ATTENTION ***REALLY BIG**** Tank Owners

tervman

tervman

Member
Alrighty....this is for you lucky souls that have those multi-hundred gallon tanks.....
What type of flooring do you have your tank on? I'm really curious to hear from those of you who do NOT have your tank on a concrete slab. Did you have your house checked, to be sure it could take the weight of a HUGE tank? If you did, who did the inspection? If you had to do any bracing, so the floor would not cave in, what did you do?
My wife (
) told me that, at some point down the road, we could get rid of our entertainment center, and replace it with a new one.....a custom-built aquarium!!!!

Since our house is on a crawl space, and not on a concrete slab, I want to be sure the tank will not fall through the floor the first time I fill it up!
Also, does anyone know how to calculate, based on tank dimensions, the gallon capacity of an aquarium?
Thanks....
 
ukcats

ukcats

Member
If you REALLY want to be sure call a structural engineer. I would imagine every floor has slightly/vastly different load limits. Just my .02...
 
robchuck

robchuck

Active Member
First of all, congrats on getting the wife's approval!
UKCATS gave some great advice about contacting a structural engineer. From there, you'll know if your floor is safe or if it requires reinforcement. Typical floor joist layouts can hold quite a bit of weight, especially if the tank runs perpendicular to the joists so that the weight of the tank is spread out over several joists. Some larger setups I've seen have steel columns mounted in the basement or crawlspace to reinforce the joists.
The formula to calculate the volume of an aquarium: (LxWxH)/231 with tank dimensions expressed in inches.
 
squidd

squidd

Active Member
I live in a hundred year old "Log Cabin" ...6" hand hewn hardwood beams for floor joists...
My 125 started level and a year later had a 3/8" lean to it...When I switched tanks, I put posts under my 210 from first floor to the basement...
 
interj

interj

Member
Will the tank weigh more than your bath tub filled up? What about with you and your wife in it??
Not trying to get personal, just a thought, did you re-inforce for your tub?
 
harlequinnut

harlequinnut

Active Member
That is a very good and valid point with the bath tub. The difference with the tank and the tub is that the tank is always filled 365 days a year while the bath tub is only occasionally fill with 1 or more people in it. JMO
 
zap800

zap800

Member
i am no expert by any means but i have been doing alot of under the table construction work for years. i have done friends and family's houses, you name the constuction i have done it. if you are unsure of your floors strength then all you really need is a few sheets of o.s.b. (oriented strand broard). thats the stuff that looks like wood chips glued together. get 1/2" or better, you dont need anything too too thick though. cut it the width of you joices. it should be 2x10's. so you should have 9 1/2 " x 8' strips. then get gorrilla glue. its the only glue that is really really strong and water proof, plus its easy to use. the only problem is its expensive if you need alot of it. like $25-30 a bottle compared to 2 for elmers. the glue and screw the plywood on the length of the beams in question. use a one high one low about 4-6" apart method. like a zig-zag. this will greatly increase the stregth of you floor. new homes have been useing a type of this constuction for about ten years. the only difference is they use an "I" beam setup. 1/2" o.s.b is 1 1/2 x'x stronger than conventional lumber. so you should have a floor that is 2 1/2 times stronger when you are done. the other nice thing of this method is there is no huge beams to lug under the house. i used this method in my own home when i installed a 5'x5' whirlpool tub into a 100 year old home on the second floor and it is solid as a rock.
 
bluetang67

bluetang67

New Member
when i set up my 220 i put 4 x 4 beams under the floor just incase. I framed my stand into the studs in 1 wall and to the floor. this way the only way my tank can fall over is if my house falls over.
i've worked construction building house's, etc.
turned out real nice looks good and its even perfectly level.
:)
 
squidd

squidd

Active Member
The other problem with the tub example is that the ID of most standard tubs is 48"X24"x14" which is about 70 gallons...not 200+
The weight of fresh water is less than SW 7 ppg vs. 9.8ppg
And when you add two fat people...and equal volume of water is displaced...so there is not much weight gain...
You might think a king sized water bed is a lot...(300 gal) but it's spread over 4X the floor area...still the weight of the 70 gal tank example...
2500 lbs in a 2' x 6' area is alot... and reinforcement is highly advisable...
 
