Help! My 180 gallon aqaurium exploded!

[jasonwilks]

I need help!

First of all check out my aquarium here: http://primelogic.ws/180-gallon-fish-tank.htm

It is 180 gallon freshwater aquarium that I bought from glasscages.com, i have had it setup for the past 7 months with water.

A few days ago in my sleep I heard a big *crack* then followed by the sound of flowing water! Water was gushing out of it! My house was flooded with water and has ruined my expensive hardwood floor and my silk rug!

Well I got it all cleaned up now, and after I took everything out of the aqauirum I see a big 3 foot crack on the bottom of the tank! After examining everything I think I came to the conclusion of why it cracked. The surface that the tank is sitting on is not completely flat! It kinda "bows" in, and right where it bows in the crack is right there!

The stand is custom built by my contractor, it has 6 legs (2 by 4 boards) and the top is Formica (laminate counter top).

Well, my contractor is coming over tomorrow to take a look at this.

Apparently my contractor has like no idea how to make a good fish tank stand that holds a 180 gallon aquarium!

What I need is suggestions on how to do this right so I can tell my contractor how to build the stand right!

I called glass cages and they suggested to use granite for the top the tank sits on. Is that a good idea? It sounds good to me, it would be completely flat and sturdy! You guys have any other suggestions??

 

[laevisland]

If you call some granite shops, maybe you can find one to give you a reject piece for a good price since you aren't even going to see it, but I guess you'll want the edges polished so they aren't sharp. Even granite should have support in the middle with a tank that size though. I'd be thinking use support braces like a deck has and build it like the framework for that.

 

[67chevelle]

Go to MFK and check out the DIY section there for how to properly build a stand. Angle iron is the way to go. Then check out the photo thread and see how some of the tanks are decorated.

 

[roscoe70]

If you call some granite shops, maybe you can find one to give you a reject piece for a good price since you aren't even going to see it, but I guess you'll want the edges polished so they aren't sharp. Even granite should have support in the middle with a tank that size though. I'd be thinking use support braces like a deck has and build it like the framework for that.

:werd::werd::werd:
Garage could be the Bat-Cave. No doubt about the middle support. Good luck and you have an awesome looking home.

 

[Rbishop]

How about some shots of the current stand structure...? Not sure if I would stay with a contractor that built a stand for a tank and it resulted in this, so soon...

 

[Ravyk]

We use a piece of foam about 1 1/2 cm thick on top of a 6mm piece of MDF under our fishtank which is on a custom [home made] steel stand.

 

[noodles62]

my first thought when I read "glass cages" was, is the tank aquarium grade glass or reptile?

 

[slipgate]

I have a built in custom aquarium stand for my 135g tank and it was built with OSD and 6x6 posts. It is sturdy as hell and perfectly straight. The tank has been sitting on the stand for over 7 years now. It is in the basement so the contrete underneath it never moves which helps too.