DIY Background Tile Weight Question NOT A DIY PROJECT

[jThessin]

I am about to purchase another 150 gallon tank (48"W X 24"D X 31"H).
I was going to silicone some black marble tiles to the back glass.
My question is, this tile, once in place will have a total weight of 61.9 Lbs. What will I need to do to beef up this aquarium/stand/floor/whatever?

My plan is to have black Fiji sand with black galaxy marble tile background for our 40+ African cichlids

The tile will not rest on the bottom glass unless thats better/safer.
Rather, the tile will extend down the back glass terminating 1-2" above the bottom. Any Ideas on how best to do this??
If this won't work, I was thinking of getting about 300-400 lbs of boulders to stack in the tank, to create a natural "reef" for the cichlids. I would have a 1" thick piece of styrofoam to help cushion the edges/weight.

Thanks Jim
p.s. sorry if its in the wrong forum but its not a [acronym:d6f312f2b2="Do it yourself"]DIY[/acronym:d6f312f2b2] project more a question on what kind of weight a tank will hold.

[dskidmore]

A 150 gallon tank is going to weigh around 1500 pounds all told with rocks, water and equipment. I don't think the tile is really a significant enough percentage to worry. I've heard several people recommend gluing rock or cement constructions to the back wall. It shouldn't be a big problem.

If you're really concerned, try going direct to a manufacturer and see if you can get thinner tile, that's not rated to hold up a floor/counter.

The back wall rests on the bottom glass, but the pros that put the tanks together should have done that more evenly that you will be able to, and therefore the weight will be well distributed if you just glue to the back glass.

You may want to go light on the silicone, in case there are expansion/contraction issues you want the glue to break rather than your glass.

[jThessin]

Thats a good idea.. never thought of trying to have someone cut it thinner.
I wasnt going to replace the back glass, just silicone some tiles to the back of it (on the inside) but I wanted to make sure that would'nt put any undue pressure on the back glass seams or the bottom glass seams where they meet up.

Thanks Jim

[dskidmore]

I wasn't suggesting you replace the glass. I was saying if you rest the tile on the bottom, you are likely to not get every tile perfectly square, and therefore create pressure points on the bottom glass. Gluing just to the back panel, the weight will be distributed onto the bottom glass more evenly.

You may want to be more carful than most about carrying this tank with water/substrate in it, but I don't think it should be a problem standing still.

[jThessin]

Thanks for the advice. I thought it would be better not to carry the tile all the way down to the bottom glass. Sorry about my confusion with the replacement issue.
Jim