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Re: [APD] DIY tanks



You would factor in the tank as the the "live" load part of the limits -- like a bunch of folks standing around crowding a room, which, btw, is the heaviest live load one is likely to have on a household floor (or suspension bridge for that matter).  Or you could look at the total load limit, including live and dead load and the limit for that -- think about how much your fridge ways and how few square feet its load is directly over -- then consider how that affects the load per square foot for the floor. You will usually find that even a very large tank is safely within limits for the load per square foot. 

Its the stress-in-bending limit for the joists that is more likely to be approached or exceeded expecially if the tank is placed parallel to the joists so that stress is largely borne by only two joists. The subfloor skin, usually plywood, will transfer some of the weight to the other joists, but only some.

sh


----- Original Message ----
From: Jerry Baker <jerry at bakerweb_biz>
To: aquatic plants digest <aquatic-plants at actwin_com>
Sent: Friday, April 6, 2007 12:26:52 PM
Subject: Re: [APD] DIY tanks


S. Hieber wrote:
> If you have a would subfloor, don't forget consider the stress in bending of your floor joists? Average load per sq foot is very unlikely to be an issue but stress in bending could, especially if the tank is oriented parallel to the joists.
>  
> Have factors, have fun,

Something that has always baffled me: Most building codes specify 
something around 40-50 pounds per square foot for dead loads. Any tank 
taller than about 11" will exceed that load. There has to be something 
else to the equation. I even work with structural engineers and 
architects, but oddly enough none of them has been able to tell me how 
to calculate the largest tank capacity I can have (assuming conformance 
to the code) before I need to reinforce the subfloor.

-- 
"He who throws dirt is sure to lose ground."

Jerry Baker
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