luvkycool

luvkycool

New Member
im starting to worry here,
im on second floor (an appartment where i live)
Now i want an shark and am looking here and there for an 180 gallons tank.
Now at first i thought np but more and more i read this posts im getting worried.
180 gallons times 3,14 or something is almost 600 liters.
Then ive read to use live rock for like a kilo for each 10 liters.
thats an easy 60 kilos of live rock.
Then the shark and stuff would all come to almost a tonelade a 1000 kilos on a m2 fixed.
I donr wnt to wake up in the morning with the down neighbours with an aquarium in their bed and the shark saying good morning to them .
Now i thought putting it against a wall would do the trick..
will it....
:notsure:
 
tervman

tervman

Member

Originally posted by Squidd
And when you add two fat people...and equal volume of water is displaced...so there is not much weight gain...

According to my Chemistry and Physics classes many years ago, and this is a quote, "a body displaces its own weight in water."
Therefore, it does not matter whether the people are "fat", aka a 350# football player, or "skinny", aka a 100# gymnast, both will displace an amount of water equal to their body weight. Therefore, in theory, the weight within the tub would not rise, because the person would spill out an amount of water equal to their own weight. And, if you happen to add another person, the same theory will apply. Heck....add the whole neighborhood, and you can fill the tub with a thimble-full of H2O!
In fact, as I understand it, people who are unable to stand on a scale are weighed by placing them in a water bath, and weighing the water that is displaced when they are put into the water.
 
krishj39

krishj39

Active Member
Tervman, It is true that displacement has to do with weight and density, however, that is only true when the object is FLOATING in the water. If the object isn't floating but is completely submerged or is resting on the bottom (such as a person in a tub) then the displacement is strictly based on physical dimesions. So, in a tub, displacement on a fat person is more than a skinny person. Because the person is sitting on the bottom, weight and density don't matter, only the physical amount of space they take up. Anyway, that has nothing to do with fish or load-bearing, but just wanted to clear that up.
 
tervman

tervman

Member

Originally posted by krishj39
Tervman, It is true that displacement has to do with weight and density, however, that is only true when the object is FLOATING in the water. If the object isn't floating but is completely submerged or is resting on the bottom (such as a person in a tub) then the displacement is strictly based on physical dimesions. So, in a tub, displacement on a fat person is more than a skinny person. Because the person is sitting on the bottom, weight and density don't matter, only the physical amount of space they take up. Anyway, that has nothing to do with fish or load-bearing, but just wanted to clear that up.
Hey....I said it was MANY years ago I had my Chem and Physics classes....
 
squidd

squidd

Active Member
And it really complicates things when you have two fat people "standing" in the tub displacing only the water around their feet and ankles, yet still transferring full "mass" load in a vertical axis...
Luvkycool: Placing the tank against an "outside"wall will help in transferring half the weight to a load bearing wall...
Another "option" to look at is the floor "layout" of the apt below you...It may be that their "wall layout" is different than yours and you could get lucky and they would have a load "transferring" wall below the floor where you want to place your tank...preferably a closet but even a dividing wall will add support to your floor system...
Maybe you could talk them into placing a built in entertainment center or an extra bedroom wall or closet in a "strategically" placed location (like below your tank) :D
 
donmgicwon

donmgicwon

Member
Originally posted by Squidd
[B
The weight of fresh water is less than SW 7 ppg vs. 9.8ppg[/B]
I don't know where you get your salt from Squidd but my 1/2 cup of Instant Ocean doesn't weigh 2.8 lbs.:D
I think your #'s might be a little off.
 
squidd

squidd

Active Member
Yep your right ..gasoline weighs 7lbs/gal...
Fresh water...8.3 lbs/gal..and salt 8.55 lbs/gal... Which would make sense as a 200gal bucket of salt mix weighs about 50 lbs so about 1/4 lb per your 1/2 cup...
So...How much does a Swallow weigh...? :D
 
zap800

zap800

Member
all this fat people talk is realy funny. lol but like i said in my last post will work. there is no need for ugly house jacks or 4x4 posts. trust me. but if you think im full of doo doo then ask any structural engineer that is well versed in modern wooden "i" beam construction and they will tell you i am correct in my design. the only problem is you need to go the entire length of the 2x10's untill the next load bearing piont under the house.
and are you talking about an african or european swallow? and is it laiden or unlaiden. lol
and while your at it bring me a shrubbery
 
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