Need Some Help

[mike os]

150gal....weighs about 650kg/1400lb too much for upstairs unless you have concrete floors or have it checked by a competent person ie a structural engineer,


With the questions you are asking I would really suggest you have the tank made for you, not trying to be rude or clever, but with a tank that size you are going to have some serious problems if it fails, and being upstairs you have everything below to think about too. If you build it yourself you may well end up liable for any damage (property and building) and also find you insurance is not interested.

Tank building is not difficult, I do it regularly, but big tanks & inexperienced builders are a recipe for some real grief. It will probably be significantly cheaper to have it made/off the shelf too.

 

[squeakytoy]

Actually, another thought... make a cardboard mock up. A 1:1 scale model that you can then position in the apartment to give you an idea of size and placement for best effect. Furniture makers do it quite a bit with new pieces.

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

Thanks for the replies.



I have alread decided to contact a contractor to check my floors and see what he says. After I make the tank I will fill it up outside and leave it for a day. I have seen pictures of a big tank being made, and read up on them so I feel pretty confident even with this size tank.


My calculations worked out to be approx. 1300 lbs (with 100 lbs of gravel.)

Another question.


I was going to create the stand of the tank using a nice piece of wood at the bottom. It would be a flat bottom with no legs. I believe my floor is slightly slanded to one side. Do you think this would cause the stand to break?

 

[Colin_T]

Not sure what you mean about the stand having no legs???

If the floor has a slight angle to it, but the stand is square and true, then the whole thing will sit on an angle and it won't be a big issue to the tank. However, if the stand gets twisted it will put pressure on the tank and could cause it to crack. An easy way to prevent this is to have a 2inch thick piece of polystyrene foam between the tank and stand.

 

[squeakytoy]

Another option, whether the stand is pre made or full on DIY, would be to install a bunch of heavy duty screw levelers.

http/www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=2310

http/www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=380

these are a few, and if you team up many together, you will be able to take on the weight of the aquarium. Just remember to level the stand before you add the water! It will make your life much easier

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

Thanks for the replies. I will look into buying a few of those levelers when the time comes.


What I mean is the tank will not stand on any legs, but a flat peice of wood. Pretty much a regular stand that has a bottom and no legs. As I said, this will allow weight to be spread much more evenly then on only four points.

 

[squeakytoy]

what I would do would be to use many of them... maybe 8 or so, and then space them around the edge.I suppoe if you wanted to get fancy, you could mount those to a matching flat underneath, and make big flat feet for them to spread the weight. I have heard that hockey pucks (ice) are great for just that sort of thing.

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

what I would do would be to use many of them... maybe 8 or so, and then space them around the edge.I suppoe if you wanted to get fancy, you could mount those to a matching flat underneath, and make big flat feet for them to spread the weight. I have heard that hockey pucks (ice) are great for just that sort of thing.

Okay sounds good. I live in Canada so I could definitely get a hold of some hockey pucks!

 

[squeakytoy]

well, I guess it's that or beer!

but as far as using the hockey puck feet, use a "forstner" bit big enough that if you held them up with the foot directly infront of the bit, you could see maybe 1/8th of an inch of the bit on either side of the foot. Forstner bits drill holes that have flat bottoms, rather than cone shaped like most bits.
Then use an epoxy to glue them together. Critical point would be to make sure that you have the foot vertical in the puck so that it will actually work! You can check it with a carpenters square (best) or some other source of a perfect 90 degree angle, such as a artists square or even many CD cases will have pretty square corners.
thats what I would do anyway...