refurbishing 65 gallon tank

Cheeselady · 01/20/2020, 04:45 PM

Ok so I'm moving up from my beginner 46gal to a 65. The tank came with a steel frame that's ugly but still sound.

The frame has feet rather than beams or a flat base. I'm a bit worried about pressure on my flooring so I'd like to distribute weight.

I'm thinking of buying a flat piece of plywood and using a very basic spray on water seal - will that work?

Or should I just go for 2x4 beams?

As for dressing up the stand itself - would black curtains around the thing look OK? Has anyone tried this? I really don't want to use wood and I don't have the tools for a really clean cut with plastic.

Finally - will I need to re caulk the tank? Haven't done a leak test yet.

Thank you for the input!

Vinny Kreyling · 01/20/2020, 05:17 PM

Plywood sounds like a better idea as long as you seal it well.
If you like curtains why not?
Leave water in the tank for a few days to determine the next move.

mcgyvr · 01/20/2020, 07:22 PM

What size feet? It doesnt take much to spread out a load of that mich weight and not cause problems..

A woman in high heels exerts more force than a tank that size across 4 x 1" feet

BrennMun · 01/20/2020, 09:19 PM

Curtains work for sure, I have something similar on my current 55g setup!

aquabarbiegirl · 01/26/2020, 06:57 AM

Yeah curtains always do the thing as they should be.

To me, they look pretty neat as well.

01/20/2020, 04:45 PM	#1
Cheeselady Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2016 Posts: 66	refurbishing 65 gallon tank Ok so I'm moving up from my beginner 46gal to a 65. The tank came with a steel frame that's ugly but still sound. The frame has feet rather than beams or a flat base. I'm a bit worried about pressure on my flooring so I'd like to distribute weight. I'm thinking of buying a flat piece of plywood and using a very basic spray on water seal - will that work? Or should I just go for 2x4 beams? As for dressing up the stand itself - would black curtains around the thing look OK? Has anyone tried this? I really don't want to use wood and I don't have the tools for a really clean cut with plastic. Finally - will I need to re caulk the tank? Haven't done a leak test yet. Thank you for the input! Last edited by Cheeselady; 01/20/2020 at 05:30 PM.

01/20/2020, 05:17 PM	#2
Vinny Kreyling Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Miller Place, NY Posts: 7,206	Plywood sounds like a better idea as long as you seal it well. If you like curtains why not? Leave water in the tank for a few days to determine the next move. __________________ 250 gallon mixed reef, 2 Reefbreeder's Photon V 2, Deepwater BLDC 12, DAS EX-3 Skimmer, MTC mini cal, 2-3/4" Sea Swirls, Aquacontroller & 6 Tunze pumps.

01/20/2020, 07:22 PM	#3
mcgyvr Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: North Carolina Posts: 20,050	What size feet? It doesnt take much to spread out a load of that mich weight and not cause problems.. A woman in high heels exerts more force than a tank that size across 4 x 1" feet __________________ Who me?

01/20/2020, 09:19 PM	#4
BrennMun Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2019 Location: Texas Posts: 17	Curtains work for sure, I have something similar on my current 55g setup!

01/26/2020, 06:57 AM	#5
aquabarbiegirl Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2020 Posts: 2	Yeah curtains always do the thing as they should be. To me, they look pretty neat as well.