apartments and fishtanks

[greenmaji]

I can only imagine how poor the constuction was on that appartment!
Did you ask them how much it cost them to repair the appartment? (for insurance purposes)

 

[aqh88]

There were a few other problems with that apartment. Like the 10 beer bottles full of cigarettes on the table outside so we left fairly quickly. Rent was only like $200/month too but nothing was included and the cable hookup was this cord that ran across the room. We were told if we want a tv in the bedroom just punch a hole in the wall and stick the cord through.

 

[greenmaji]

sounds pretty sweet!

 

[cinciboy]

I live in an apartment which is probably 40 years old. I have kept the aquarium near a solid beam near the wall. But my 29gal (350 pounds weight ??) makes a ding in the carpet as I use cast iron stand. I am not sure whether it creates problem. But as other said maintenence guys have seen it and they never told anything.. Also I didnt have the aquaium when I leased the apartment.

Also I have unrelated question.. I have seen some bugs near my aquarium ... My wife told me it is because of aquarium they are coming .. anybody have this problem.. Does aquarium attract bugs ????

 

[Jchillin]

Though I haven't had this problem (we keep our screens down at all times), I would suggest getting some to keep the bugs out. Unless your tank is near a window and you keep fish food floating on the water surface, bugs should not be attracted to it. Of course, if bugs have always managed to get inside in the first place, finding your fish tank is relatively easy.

 

[RabidChild]

You know, I never even thought to ask before getting my tank. I remember them saying no cats or dogs and that smaller caged animals were fine but I can't remember anything about aquariums (it's been 3+ years). I am on the ground floor and we have just a concrete slab under the carpet so it's not going to fall through the floor or anything. I should probably say something but I'd probably just be better off playing dumb. If they say anything I can' just blame it on the old resident managers since we have new managers who just move in a few months ago.

 

[beblondie]

Renters insurance is a must even 30 gallons of water can cause a fair amount of damage.My lease states i cannot have a tank over 50 gallons they never said how many 50 gallon tanks i could have tho -Anne

 

[kimberly]

I was a poor single public school teacher and I made sure to include renter's insurance in my budget. It wasn't that expensive, esp since it was "connected" to my auto insurance so I got a multiple policy discount. Well worth the peace of mind, imo. I had a 58 gal aquarium on many second story apts with no problem.

 

[greenmaji]

I could see a tank attracting moths at night if the light was left on but the roach type bugs are not attracted to tanks..

 

[wright4lfe]

i've seen 200gl reef tanks in APTs, one was in a second story complex for about 2 years.

don't worry too much about it.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

And on a side note (and this is an insurance stand point since I work for an insurance company and these things always come through our office): Don't always count on your renters insurance to pay for damages. It may be covered, but you also have to pay the deductible and the claim will be on your record for 7 years. So you will be surcharged for it for the next 7 years. If it is $1,000 worth of damage, most of the time it is not beneficial to turn it in to the insurance. I know, it sounds crappy, but that's the way our world is nowadays. We just insured a home for a family who had a claim 4 years prior. They forgot about the claim since it was so minor (about $1,000) and their policy was surcharged and they were placed in a higher rating tier. This happens at all insurance companies. They hide it in the rating tier so most of the time it doesn't even show that you are being surcharged. So people think they aren't being charged for it, but they are. That's just a little heads up in case you decide to turn in a small claim. And I say that $1,000 is small because you end up paying that $1,000 in the deductible and the surcharges. Our marketing rep always tells us to save the claim for the big one. Meaning your house burns down or a tornado destroys it or you are being sued.

 

[jcarlilesiu]

Im an architect and just wanted to put my two cents in.

P.S. this is my first post nice to meet you all

While most buildings, which most of you live, have sufficent floor load capacity to support a pretty large fish tank there are a few things to keep in mind like somebody else said. When floors are built, two factors are determined when calculating size of floor joists: dead load, and live load. Dead load are items that are built in.. i.e. cabinets, walls, roofs... though most of you don't probably plan on moving your fish tanks around, they are still considered live loads. Like I was saying, when calculating these live loads, most architects will design the floor to maintain a uniform load of around 40-60 pounds/sq. ft. (local and municiple building codes all vary) This means that an even distribution of load over the floor can be equal to 40 pounds/sq.ft. This doesn't mean that if you have 41 the floor is going to fall in, but it is over capacity, and the amount of deflection (amount the floor is sagging) is beyond the design limit. When placeing your tank, its best to have it close to a "to the ground" wall, i.e. one near the foundation or supporting beam below, and straddle it across as many floor joist (smaller members) as possible. If you are still worried with your 800 gallon aqua marine playland, if you can access the subfloor from a basement or crawlspace, I suggest 'sistering' additional joists to the ones that exist under to location of the aquarium. If you need more advice on this, or other questions, just let me know. In no way does this message make me liable if your floor falls in. On a side note, if your aquarium is under 60 gallons, I wouldn't even worry about it. Sorry if it was confusing.. my job kinda is

 

[greenmaji]

WELCOME TO AA!!!!!

Great first post!
I like the numbers by the way.

 

[bussardnr]

awsome btw im now taking donations for my 800 gallon aqua marine playland, so send your money today!