just a quick correction, froogyfox. floors are designed in pounds per square foot. most residences are designed with 40 psf in attics and bedrooms, although I'd venture to guess that most everyroom is designed with a 50 psf load in mind. if your floor is built using 2x lumber and you need to find the allowable load, it's not as easy as just measuring the joist spacing and joist size. you need the overall span of the joists (distance between supports) and also what is very important is the type of lumber. wood comes in many species and each has very different design properties. if you're worried about the weight on your floor, talk to a structural engineer or someone who is familiar with construction. they can probably do some calculations and make some "educated guesses" based on visual evaluations and knowing local builders' preference for lumber. always assume worst case scenario to be on the safe side. and like you said span as many joists as you can and try to keep the tank close to a wall or support. sorry for the quick lesson in wood, but i'd hate to see someone lose their fish to a broken floor.
130 gal Tank....Need some help/input!
- Thread starter gscorvette
- Start date
I was pretty sure dad said square inch...he's been in construction all of his life...but hey he could have been wrong or I could have heard him wrong.
-=pout=- you spelled my name wrong
The difference between joist spacing and joist span?? lol I could be wrong but I'm pretty sure its the same thing.
I don't mean to try and argue about something that I obviously know nothing about...but as I tried to explain it we got a girl's version of her dad's explaination of something she doesn't fully comprehend. All in all I would trust his opinion that this size of aquarium, placed smartly (across the joists) should be fine on most any floor...and that was the bottom line of what I was trying to say.
I did also mention to her that if she was worried that taking down the stats for her floor and calling a contractor or construction company and throwing some questions at them.
-=pout=- you spelled my name wrong
The difference between joist spacing and joist span?? lol I could be wrong but I'm pretty sure its the same thing.
I don't mean to try and argue about something that I obviously know nothing about...but as I tried to explain it we got a girl's version of her dad's explaination of something she doesn't fully comprehend. All in all I would trust his opinion that this size of aquarium, placed smartly (across the joists) should be fine on most any floor...and that was the bottom line of what I was trying to say.
I did also mention to her that if she was worried that taking down the stats for her floor and calling a contractor or construction company and throwing some questions at them.
I don't know the answer for sure and don't have any reference books here to check but I would say that PSI is the correct rating. 40 PSF is just not very much. If I stand on the floor my feet probably cover about a square foot and I'm putting out a lot more pressure that 40 lbs LOL. According to you, if I stood in one spot on my floor it would eventually fall through. If my little 30 gallon were supported by a base with a flat bottom it would be putting out about 100 PSF.
I'm gonna check on this but I would think Froggy's dad is right considering he is in construction.
I'm gonna check on this but I would think Froggy's dad is right considering he is in construction.
i once put a 55 gallon tank in my apartment, the best thing to do is put it out towards an outside wall, or over a load bearing support or headerif possible cross over as many joists as possible, dont run the tank with the joists. I now have a 125 at my house on a concrete slab so i dont have to worry anymore. One thing to consider is if the floor settles from the weight, it could twist the tank adn we all know what happens then..... just be careful
make a homemade Wet/Dry drip filter, definitely the best option for a tank that size. And for lighting I'd recommened making a homemade metal halide setup, of around 350 wtts. Flourite and laterite and gravle for the substrate. 2x300 wtt heaters. 10 LT DIY CO2 setup, preferably get a CO2 cannister. and you could put anything in here and not have to pay much to keep it up. But if you want to go salt, just add a homemade calcium reactor and DIY protien skimmer. All this can be made DIY. If you want to buy it, well.....i hope your rich!