Home Buying and Large Aquariums

[dskidmore]

I am looking forward to being able to set up my 75 gallon aquarium when I move. Is there anything in particular I should ask the inspector to look at as far as placement, or should I get an actual structural engineer to look at it if I want to put it anywhere but against a foundation wall perpendicular to the rafters?

It didn't do the old house any harm, but there was only one place I thought was overbuilt enough to be a sure thing and didn't have a window or vent in it.

 

[Terrance]

Ask your inspector to look at all the possible places where its safe to lay over 1000lb. Some homes are on a concrete foundation. My home in particular has hollow floors to retain heat. Plan for the future as well - you may end up getting a bigger tank, such as a 125g. Lets hope your inspector knows about this stuff... If not, then hire a specialist.

 

[dskidmore]

Around here all the foundations are concrete block or stone.

 

[boadams87]

Most new homes will hold up to a 125, but anything bigger needs concrete flooring.

 

[dskidmore]

We're not looking at newer homes, most of the homes we're looking at are 100 year old farmhouses. They tend to have beefier timbers than modern framing, but not as precisely straight and right-angled, an the spacing is not as standardized. There will probably be shimming involved with the stand. (My stand is very beefy, a 4x4 frame with 3/4" plywood top, it should shim well without much distortion.)

 

[boadams87]

Id have someone crawl under the space and visually see how big the beams are. A home inspection would tell you.

 

[mohican]

It doesn't matter how strong ur stand is, it won't prevent the floor from failure. If possible, put the tank on an outside wall or near a load bearing wall. Make sure the beams are running front to back (from tank perspective) as this will distribute the weight across several beams and not just one or two. If need be, use a basement pole with 4x4's underneath to help support the floor.

 

[dskidmore]

It doesn't matter how strong ur stand is, it won't prevent the floor from failure.

No, I meant that if the floor is not level but strong (entirely possible in older homes, I've worked in homes before where the walls were not quite at right angles, they just were not so precise in measuring back then) that if I shim the stand, I expect it to be sturdy enough to not warp and cause pressure points on the tank. A big tank can crack under it's own weight if the surface it's on is not flat and smooth.

The overbuilt nature of the stand could add to floor failure problems just due to the little bit more additional weight.

 

[dskidmore]

We made an offer on a house and got the inspection done. The inspector is recommending supports in the basement under where the tank will go. The outside walls are very sturdy (over 1 foot thick stone) but the span is rather large for tree trunks to manage. (There is still bark on the beams in the basement after 180 years...) The "new" section of the house doesn't really have a good place to put the tank over the full height basement section. I don't want to mess around with supports in the old cistern.

 

[dskidmore]

The more I look at my new basement, the more I think an engineer is needed. It seems that at some time the beams were compromised for some reason and shored up a foot from the wall. There are very old boards perched on rocks holding up that end of the house. Down the middle of the span are more modern timbers re-enforcing the floor, but they don't have the benefit of rocks, and are wicking up moisture from the dirt floor. Looking at where the stairs are, I don't expect much better planning in the structure inside the bathroom wall. I'm afraid that a couple extra minor supports may not be a good solution. We probably need an entirely rebuilt support system. No 75 gallon tank for me for a long time.

 

[GulfShrimplet]

Oh, that's too bad! Well you could get creative and find some other way to get a large amount of water into your house.

How about a row of small nano tanks on separate stands on top of the individual beams? Or tanks aligned on one table? Less water but you can string them out to take up the same length as the tank you wanted.

No huge fish or schools but the impact of the row of tanks could still be huge. Better, you can mix fresh, brackish and salt tanks that you can't do in one tank.

 

[dskidmore]

I have a 10 gallon and a 2.5 gallon running now. I have an empty 10 gallon that could get set up as well... That should do me for awhile.

 

[GulfShrimplet]

Sounds good!