How Do I Work This Out?

[Truck]

i have 2 options a rio 125 or a 180, its going in my bedroom.

my bedroom consists of 4 walls(well der) 2 of them being external walls and the other 2 are internal(how do i tell if there load bearing walls?)

would a 180 litre tank be safe in my room? or even a 125 for that matter?

 

[loachman]

The external walls will definitely be load bearing.

The 180 L is about 48 gal, which should be fine in any well constructed house. For added safety, make sure the tank sits on as many joists as possible to help distribute the load.

Without seeing a house though, there is no way to be 100% sure but it seems that under 100gal there aren't too many issues to worry about.

 

[Truck]

the house is on an estate, where most of the houses are to the same plan. ill lift up the carpet later to see which way the joists go, but if a place the tank against an external wall ill be safe right?

 

[Schmill]

I think 'safer' is the term, and you'll still want to make sure you are crossing the joists rather than running 'with them'.

I doubt anyone on here would say that anyone was 'SAFE' putting a tank upstairs, unless it was tiny, because as has been said without knowing the house construction you can't really know. If someone said it was safe, and then in a week it falls through the floor, you will blame them right? Thats why people will 'advise' but can't really say one away or the other.

 

[Truck]

do the joists ALWAYS run perpendicular to the floor boards?

 

[Schmill]

do the joists ALWAYS run perpendicular to the floor boards?

If you have standard 'floorboards' (as opposed to the large chipboard sheets they use in newer builds 'urgh'!), then yes, I believe they have to or they would fall through the gaps between the joists if they ran in the same direction

 

[Truck]

when did they change to chip board? my house is atleast 17 years old

 

[watkins101]

Water weighs a Kilo per Litre, Plus the tank stand Ect, Would you worry about having a couple of fat blokes standing upstairs if not then you should be OK as the tank will weigh about the same as them.

 

[Truck]

yes but 3 fat blokes arent permanent are they?

 

[Truck]

please answer somebody i need a definite yay or nay.

i know it may be hard to come to a decision, but all the information is in the first post. and also its just your standard 3 bedroom detached house

 

[rdd1952]

the house is on an estate, where most of the houses are to the same plan. ill lift up the carpet later to see which way the joists go, but if a place the tank against an external wall ill be safe right?

Floor joists are almost always going to run the narrow dimension of the house which usually is from front to back. That is the shortest span and doesn't create major issues duriing contruction. The wider the span, the deeper the joists have to be in order to support the load.

 

[Truck]

ok thanks, do you think the floor will take 125 litres, i only want this size to be safe, and really its big enough for what i need it for

 

[stickyemu]

my mate has a 6ft tank in his bedroom and thats been there for years an its an ex council house,
still would'nt like to be him if it burst wot a mess ££££

 

[rabbut]

The only person whom can give you anything near a deffinate answer to any questions about if the weight is ok in your house, is a structural engineer whom has actually visuited the house and done some servaying on your behalf...

 

[Truck]

is that expensive? ive decided to go with the 125 for obvious reasons(i dont want to risk anything) surely a rio125 will be perfectly safe?