terrors r us Posted February 3, 2008 Report Share Posted February 3, 2008 HI, I am slowly starting my dream tank!!!! It's going to be 10FT long x 6FT wide x 4FT high.... My calculations tell me that it would be 1800US gal which is 15,000lbs(water only) so after adding the stand,acrylic,etc,etc.... I would be looking at 20,000 ibs which includes a safety margin...... The cement pad that is being built for it is 10ftx6ftx1ft thick with two rows of 5/8 rebar and extra strong cement.... Do you thing this will hold 20,000lbs????????? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geleen Posted February 3, 2008 Report Share Posted February 3, 2008 I am NOT an expert but that is only 333 lbs per square foot hardly a problem on a basement type floor slab of say 6" with a properly compacted gravel base. (20000lbs / 60 sq.feet) Me thinks....If I stand on one foot I would have more force than that.......NO guessing at my weight lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest FLIP Posted February 3, 2008 Report Share Posted February 3, 2008 What exactly aare you going to put in it and how are you going to clean it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parachromis1 Posted February 3, 2008 Report Share Posted February 3, 2008 cement is strong. and only 333lbs per sq. ft. would be like an ant crawling on your chest. just think a diesel truck parked in your garage is like 2000lbs per sq. ft. because it only touches on 4 tires. i belive this would be more than strong enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uwish Posted February 4, 2008 Report Share Posted February 4, 2008 that base is more than enough. No worries there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albertan Posted February 4, 2008 Report Share Posted February 4, 2008 You're wasting money putting a one foot concrete base under that tank. How thick is the base around the one foot part? You need to go bigger on the base than the tank you ned to set it on. Check some posts on MFK (monsterfishkeepers.com) You really want a good understanding of exactly what you are doing in a project like this before you start IMO. No offense. I take it there will be an acrylic viewing window but the other walls will be made out of concrete? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkangel Posted February 4, 2008 Report Share Posted February 4, 2008 A well compacted base of sand and crushed rock 3" thick , 3/8 rebar laid and tied in 24" squares, and 25mpa concrete about 5" thick,( 2x6 boards for forms ) will hold twice that wieght without any problems. You will need 1.5m of concrete. Average cost per metre is around $220.00per m. depending on mix design. But anything less than 3 metres you will get nailed with a min. load charge. So you will order 1.5m and pay for 3m plus costs of heating sand,aggregate,cement powder and water unless you will be pouring in the summer months. Or you can mix your own with a small mixer and 5gal pails for mesure, 2 rock 2 concrete sand,1.5 portland cement and enough water to make it workable. You will have to make sure you have enough material and work very fast to avoid cold joints. (weak spots). Hope this helps and good luck on the build. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terrors r us Posted February 4, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 4, 2008 You're wasting money putting a one foot concrete base under that tank. How thick is the base around the one foot part? You need to go bigger on the base than the tank you ned to set it on. Check some posts on MFK (monsterfishkeepers.com) You really want a good understanding of exactly what you are doing in a project like this before you start IMO. No offense. I take it there will be an acrylic viewing window but the other walls will be made out of concrete? A well compacted base of sand and crushed rock 3" thick , 3/8 rebar laid and tied in 24" squares, and 25mpa concreteabout 5" thick,( 2x6 boards for forms ) will hold twice that wieght without any problems. You will need 1.5m of concrete. Average cost per metre is around $220.00per m. depending on mix design. But anything less than 3 metres you will get nailed with a min. load charge. So you will order 1.5m and pay for 3m plus costs of heating sand,aggregate,cement powder and water unless you will be pouring in the summer months. Or you can mix your own with a small mixer and 5gal pails for mesure, 2 rock 2 concrete sand,1.5 portland cement and enough water to make it workable. You will have to make sure you have enough material and work very fast to avoid cold joints. (weak spots). Hope this helps and good luck on the build. Thank you all for your responses.......First of all this is only the foundation(slab)on top of clay... after that I will have three sections of 4inx1/4in thick steel square tubing as the stand with no legs(the square tubing will be layed horizontally , to spread out the weight as much as possible) the reason for three sections is so we can carry them into the basement. I am in a newer built home and the slab is only 3in thick with a little bit of sand underneath it (no rebar) so we are cutting out a 10ftx6ft piece and digging deeper,compacting, then add rebar and one foot of 30mpa concrete