Will my tank fall thru the floor?

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Derpfish

Jack Dempsey
MFK Member
Dec 30, 2010
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I might be getting a 125g 6' long tank but I'm concerned about the floor being able to hold the weight since the length of the tank will be parallel to the floor joists and thus putting more weight on fewer joists than if the tank was place perpendicular to the joists. Here is a pic of the floor taken from the basement below. The outline of where the tank will sit is drawn in red. As you can see, about 2 feet to the left of the tank is an iron I-beam running perpendicular to the joists and the corner of the foundation is about 2 feet from the right side of the tank. I'm hoping that the proximity to the foundation will mean that it's definitely safe to have the tank parallel to the joists. I'm no engineer, in fact I'm kind of a moron, so I have no idea if I should even be worried about this.

A 125g tank (filled), stand, substrate, etc., weighs around 1500 pounds, right?

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http://img200.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=88888_125floor_122_34lo.jpg

...and no, you cannot have the Beefaroni on the shelf, so don't even ask.
 
If you can put a piece of plywood or something down. This will help distribute the weight of the tank.
 
Generally speaking if I remember right from basic engineering your house/apartment floor joist are designed to support about 40psf of live load(furniture,people wat ev) so as long as you are distributing the weight over more than one joist AND the live load in that room does NOT already exceed or will exceed that rule after your tank is filled you should be ok. Depending on code in your area floors are built with a safety factor of 1.0-2.5 so they will not fail immediately if you exceed that rule of live load. Also like I said before a large sheet of plywood stained or painted nice under it will distribute the weight quite a bit.
 
Those joists look a bit girly to run a 125 parallel, hope the joists don't have a long span., Simply put there are far to many reasons to not place it parallel.

I read a write up by an engineer on this exact topic,, indicating 125 is the max if running perpendicular on 'new build' timber. He also pointed out live load was a very bad way to calculate for a tank, since a tank is sustained weight or something.
I have searched for the link in my bookmarks, but can't find it. If i remember correctly 12 volt man (forum user) had posted the link on this forum a while back.

Bear in mind for ply to distribute the weight effectively the tank should be central to the board, in this case it will likely mean having a big gap between the wall and tank.

If you go for supporting the floor then i would suggest using an acro under where the tank will be place, supporting any joists it will sit on. This can easily be removed, and is easy to fit if you have a brain cell or two.

Better yet, make room for it to go perpendicular to the joists.
 
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The span of joists between the foundation to the right and the I-beam to the left is about 10 feet.
I don't think the plywood idea is feasible because I don't have room to set the tank/stand far enough out from the wall in order to center it on the plywood. Plus, the farther away from the wall it is then the less support I'd have from the foundation, I'm assuming.

What is an acro? Would that be like using 4x4's or something vertically to add support to the joists?

Thanks for the help.
 
Consider the furniture, potential waterbeds, fat people, etc. that the house is designed to hold. I'd say you're fine.
 
I'd say your floor should hold the tank no problems short term. But long term it will very likely make your floor sag.
For peace of mind I would reinforce the floor if at all possible.
 
If there's worry, or it's an old house, etc. put it near a corner so that it has the mechanical assistance of the walls.
 
I am putting a 150 tall in a similar spot but in a corner.....for 50 buck you can put a 18.500 lb floor jack under the tank.....maybe two for balance. My tank is only 48" but a far heavier load per square foot....I screwed in doubled up 3/4 plywood to span 4 joists and put in the jack. Its now the most stable room in the house. Before the tank ( 52 gallon) would shake from walking across the floor. Now I can jump up and down and its like concrete. Most solid room in the house now!
 
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