Another tank weight vs floor thread

[greatmoojin]

We recently got a 150cm x 50cm x 50cm tank and are currently looking for a stand (any help greatly appreciated).

We live in a stilt house approx 10 years old, and will be putting the tank in the living room against an outside wall, running across the joists and as close as we can to the main supporting beams (that actually come through the floor and up into the ceiling). The stand will be flush to the floor (i.e. no legs) so should spread the weight evenly across the area.

We estimate the tank/stand/decor total weight at around 500KG.

Does anyone have any experience in running a heavy tank in such a house?

Should we be worried about the floor caving in?

Any other precautions we should take?

Where the heck do we find a good quality, but cheap stand? All quotes so far are over $800 :evil:

[Barrie]

good quality, but cheap stand

interesting coment

normally cheap = nasty

more expensive = better quality

Are you after a timber stand, steel or somthing else?

Im sure the weight wont be a problem as 1500 wide will mean the weight is spred over 4 floor joists so only 125 kgs per joist, not much more than a well built guy

[Disco Dan]

Your estimation on total weight seems a little light, however the floor should take the weight. I suggest you talk to a professional builder/engineer to make sure though.

Personally I would build the stand myself. It is really not that difficult and as long as you have a basic understanding of weight distribution and bracing you will run into very few problems.

I have included a couple of pictures of the stand I am currently making, it is far from finished so please don't poke fun at the wonky doors! They were hung just to take the pictures and also in the pictures it is shown on blocks but sits flat on the floor. This stand is for a 36x18x18" tank.

Constructing such a stand is very basic - as you can see it is 2X4 wood into two frames (top and bottom) with uprights at the four corners, middle front/back. For the cross bracing I have used 7MM plywood screwed to the back and sides. You can of course add 2x4 cross bracing if you wish but the plywood is up to the job in this case. The top I used 15MM marine grade plywood for a solid flat base that will accept getting wet.

I then used some square stock to create shelving inside.

I am in Waitakere too and your more than welcome to PM me and come round to take a look. I have built a few stands before so can give you a few tips if you wish.

[greatmoojin]

Thanks for the replies, we know it's a big ask for cheap and good quality! We are willing to pay a reasonable price for a medium brown timber stand and hood, but over $800 is just too much! Would be happy with something around the $500 mark, and have been scouring trademe for solid desks, cabinets, anything really!

Thanks for breaking the weight down into load per joist, might get a professional builder in to have a look just as a precaution. Any one have any recomendations in the Waitakere area?

Building a cabinet for us is quite a task, what with our child like joinery skills :oops: hence why we are willing to pay for a premade unit.

[David R]

Get a price from HFF for a powdercoated steel stand, just specify that you want a flat base to spread the weight over the floor, for that size tank it shouldn't be too much over $500 (I think?). You don't want to mess around putting big tanks on furniture that was never designed to support that sort of weight, if you can't DIY then I'd seriously suggest you bite the bullet and pay for a quality stand. Just add up the potential cost if the tank fails and it will seem like a good investment.

As for the floor, I' have a 1500x600x600 tank and a 1200x500x500 tank on timber floors no problem, just make sure the load is spread evenly over the joists.

[suphew]

When I worked in IT and we had a saying, "We can do fast, cheap, and good, pick which two you would like"

[David R]

Same goes for cars; cheap, fast, reliable, its only going to be two out of three...

[Disco Dan]

Thanks for the replies, we know it's a big ask for cheap and good quality! We are willing to pay a reasonable price for a medium brown timber stand and hood, but over $800 is just too much! Would be happy with something around the $500 mark, and have been scouring trademe for solid desks, cabinets, anything really!

Thanks for breaking the weight down into load per joist, might get a professional builder in to have a look just as a precaution. Any one have any recomendations in the Waitakere area?

Building a cabinet for us is quite a task, what with our child like joinery skills :oops: hence why we are willing to pay for a premade unit.

DIY stand would only probably cost you about $150-$200 for the cost of the wood. Time to build about 2-3 days.

As long as you can cut lengths of wood accurately and know how to use a battery drill you could make one.

I would offer to build you one, but could not offer any guarantee. Mine have never failed but if I built you one and it failed you would probably not be covered under your insurance! Opens up a bit of a can of worms risk wise so better to be safe than sorry. I tend to over-engineer things and find they outlast anything shop bought.

You could ask a builder for a quote for a 4x2 box frame to your dimensions then just screw plywood to it and varnish it? Find some nice moulded kitchen cabinet style doors at a scrappy and just screw them on?

I hate paying other people for things I can do myself, hence why most of my furniture I have made myself. Fruit bowl not big enough? Whip out the lathe... New TV? Get the saw out and make a new stand.. etc etc

Good luck !

[greatmoojin]

Have hopefully found someone to make a stand for us, going to meet him on the weekend and go over design etc, we want a low unit so probably same dimensions as the tank (150x50x50). Will have to start the hard work now and figure out who's going to live in the tank