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  • Need advice with a building project....

    There is a nice alcove in the living room (ground floor) our new house which would be perfect for a new fish tank. The tank i have in mind is 60*18*24 (inches). I would keep my existing tank (36*15*18) as a sump for underneath.

    I therefore need to obtain a cabinet to house the tanks. So essentially I need a five foot cabinet which has a cupboard one foot wide, and another compartment 4feet wide.

    My concerns are:

    1) Will the floor support this weight? - I assume that I will need to distribute the weight evenly using a lintle.
    2) Will the top of the cabinet be able to support the weight of the 5foot tank - especially as there is going to be a 48*20*20+ cupboard underneath.
    3) What should I make this out of?

    My DIY skills are fairly crappy, so if anyone knows how i could obtain a custom built cabinet i'd be gratfull!

    Cheers!
    The Welsh support two teams when it comes to rugby. Wales of course, and anyone else playing England

  • #2
    There are cabinetmakers all over the place. If you could estimate the weight of the full tank and add 10%, tell them you need to support that amount of weight. I would think a stout 2x4 framework, with 4x4 legs and covered in whatever nice hardwood exterior you want, would be sufficient. Check the framing in the basement below to make sure all is well. You might want a structural engineer's advice at that point. (We are lucky here in this respect.. almost all foundations are concrete.) Oh, be sure to use hefty bolts and screws in that cabinet.

    The weight of the water involved would be 937.5 lbs for the large tank, and 351.5 lbs for the small tank, adding the weight of the cabinet and whatever rocks are inside the tank, etc, you should have a load there of about 1500 lbs (water is 62.5 lbs/ cubic foot).

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    • #3
      what you didnt tell us is the floor, is it wooden? if so, how large are the studs/decking? easier to tell how much support it would have
      Better to let one think you are a fool, than speak and prove it


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      • #4
        Originally posted by KvHagedorn
        The weight of the water involved would be 937.5 lbs for the large tank, and 351.5 lbs for the small tank, adding the weight of the cabinet and whatever rocks are inside the tank, etc, you should have a load there of about 1500 lbs (water is 62.5 lbs/ cubic foot).
        See? That's why the metric system is better: Water is 1 Kg / l

        AZ
        There's an Opera in my macbook.

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        • #5
          metrics? ugg
          Better to let one think you are a fool, than speak and prove it


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          • #6
            Originally posted by az
            See? That's why the metric system is better: Water is 1 Kg / l

            AZ
            Fine. now tell me how many liters are in a 15 cubic foot tank.

            And suppose it was not water, but gasoline? Or Mercury?

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            • #8
              Originally posted by KvHagedorn
              Fine. now tell me how many liters are in a 15 cubic foot tank.


              424.75305 L

              And suppose it was not water, but gasoline?
              the same...

              Or Mercury?
              the same again.

              Now if you asked how much that volume weighed...
              "Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind." -- Dr. Seuss

              "Always do good. It will gratify some and astonish the rest." ~Mark Twain

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              • #9
                Well, that's what I meant, smartypants.

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                • #10
                  1 cubic foot of pure water weighs 62.4 pounds
                  15 cu ft would be 936 pounds

                  Weights of materials
                  Last edited by SitFlyer; 18 April 2004, 20:32.

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                  • #11
                    everyone should get a Pocket Ref, very concise, very handy...

                    "Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind." -- Dr. Seuss

                    "Always do good. It will gratify some and astonish the rest." ~Mark Twain

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                    • #12
                      My reference says 1 cubic foot = 28.3168466 liters

                      28.3168466 * 15 = 424.752699
                      Last edited by SitFlyer; 18 April 2004, 20:54.

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                      • #13
                        That difference is about a drop of water (0.000351 L), hardly worth mentioning.
                        "Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind." -- Dr. Seuss

                        "Always do good. It will gratify some and astonish the rest." ~Mark Twain

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                        • #14
                          It is a new house, so I assume it will be wooden floor boards on concrete foundations (no basement).

                          What would i need to use as the top of the cabinet? Its not going to be that well supported giving that it will have a large cupboard underneath????


                          Any carpenters here?
                          The Welsh support two teams when it comes to rugby. Wales of course, and anyone else playing England

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                          • #15
                            Paddy I'll go and check out some cabinets for that size tank tommorrow (later today) and report back

                            I've looked at them before, almost bought that size or a 175gallon one about 4 years ago... anywho it's been too long and I've slept since then
                            "Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind." -- Dr. Seuss

                            "Always do good. It will gratify some and astonish the rest." ~Mark Twain

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