75-gallon Tank And Stand Wobbling - Carpeted/cement Floor

HI - my 75-gallon tank and stand are capable of wobbling if you just jump on the floor near it. I can get the water slushing back and forth pretty well by jumping 4-5 times near it. This is odd to me. I have young kids and it worries me.

It sits on a carpeted floor with a cement subfloor. I've leveled it off with shims. When it was on the floor flush it was not level, and so I had to shI'm to get level.

I can't determine the cause or location of the wobble. Meaning, I don't see a certain section of the stand moving back and forth. It seems to sort of move as one with the wobble.

So could this just be a product of a cement floor? That ties in all the motion from the whole slab? We're in a condo on the 2nd floor.

And I have to have it level - right? So nothing I can do there (removing shims). Perplexed as to my next step to secure this tank and eliminate wobble. I was thinking of doing a big water change and perhaps, once it's lighter in weight, removing the shims and either letting it rest flush on the carpet again to test it, or just start over with the leveling process and hope to get it done without the wobble.

Thoughts? Thanks.

 

Why would you be jumping 4-5 times in the first place..? If it’s not wobbling if you don’t jump (I’m sorry but picturing a grown man/woman jumping up and down to make a fish tank wobble is hilarious ) why are you making it wobble on purpose?

Easy solution is to just get a new stand if you feel it’s the stand or move the tank to a different location in the house/room.

Save yourself the obvious stress you’re feeling by fiddling with it.

 

Even though it is a cement slab, it is not a slab on grade, so depending on the method of construction (open web joist, with floor form and a concrete slab or precast concrete planks or maybe some other form on concrete construction) there will be varying amounts of stiffness.

But that said, every floor is designed for a certain dead load and live load, and I fear that your tank could be a little too heavy for your floor. If the floor is flexing that much, I would be concerned that you will crack the concrete. Concrete isn't really a very flexible substance.

 

Why would you be jumping 4-5 times in the first place..? If it’s not wobbling if you don’t jump (I’m sorry but picturing a grown man/woman jumping up and down to make a fish tank wobble is hilarious ) why are you making it wobble on purpose?

Easy solution is to just get a new stand if you feel it’s the stand or move the tank to a different location in the house/room.

Save yourself the obvious stress you’re feeling by fiddling with it.

I noticed it move as I walked by it after set up, so then I started testing the area by jumping a little bit around it to mimic what children would inevitabley do. Rather it collapse during my 'testing' than during a game of tag - know what I mean?

The stand seems fine, and didn't do this in the last location - which I believe was also a cement subfloor on the 2nd floor in an apartment.

Even though it is a cement slab, it is not a slab on grade, so depending on the method of construction (open web joist, with floor form and a concrete slab or precast concrete planks or maybe some other form on concrete construction) there will be varying amounts of stiffness.

But that said, every floor is designed for a certain dead load and live load, and I fear that your tank could be a little too heavy for your floor. If the floor is flexing that much, I would be concerned that you will crack the concrete. Concrete isn't really a very flexible substance.

Which is why I was guessing this had something to do with the concrete, in that it's all one 'slab' and motion in one spot can be transferred all around. I'm not sure it's a weight issue, as the wobble was still there even when the tank was only 15-20% full.

I think I'm just going to remove 70% of the water so I can attempt adjustments that can't be done with all the water weight. I wonder if I just put it directly to the floor (remove shims) if that would remove wobble. I might lose the 'dead nuts' level aspect from that move, but maybe that's better than this giant tank wobbling.

 

Its probably a wronght iron stand. Theyre are designed to have some give to them but....theyre made by the tank manufacturer, it really should hold the weight that its designed to hold.

I have a 45gal tall that does the same thing. I have a magna-float, one of those magnetic cleaning sponges, and every time I use it the tank/stand shakes

I questioned my father about it when we set it up. Its been okay since.

Ive also put a 20L on the bottom rack of the stand, so it has more weight than average. You could try to stablize it with beams of some sort wooden beam..we thought about doing just that but havsnt gotten around to it.

If its a wooden stand....that's interesting because those don't usually have any give to them.

 

Are you sure you don't have the stand sitting on carpet tak strips? They are right next to the wall and hold the carpet in place and will make your tank unlevel. The carpet pad will add to this rocking problem.

 

If the tank is rocking, it is because the floor is flexing. If that tank was on a slab on grade, you could jump up and down next to all day long and the tank wouldn't shake. But because it is an elevated slab, the slab is flexing, just like a floor made of joist and plywood deck.

 

The floor is not level to start with and it moves too much with the tank on it. That should tell you something. That something is suggesting excessive weight concentration on a floor surface inadequate to support it properly, either by overall capacity and/or poor/defective construction.

 

Move it to a different location then?

 

Its probably a wronght iron stand. Theyre are designed to have some give to them but....theyre made by the tank manufacturer, it really should hold the weight that its designed to hold.

I have a 45gal tall that does the same thing. I have a magna-float, one of those magnetic cleaning sponges, and every time I use it the tank/stand shakes

I questioned my father about it when we set it up. Its been okay since.

Ive also put a 20L on the bottom rack of the stand, so it has more weight than average. You could try to stablize it with beams of some sort wooden beam..we thought about doing just that but havsnt gotten around to it.

If its a wooden stand....that's interesting because those don't usually have any give to them.

It's a wooden stand, purchased as a set with the aquarium from a chain pet store. Petsmart I believe. So I'm guessing the stand itself is built correctly and isn't the source of the wobble. More about the floor it sits on.

I've put cinder block in the stand on each of the 4 corners, trying to stabilize. But the wobble is still there.

Are you sure you don't have the stand sitting on carpet tak strips? They are right next to the wall and hold the carpet in place and will make your tank unlevel. The carpet pad will add to this rocking problem.

Definitely possible, as it's about 3-4" away from the wall. But considering I've leveled it off with shims all around, you'd think that would eliminate that as an issue. But maybe it still is somehow? Sitting on the nail heads perhaps? But even if the case, surprised it still rocks with it leveled off.

Move it to a different location then?

Unfortunately, this is the one and only spot that currently works. And, the entire floor of the condo is the same scenario - carpet over concrete. Although I guess it's possible there are flatter areas if this spot happens to be a little off.

Thanks to all for offering up your thoughts.