Is There A Cheaper Way Than Getting A Structural Engineer Out?

ellena

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I'm thinking of having a 5ft tank in my living room. The only place it will fit is in front of the chimney breast, going against the floorboards, so inline with the joists.
I know this isn't the best way, but it won't go anywhere the other way.
Just phoned some structural engineering companies and they want £250+VAT to come out for half an hour, do the calculations and provide you with a report saying what weight your floor can currently take and recommending any upgrades needed to support the tank.
I'd have to get all the floorboards lifted myself and then obviously pay to have any work done which was needed. £££!
Is there any other way, apart from just risking it?
 
your joists would have been rated to hold a bit more than you should need for an average house, they aren't made for holding a 5 foot tank for example, the only way you would get away with it is if your joists are set 12" apart and put it across 4 joists, but its not normally that simple as some houses have there joists sat as much as 18" apart, and different recommended load amounts, you wouldn't tell unless you ripped your floor up, which is impractical in most cases. but do some home work, it will cost you more than £250+VAT if your 5 foot fish tank goes through your floor.
im lucky all my floors are concrete!
 
your joists would have been rated to hold a bit more than you should need for an average house, they aren't made for holding a 5 foot tank for example, the only way you would get away with it is if your joists are set 12" apart and put it across 4 joists, but its not normally that simple as some houses have there joists sat as much as 18" apart, and different recommended load amounts, you wouldn't tell unless you ripped your floor up, which is impractical in most cases. but do some home work, it will cost you more than £250+VAT if your 5 foot fish tank goes through your floor.
im lucky all my floors are concrete!
you could just pull the carpet up and see how far appart the nails are and which way the boards run
 
I have a 5ft (500L) tank on floorboards in a ground floor room, but only filled it after doing an inspection and some work first. I'm personally not qualified to do that, but was helped by a mate who used to be a builder and another who is an architect and has a good understanding of loading. I was relatively lucky as although my tank also runs in-line with the joists it happens to also span two sleeper walls (brick built walls that the joists actually rest on). I also added some extra supports under the joists to spread the load even further. When I first filled my tank it was spirit level perfect and remains so after being in situ for 6 months. Also, no creaks or groans from the wood....so hopefully all is okay.

As many will say, nothing will give you the peace of mind that a proper inspection by a structural engineer will, but if you know someone with some knowledge and experience of the physics/materials involved you then have the option of making at least a partially informed decision on whether to progress your plans or not. Definitely not a decision to take lightly though!!
 
A reasonably proficient carpenter should be able to tell you if it will be sturdy for the long term or not, as well as be able to reinforce it, with an estimate of the cost first.
 
I've got a 4ft tank in my 2nd bedroom, i just stuck it in and filled it up. The way i saw it is i know the mass off sofa bed in there thats probs on par with the tank filled for weight wise is there and not gone through plus people occasionally sleep in there so i was quietly confident that my floor would take it. If it all went pete tong i'd just phone my dad and get him to sort it lol
 
you can't see the thickness of a joist by looking at nails can you. i am a joiner, hence why i said it is best to check, different gaged joists are used in different, totally dependent on age of house and the builder. the closer you can get the tank to the wall the better, but i definitely wouldn't put the tank in line with the joists, i think that would definitely be pushing your luck.
also when your putting a reasonable sized tank onto a wooden floor you need to be overly sure that your stand is very rigid and strong, if your floor flex's, and leads to the stand doing so it could be good bye tank, and hello wet floor.
you don't have to pay for a structural engineer, just do all you can, check everything, it would pay off in the long run.
 
Yes, there is a crawl space, I think. Couple of feet gap under the floorboards, then bare earth?
The house is 1905 UK terrace. The tank would go right up to the chimney breast wall.
The room is a living/dining knocked into one, and the joists run along the length of the room. As the tank is so big, there isn't room, with windows etc, for it to go across the room and span joists.
The floorboards are the originals, and weren't in great knack last time I saw them, been ripped up for
work to be done over the years etc. The floor in that section isn't level anyway, I know that for definite. I have a small 60l tank there atm and I've had to use wedges under the feet to level it.
I have a joiner coming to do some work soon, so I'll see what he has to say about it.
 
I was given this link before when I asked the same question, a good read IMHO: http://www.african-c...m/Structure.htm

I too am putting a 5ft'er on a wooden floor, in a 1960s first floor flat. It will arrive next week, and will be put across the joists and in the corner of the room (outside wall / bearing wall), the other side of the bearer wall is concrete floor where the bathroom is.

You do want to be sure before you go for it...going against the chimney is good as it will most likely be a bearing wall to hold all that extra weight, but not going across the joists is scary to me
crazy.gif
 
If there is a reasonable enough amount of space under the joist, could you not put a car jack under the beams to reinforce them? The tank being 5ft long will mean its a universally distributed load and not a point load, which is better, but depending on how thick the beams are, and what material they are, and their condition it is difficult to judge.

Josh.
 
any good joiner could reinforce the joists from underneath, my sister has a large hot tub which is outside on decking that is on stilts, i'm not sure how much water is in there but it's a lot more than a large fish tank and it's been fine, i wouldn't worry to much anyway if it's on the ground floor.
 
From the start of the conclusion of the page I linked to above:

"Aquariums up to 55 gallons can be placed almost anywhere without much worry at all. Many tanks larger than 55 gallons and no more than 125 gallons will be okay, if they are placed in a good structural location and your floor framing is free from significant defects. For example, a 125 gallon tank, on a wooden stand, placed perpendicular to the joists up against a bearing wall, will often be okay without any additional structural support. If your tank is over 125 gallons, then it is likely that you should consider adding supports under your wood framed floor. Please realize that these are generalities that may or may not apply to your particular situation."

 
Yes, there is a crawl space, I think. Couple of feet gap under the floorboards, then bare earth?
The house is 1905 UK terrace. The tank would go right up to the chimney breast wall.
The room is a living/dining knocked into one, and the joists run along the length of the room. As the tank is so big, there isn't room, with windows etc, for it to go across the room and span joists.
The floorboards are the originals, and weren't in great knack last time I saw them, been ripped up for
work to be done over the years etc. The floor in that section isn't level anyway, I know that for definite. I have a small 60l tank there atm and I've had to use wedges under the feet to level it.
I have a joiner coming to do some work soon, so I'll see what he has to say about it.

I'm not sure how easy it is to access your crawl space or if the things I am about the recommend to you are available where you are (I'm in Canada) but what you could do is poor a concrete pad in the crawl space underneath where the tank is going to sit and purchase a couple of these http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200331730_200331730
place those under your floor joist and Bob's your uncle... :good:
 

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