Conqueror]

^^^ agreed. A 20 gallon tank will probably weigh around 200lbs when it's full. That's too much weight to leave unsupported.

CQ

 

[smmetz]

I had a 29 gallon hang over the end of a small table by about 3 inches per side. After a couple weeks, I got some 3/4 inch plywood to put under it, until I found something a little bigger to hold it. It worked for me, short term, but maybe I was just really lucky!

 

[Synirr]

I have a 10 gallon that extends past the stand by about 1" on either side, but it's definitely NOT something I'd do with a tank any bigger than that. Definitely buy a stand.

 

[windsor-aquatic]

As already stated, it's not advisable to have any overhang at all; this would cause unnecessary stress on the glass panels where the overhang occurs.

 

[Torrean]

most glass tanks don't contact the surface of the stand do they? I believe they have a plastic frame around the bottom that supports the weight. I think this is to lessen the chance of any crud getting between the glass and the stand and causing a stress point. What I mean is if a piece of gravel gets under your tank somehow and you fill it up all the weight of all that water is going to be pushing down on the single point where the gravel contacts the glass. the glass will most likely crack at that stress point. Soooo if you put your tank on the furniture and it overhangs then the glass will come in direct contact with the surface increasing the risk of some tiny speck of sand or grit causing a flood in your fish room. Just one more reason to buy or make a stand.

 

[windsor-aquatic]

most glass tanks don't contact the surface of the stand do they? I believe they have a plastic frame around the bottom that supports the weight. I think this is to lessen the chance of any crud getting between the glass and the stand and causing a stress point. What I mean is if a piece of gravel gets under your tank somehow and you fill it up all the weight of all that water is going to be pushing down on the single point where the gravel contacts the glass. the glass will most likely crack at that stress point. Soooo if you put your tank on the furniture and it overhangs then the glass will come in direct contact with the surface increasing the risk of some tiny speck of sand or grit causing a flood in your fish room. Just one more reason to buy or make a stand.

Whilst this is true of aquariums in the USA and Canada, it's not the case with most UK tanks. The construction methods are quite different, and having the whole of the base full supported (and sitting on polystyrene sheeting) is essential to the tank's safety.

 

[Captain Retardo]

ok, somehow ill convince my mom to buy me a stand also (im a little low on money, all i can afford is all the equipment, food, other items, and fish [but that's all])

Thanks!

Should i get some styrofoam padding (ive been reading a lot about it in a book) for the tank? It will have rocks in it. How do i put it in, do i just put it on the bottom?

 

[James007]

Yep - it's just not worth the risk. It's not just the bottom panel to think about but also having support directly under the vertical side panes. Just think of the cost if it all goes wrong.

 

[mantis147]

my 80g over hung 10cms each side but there was 1 inch thick plywood under it and that was ok had it for a year with no problems. The glass was 10mm thick though.