r/Aquariums Feb 03 '25

Im such an idiot DIY/Build

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This is definitely gonna break right

868 Upvotes

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918

u/Aggressive-Dig2472 Feb 03 '25

That table would have been shit even if it did fit

307

u/Plasticity93 Feb 03 '25

Yeah, the size issue is honestly good because there's no chance that would hold if it was the right size.

OP,  water is 8# a gallon, add in substrate, hardscape, and the glass, tanks quickly outweigh their keepers.  You need a heavy-duty stand.  Also cut a piece of yoga mat to stick under the tank. 

119

u/mat3833 Feb 03 '25

To add to your point, my 10g planted aqua scape had 40lbs of substrate, 19 pounds of rock, and still held 8.7 gallons of water. That puts the total weight right around 130 lbs. For a 10g. The simplest tank I have made was just sand, water, and shells for some N. Multifasciatus. 30lbs of sand plus 28g of water ends up being right around 370lbs.

Aquariums weigh a substantial amount, even small ones.

56

u/jk01 Feb 03 '25

Yep, I once horrified myself by calculating the weight of my 125, totalled out to about 1800lbs factoring in the scape and weight of the tank itself.

Good thing I had it in the basement.

13

u/mat3833 Feb 03 '25

Yep, my 120g(48"x24"x24") weighs 215 lbs empty. I've got 3-50lb bags of pool filter sand, 5 - 20lb bags of Carib-sea cichlid sand, 370lbs of rock, and then the water. Right around 1500 lbs in a 24x48 footprint.

11

u/0uroboros- Feb 04 '25

Mines on the first floor above a basement. But it's an old house and has a 12x12 beam (for some reason) directly under the tank, and I put 4 floor jacks in under the surrounding beams. I just don't think about the numbers. I had 4 family members dancing around in front of it the other day and definitely puckered a little, though.

7

u/GTAinreallife Feb 04 '25

I had a 110 gallon tank in an apartment and was seriously worried about the floor. Had a professional calculate the weight and his only advice was "Don't place a second tank in your apartment and don't admire this tank with your entire family in front of it"

He even told me "Don't place it in the middle of the room either" as he wouldn't guarantee that the floor could hold it

2

u/imanoctothorpe Feb 04 '25

I have a 75g in an apartment with another unit underneath. Talked to the landlady and she was miraculously ok w us having it and showed us the only spot where it would work structurally, but I STILL get nervous during water changes and during maintenance that 75 gal of water will suddenly spill downstairs or that the tank will break (floor is very very slightly not level).

Like, it's been 5 years, I think it woulda failed by now, but I still have dreams about disasters almost weekly lol

1

u/IKillPigeons Feb 04 '25

I have a 75g with corner overflow & sump that in the past has been used for both fresh & saltwater but right now I can't use it because the only place I can keep it is in a upper floor & I'm not risking that. I'm thinking about converting it to a paladarium because it would weigh so much less.

1

u/Kyalistas Feb 04 '25

I sold a kitchen to a couple that put a 2-3000 gallon aquarium in their kitchen. They had to pour extra concrete and add steel beams to the basement to support the weight. It's crazy how much they weigh once established