How much bowing is acceptable in an Acrylic aquarium?

[tzylak]

My 50g hex has similar bow. Well, its bulge is a bit lower. -It looks more like a beer belly. The tank is well over 15 years old. I doubt that it will bust. I imagine that first it will slow leak at the seams. No inspection routine necessary, -wet socks will be my clear evidence. . . . And that will be a prompt for a new and bigger tank!!!

 

[Borge]

well, thing is. Acrylic with luke warm water on one side and air on the other will bow. just because. does not matter if force is applied on one side or not.

however, what also happens is that the deformation will be permanent, takes a few months or so and you can actually bend these sheets just by gravity and it will stay permanent until force is applied the other way. So a tank with belly will inherit the figure with or without water. a small springback of sorts will occur, but it is limited

 

[squibbo]

U

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[T2LEE]

My IM abyss drop off bows 3/8 of an inch from side panel to side panel. I'm currently waiting to hear back from Innovative Marine from the email and pictures I sent them.

 

[brianr24]

Removeed

 

[2_zoa]

well, thing is. Acrylic with luke warm water on one side and air on the other will bow. just because.

Yep!
Set the time machine for several years ago and a member on here plumbed in a simple 10 gallon tank into his 600 gallon system. A beautiful clam display tank with acrylic tubes filled with sand for each clam to sit on top of. This tank was held on the wall with a steel floating shelf he cut into the wall and anchored it to the studs on the other side of the drywall. Really cool. Anyway....
The simple 10 gallon tank was made of 1/2" acrylic to "œkeep it from bowing". Well.....he remade the tank out of 1/2" glass cause the acrylic bowed.

Simple geometry really. One side expands due to moisture exposure and the other side doesn't. Just a few thousands expansion on the wet side will bow the panel. Look at the acrylic lids on sumps. They bow and they aren't even subjected to any weight, pressure, or stress. Simple moisture.