would i be safe placing a heavy 40gallon tank in a second floor flat with wooden floorboards?

Answer 1

If you, your bed, your dresser, your tub, your toilet and anything else that you have on the second floor hasn't fallen through yet then yes a 40 gallon tank will be fine. I have 3 20's and a 10 on two stands right next to each other, 3 dressers and my bed all in my bedroom and there is no problem, my house is 100+ years old and all the floors are wood. If for some reason your floor can't hold it then you shouldn't be living in that house since it is unsafe. Another thing, if it was to be too heavy it wouldn't just fall right through, it would first start to bow the wood under it so that should tell you with plenty of time to move that tank that it is too heavy. If you are still worried just make sure it has a lot of support under it, you could put it in an outer corner and have it run over 2 or more support beams instead of sitting on just one.

Answer 2

Providing your floors are strong I do not see a problem with it. A friend of mine bought a second hand 6.6 foot x 2 foot x 2 foot tank made of half inch plate glass that had been full with large fish and a heavy oak stand and several large chunks of heavy decorative slate. This tank was in the 5th floor flat wooden floors too. That was over a ton of weight. It took 7 of us to carry the tank down the stairs into a van.

Answer 3

You should ensure that there is sufficient support for the tank, the water it contains and all other equipment. Here's some water facts.

Here's a quick rundown of some of water's properties:
Weight: 62.416 pounds per cubic foot at 32°F
Weight: 61.998 pounds per cubic foot at 100°F
Weight: 8.33 pounds/gallon, 0.036 pounds/cubic inch
Density: 1 gram per cubic centimeter (cc) at 39.2°F, 0.95865 gram per cc at 212°F
By the way:
1 gallon = 4 quarts = 8 pints = 128 ounces = 231 cubic inches
1 liter = 0.2642 gallons = 1.0568 quart = 61.02 cubic inches
1 million gallons = 3.069 acre-feet = 133,685.64 cubic feet

So 40 gallons at 8.33. lbs per gallon = 333.20 lbs
Add the weight of the tank, accessories and fish and it's quite hefty. If you live in a flat remember the people below and the effect of the tank breaking the boards and possible electrical problems from leakages. If the flat is rented consult the landlord to get permission and also consider a structural engineer's report. That way if anything goes wrong your insurance company cannot refuse your claim.

Hope all works out. Tropical fish can be very relaxing.

Answer 4

My advice to you with wooden floorboards would be no. Water actually ways very heavily. The main problem could also be leaks from the tank. In my early days of pond keeping I built a pond indoors and the fish grew and I had to build a larger one. I am in a second floor flat with concrete floors and had a real headache with leaking ponds. My pond is now in the garden. Be warned.

Answer 5

You need a proper assessment from a structural engineer.
When we moved our water tank up into the roof, we needed a solid wooden cradle to support it and braces on the outside walls. The weight of the tank is actually over the central wall running down through the house, a very strong point.

Answer 6

I have a 4ft fish tank in my bedroom for my terrapin. We have wooden floors and everythings been fine.
If a house can hold a full bath of water then am sure a tank will be fine.
And to that guy up there my tank is on a wrought iron stand with just 4 points.

Answer 7

maybe best to get a engineer.

With the details pretty sketchy its hard to say. Depends what you want to do with the 40Gtank. Filling it with water adds around another 151KG of weight.

I dont really think anyone can give you a proper answers because how old the property, whats the quality of the boards like, etc all become a factor that only an engineer by trade can really give you the real answers to (and someone to blame).

all the best for 2007

Answer 8

Yes, that should be no problem with the proper stand. Don't use a wrought iron stand which puts all of the weight on 4 small points. Use a stand that spreads the weight out across the entire perimeter of the tank.

Answer 9

You will have the weight of the tank PLUS the weight of 40 gallons of water at 8 pounds per gallon. This would be 320 pounds just for the water plus the heavy tank. Doesn't sound like a good idea to me.

Answer 10

How old are the floorboards? you need to get some advice from an structural engineer.