flush with existing concrete in the basement but it will be floating and independent from the existing slab. The final step will be the tank building people to construct the tank on site...Entirely of acrylic.. I have already talked with them and they say it can be done...... I agree that the foundation is over kill but the two main teleposts of the house are close by so I would rather be safe than sorry..... The only thing I didn't consider is what you said, the base should be bigger than the base of the tank.......If my stand distributes the weight evenly thru the entire pad, do you think this would still be a problem(reason being is that I am running out of room)..... I will check out MFK......thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkangel Posted February 4, 2008 Report Share Posted February 4, 2008 I would'nt worry about the teleposts, When a new home is built the teleposts sit on a 4ftx4ftx8" thick pad. Also depending on the home builder you will be lucky if your basement floor is 3" thick, and it's only standard 20mpa concrete and most placers lay it down so wet that it self levels, So now you have floor that may only have a 5 to10mpa rating. Trust me I operate a mixer truck and I see this kind of thing every day. Sorry if I added any stress to your life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terrors r us Posted February 4, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 4, 2008 What exactly aare you going to put in it and how are you going to clean it? I am trying to make this tank completly automated (thats my goal anyway) I am a electrican by trade and i found a good site on google "Automated controls for aquariums" which sell all the instuments I need to fully automate the tank including computer tie in and the computer will call my cell phone if there is a problem with the tank. Water changes will be on timers and solenoid vales will automatically open and close the valves..... automated feeders (optional) Lights on timers etc, etc.... I realize at times I will have to put on my wet suite and dive in the tank... Regarding vacuming the gravel , I was thinking if I had eight 2in holes piped in the bottom of the tank(all connected to one main valve which piped into the drain of the house) then a solenoid would open the drain, the pressure and flow rate would be so great that it should suck the debries thru the gravel, then the solenoid would close and the water changer system would top off the tank with fresh water,, I still have more research to do but I think you get the idea. FISH>>>>> At first I thought about trying to breed asian aro's, but after much research it would not be easy and most likley would not work... I have raised large aggressive cichilds in the past and I still very much enjoy them. So here is the list;(of course I know as they get bigger I can not keep them all); Red terrors , midas, labiatus, carpintis, cuban, red managuense, jaguar, bifaciatus, odo's, buterkofrie, fenustrus.............I am hoping that ,when full grown I can keep at least half of these and sell the rest...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest FLIP Posted February 4, 2008 Report Share Posted February 4, 2008 Sounds very complicated and makes me really want to see how it all would work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terrors r us Posted February 4, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 4, 2008 I would'nt worry about the teleposts, When a new home is built the teleposts sit on a 4ftx4ftx8" thick pad.Also depending on the home builder you will be lucky if your basement floor is 3" thick, and it's only standard 20mpa concrete and most placers lay it down so wet that it self levels, So now you have floor that may only have a 5 to10mpa rating. Trust me I operate a mixer truck and I see this kind of thing every day. Sorry if I added any stress to your life. I totally agree, that is why we are cutting out a section of that slab and starting from scratch.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terrors r us Posted February 4, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 4, 2008 Sounds very complicated and makes me really want to see how it all would work. Yes it can get quite complicated but this is part of the industry I work in so I am looking forward to the challenge....I enjoy the construction of the set up almost as much as the fish themselves.. I will post pics as I progress....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nandopsis Posted February 4, 2008 Report Share Posted February 4, 2008 I suggest inviting eveyone over for a veiwing once it's completed? :smokey: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terrors r us Posted February 4, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 4, 2008 I suggest inviting eveyone over for a veiwing once it's completed? :smokey: That would be great!!!!!! But it's going to take till next year to complete... I try and do as much research as possible before proceeding to the next step...also I'm not rich ........ so I do it in steps..... But when its done I'll Def throw a party for all members!!!!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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