200 gal. on 2nd floor what do we think about that

[peewee]

Unless you want to continue getting useless comments, you will need to provide the following info.

What are the dimensions of the 200g aquarium?
Do you know which way the floor joists run where you are going to place the tank? Do you know the spacing between joists?
Do you know the span of these floor joists?
When was the house built?

+

are there termites in the house?

 

[Shm1701]

I own a 220 gal and the store owner told me just to make sure the floor is rated to hold a water bed.

 

[Bderick67]

I own a 220 gal and the store owner told me just to make sure the floor is rated to hold a water bed.

Sound like advise that someone trying to make a sale would give.

The weight of a water bed is spread out over a large footprint, while the weight of an aquarium is compacted in a smaller footprint. There is no way you could ever place a water bed so that it's weight is only supported by 2 floor joists. While you could with a 200g aquarium and if you try to carry 2000 plus pounds on just 2 floor joists, likely it will fail.

 

[Bee0912]

I am moving in a few months to a second floor apartment with my 180 gallon tank. I am worried about it but I have renters insurance and I have in righting from the apartment manager that they do not care and it is 100% ok. Now my thoughts on this are.

I will be putting it perpendicular to the floor juices but how do I know which way they run?
It will not fall through the floor like a cartoon all at once you will know there is a problem before it goes down. Now I am moving into a rental so I don’t care if it damages the floor my insurance will fix it for them if I have to move it. If I owned a home I don’t thing I would do it at all.
How many of you have them in your home with a basement? That is no different than a second floor?

 

[Bee0912]

This should clear some things up.
Great post! should be a sticky!
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=164188

 

[freshwaterz]

i have my 220 and my 350 on the second floor.....in the same room!
i've had the there for a year now with no sagging or bowing of the floor. the only thing i made sure to do was to set the tanks up so that they lay across the floor joists so that the weight is divided between each joist.
oh, i also made sure the tanks lay close to load bearing walls. just seemed smart to me. may or may not be right, but it works.

 

[Bee0912]

i have my 220 and my 350 on the second floor.....in the same room!
i've had the there for a year now with no sagging or bowing of the floor. the only thing i made sure to do was to set the tanks up so that they lay across the floor joists so that the weight is divided between each joist.
oh, i also made sure the tanks lay close to load bearing walls. just seemed smart to me. may or may not be right, but it works.

Thank you you made me feel better!!!!

Now how do i know which way the floor joists are running?

 

[freshwaterz]

well, its a long shot, but look at the ceiling and try to find drywall seems or the rows of screws that hold the drywall up. the drywall is fastened to joists. if you cant tell that way, the landlord or maintanance man should know.