Could the tank base rot away and break?

[lafishperson]

You know the tank base? The thing on which the tank sits?

I had some flooding earlier, and long story short the carpet under the tank retained water, making the bottom fibre board part of the tank (the part which makes contact with the floor) moist, and over time this part has kind of puffed up a little. I think the fibre board must have weakened from this.

The structural beams of the tank base (which seem to be made of real wood not fibre board) seem fine but I'm wondering if there is any chance that the tank base could just collapse. Has anyone ever heard of this happening?

How in the world do I switch tank bases? It's a 100 gallon tank so there's no way of lifting it from the old base and onto a new one.

Any thoughts would be appreciated. I've had fish in there for 3 years now with no problems.

 

[FroggyFox]

Oh that stinks. Honestly never heard of a stand collapsing because it got wet, but I dont know enough about pressed wood to know how much it gets weakened after it gets wet and then dries again. I would think the worst part of it would be that the stand may not be perfectly straight anymore?

If you decided that you didn't want to chance it and wanted to get a new stand then moving the tank shouldn't be THAT difficult. I'd take your fish out of the tank and put them in a bucket, empty as much of the tank as possible and then have someone (or a couple of people) help you move the tank off of the stand, switch stands and put the tank up on the new stand, then refill with water and get it to the right temperature etc and put your fish back in. Trying to move your tank with water in it is dangerous because you run the risk of breaking a seal on it.

 

[MissFishy]

Fiber board/particle board weakens a lot when it gets wet and expands. All of the particles in the board are loosened up when they get wet. To be safe, if this is where the tank gets most of its support from, I would change it. Take out as much water as possible and put a new board down. Good luck!

 

[scubadude]

the same thing happened to me. months ago my filter got off balance thanks to the cats and left a slow trickel of water down the side of the tank. even a few weeks later there was no sign of damage. but months later i moved the sofa and saw that there was about to be a disaster in my living room. over time the weight of the tank took its toll. this was just a 55 and if you are already seeing the deteration of the stand with a 100 gal i would change it right away. it's just not worth the chance. if the stand folded and the tank tipped over your talking about a weight in excess of 800 lbs hitting the floor. use froggys ideas on changing it out and you may use coolers to hold the water as they hold quite a lot and will keep the temp of the water about the same while you complete the project. don't put it off and good luck to you.

 

[zoo minsi]

like scubadude said your talking about ALOT of weight sitting on that stand, i dont think i would want to take any chance of it giving way, not only would you loose all your fish but i wouldnt even want to think about having 100 gallons of water hit the floor, I tipped a half full 5 gallon bucket over doing a water change and that was a pain in the butt to clean up and dry. Those plastic storage bins they sell at stores work great for holding water too and there cheap. Hope it all turns out good for you.

 

[lafishperson]

Someone at a fish store told me that as long as the main beams are find then the tank should hold. I might switch it later but it seems like a huge pain.

 

[demons9872]

is there any wya to cut a 2x4 to the right size and add some supports to the base just in case i would hate to see a 100galon tank smashed just cause of apeice of partical board was weekend. with the new stand add a coat of pollyurithanxe or however ya spell it this way it can get all it wants and it wont hurt the wood but add a few coats

 

[Mahamotorworks]

You would have to look at the way the stand is built. It would be best to add some wood to support it. If you dont have the right wood working skills it will make it difficult. Pressure treated wood will resist water better, It may warp when it gets wet but when it dries it will have close to the same strength. Particle board will fall apart due to the glue that is uses to hold together. It is kinda sad now that most of the new furniture is made of particle board.

If you are in doubt I would add some support or replace it. Ask around and see if any one you know works with wood.

MAHA

 

[Dipschnit]

Someone at a fish store told me that as long as the main beams are find then the tank should hold. I might switch it later but it seems like a huge pain.

Key word is "Should". Do yourself a favor, get a new stand or at least take the tank down and brace the one you have already. You can easily do this in an afternoon and you will save yourself the regret later.


Good Luck