Is My Desk Strong Enough

[Straydum]

i wouldnt try adding a 29 gallon. why not get a stand? they dont come that expensive for a 29 gallon

 

[vinylman]

I wouldn't put any tank on something that wasn't intended to take one. It's fine sitting on the desk to test it, but it would have the CONSTANT weight and strain of a full tank on it. Another consideration: if you put a tank on an ordinary table and the thing collapsed and ruined the carpet/flooring, the first thing the insurance company would ask would be ''was it on a proper support?''.

 

[rowdyburns21]

I wouldn't put any tank on something that wasn't intended to take one. It's fine sitting on the desk to test it, but it would have the CONSTANT weight and strain of a full tank on it. Another consideration: if you put a tank on an ordinary table and the thing collapsed and ruined the carpet/flooring, the first thing the insurance company would ask would be ''was it on a proper support?''.

Well said vinylman, sure it might be fine at first, first couple of months it might be fine, perhaps even for the first couple of years!! but eventually it will bow past youngs modulus of elasticity and therefore will not be able to spring back which means tropical tank bye bye, I dont know how old you are grimmy but it would be quite straight forward to do a bit of a structual calculation on it, if you PM grimmy ill give you a bit of a heads up about it. Good point about the insurance too vinylman good call

 

[grimmy]

well i wegh 225 i laid on it held with no problemalso ive been puttin down bath towels to cushen it just a little

 

[pica_nuttalli]

cushioning the tank is *not* going to alleviate it being too heavy for the desk. if anything, it will just make the tank sit unevenly and dramatically increase the chances of the bottom cracking.

unless you know the maximum weight rating for a piece of furniture, it is not reasonable to assume that it is strong enough to hold anything larger than a 10g. this is especially true for modern furniture, which is designed to only be as strong as it has to be in order to hold up a computer, television, etc.

that 30g tank is going to weigh over 300 lbs once it's full. i would not count on a computer desk being strong enough to support that indefinitely. if i were you, i would start figuring out where to get a stand ASAP.

 

[rowdyburns21]

well i wegh 225 i laid on it held with no problemalso ive been puttin down bath towels to cushen it just a little

Like I said in my last post it might be fine at first, but its durability thats the issue.

 

[xweeqtx]

Personally, I use a TV unit for my 30gal community tank.
Weight it holds works out as 100 kilogram = 220.462 262 185 lb, lbs
The weight for my tank is around 14 stones - this stand holds a bit more than 15.

http/www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/part...and%2Bunits.htm

kinda looks like that.

 

[lilfishie]

my 15 gal is on a sturdyier stand than that and i worry about it, even though it has held a 30 gal for years

 

[rdd1952]

the 30g would be too wide, the 29 would fit perfectly and the desk would definatly hold it.

If there are no supports in the center (and Im sure there aren't on a desk) then it will not hold it. Maybe for a while but it will begin to sag and eventually break.

I wouldn't put any tank on something that wasn't intended to take one. It's fine sitting on the desk to test it, but it would have the CONSTANT weight and strain of a full tank on it. Another consideration: if you put a tank on an ordinary table and the thing collapsed and ruined the carpet/flooring, the first thing the insurance company would ask would be ''was it on a proper support?''.

Agreed 100%.

well i wegh 225 i laid on it held with no problemalso ive been puttin down bath towels to cushen it just a little

Laying there for a few minutes is a lot different from a sustained perios. If you lay on it for a year, then you can prown like on a trampolobably say it's safe. A better test would be to get on it and jump up and down on it like a trampoline. that would give you a better idea of the force it can withstand.

 

[junosama]

I always prefer metal stands because they are so much stronger plus if u get a leak or spill water it wont warp the wood. If you have the money i would get a metal stand which also also for a second tank usualy under it so u can have two tanks saving space =)

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

The tank will weigh almost 300 gallons. Sit on it with a friend for a few minutes, if nothing happens then it should be okay.

 

[rdd1952]

The tank will weigh almost 300 gallons. Sit on it with a friend for a few minutes, if nothing happens then it should be okay.

I totally disagree. If there aren't any supports directly under the tank, there won't be a problem with having weight on it for a short time. Over a period of weeks the weight will begin to cause problems. If you want to try an experiment, take a piece of 1/2" plywood and place it between 2 blocks so the edges are supporting the full weight. Sit on it for 5 minutes and most likely nothing will happen. Then put a 300 lb weight on it and leave it. I guarantee that within a month or so (probably only a few days) the plywood will break. There is a big difference between short term stress and long term stress.

 

[grimmy]

but mine has bottom support plus the wood is 2 inches thick

 

[Musho3210]

just buy a stand or make one..... Or just use the desk.... You want to use the desk and it seems like we cant convince you so just use it.

 

[littlest]

You may be able to modify the desk to make it stronger. Post a picture of it, maybe people can make suggestions