Guys I need the reef forums help

Aquaman

Aquaman

New member
as some of you may know i am pulling my hair out of my head trying to get a 60 gal tank (MARINELAND 24x24x24 cube) to wotk in my apartment here is what i came up with :

pros

1) far as i can tell no place in history has reports of a floor cracking open and a tank falling to its doom
2) my insurance will cover up to 30,000 property dmg if it does ( will that cover the damage??)
3) an article from a forum written by a structual enginer says that a floor joyce is not likely to split but it may sag and cause major damage over time (not to concernd i rent)


cons

1) my landlord lives right under me (Instant Eviction)
2) if it did fall and kill someone i can go to prision
3) the full weight may be balancing on 1 floor joyce (possably may be close to the next stud... no way to tell )


the best i can figure out for the weight is....(can a few of you re calculate this with info you find to verify..this)
(Marine Land 24x24x24
tank empty 77 lbs
saltwater = 540 Lbs 9 lbs X 60 Gal (saltwater is heavier because of the salt)
live rock im guessing 60 lbs (not sure how much)
sand? (i have no clue how much i will need)
--but....thers always a but ,,,,
under the tank stand (well actually the cabinet that houses the 20 gal water heater ) thats where my tank will be sitting on top of
weight unknown for water heater so i just calculated using a 20 gal hex aquarium aquariunm 220 lbs and added 30 lbs to be safe for metal and components that may be inside
for a total of 250 for total weight of water heater

I came up with 927 total (not including sand) Any idea on an est. weight on that ?

does this sound right ?? im really not sure what to do .. i reallly have my heart set on a 24x24x24 but i want to be safe

if my landlord leaves mabe ill cut the closet floor open to see where the studs are at


guys im reallly hoping for some feed back on this .... im in need...thanks guys
 
Tbonekilla said:
Only a 60 gallon. You'll be good.

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+1.
I have a 60 cube and a 40 breeder and 30gal sump with 80lbs of sand, 80lbs of rock 10gal ato as well as two stands on the second floor next to each other. Systems been up for 2 years and no sagging. It is laying across the Joices which is doubled up 2x12's.
 
A 2x4 won't bend more than an inch with over 1000 pounds on it, and that's if you lay them the wide way down. Joists are much larger than 2x4s, and they're installed with the skinny side down. You could easily stack a dozen cubes on top of the same spot, and I don't think that you'd see much more than an inch of compression.

With one cube, you'll be fine. Go engineering class!
 
misenplace101 said:
With the landlord being under you I would be more worried about overflow and flooding then the tank falling through.
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+1, I would put a plastic mat of some kind under your tank as you will inevitably spill water. The only concern I would have structurally would be how the stand was built to distribute the weight. If all the weight is on 4 legs I might be concerned that it would damage the floor. What I would do is screw a 3/4" piece of plywood to the bottom and you shouldn't have to worry about the possible damage then. As far as crashing through the ceiling, unless you know your building has a major termite issue you will be fine.
 
well its your basic counter/cabimet .... i was going to pull off the counter beef it up with 4 2x6 or 2 2x4s (nailed together) wichever fits best on each corner.. or as many was i can .... and possably a 3/4 phywood board on to ..like a table then put the counter back on to hide it
 
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