Earthquake preparedness for tank?

Vincerama2

Vincerama2

Active member
What are you guys doing to safegaurd your tanks against earthquakes?

I've suggested this as a possible club meeting topic, since we're all in the same boat here wrt earthquake danger!

I've done NOTHING other than buy (but not install) battery operated airpumps that turn on when the power cuts. Too bad they are sitting in the basement.

Do you guys have generators? What are you going to do if the tank breaks? How do you keep the tank from falling off the stand? Can your stand withstand a quake? is the tank or stand strapped/secured?


V
 
I asked my wife to let me buy the generator when the power went out last time but she said no :( ..
 
The only thing I did was add some of those furniture straps onto the stand to keep it from tipping over. It's some strong velcro on the stand, and then bolted into the stud in the wall. Pretty sure it'll keep the stand in the place....now will the tank fall over as the stand moves...not sure. I have a shorter stand so it doesn't appear so, but again...we are talking about the earth shaking...anything could happen. I just haven't brought myself to adding the straps to the tank yet.

As for electrical outages and such...if a quake hit that big that knocked out power for a long period of time, I'd think I had bigger concerns than my tank.
 
I think I'll be relying on insurance and a decent credit line on my visa. If 800lbs of water, glass and rock is falling I don't think I can save it.
 
I lost a 20 gallon in the lomapreda (spelling?) quake in 89. Glass tand it tipped over. My 120 is 4X2X2 nice and wide so I don't need to stap it down. I was thinking about some kind of power supply backup as well.
 
I reccomend getting a 800 w dc to ac inverter which clip onto car battery gives about 6.5 amps AC enough to power powerheads skimmer and overflow/return pump. Cost 30-40 bucks and extension cord long enough to reach from your car to house. Just make sure run your car to charge battery.
 
I dont mean to be a downer guys, but when the "Big One" hits, I really dont think that it is going to matter a whole lot if we have generators, strap the tank or not. Remembering the '89 quake, we had tanks that blew out from the excessive energy and the shifting of contents. Plexi and glass tanks blew up while the stands they were sitting on stayed in one place.

IMO, the best thing to do is to make sure that you are prepared to put your corals, etc in something other than a glass or plexiglass container when the time comes. Perhaps have a large rubbermaid container handy to place the corals and other's into once the quake hits and the tank is red tagged.

I dont know but might be a good idea, and I dont mean to sound like a downer.

The joys of living on moving ground!!!

tyler
 
I believe it would help to bolt the cabinet to the wall plus have those battery operated air pumps installed. In '89, my 80 gallon FW tank shifted 8"off center of its stand. It didn't break but I had to almost empty it to get it back on center. A stand with a lip around it would help. Also, I had no power for days, so the air pump would have been helpful. My new tank and stand was built with earthquakes in mind. I do now have a big Honda generator in addition to the air pumps. Now Tyler makes me think I should epoxy all my rocks together....
 
I truely think that bolting the stand to the wall would provide minimal help if a real earthquake hits. Physics was never my strong point, but assuming that it is a standard tank and all the weight is on top of a wooden stand. One would think that the stand would stay in one place while the tank is at the mercy of the energy waves and topple over. Who knows???

tyler
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7227021#post7227021 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by MorandiWine
I truely think that bolting the stand to the wall would provide minimal help if a real earthquake hits. Physics was never my strong point, but assuming that it is a standard tank and all the weight is on top of a wooden stand. One would think that the stand would stay in one place while the tank is at the mercy of the energy waves and topple over. Who knows???

tyler
Click to expand...

A lip around the edge of the cabinet stand with a brace to hold the tank down might help the tank and stand move as one unit.

My tank is put in through the back of the cabinet. Hard to imagine it going anywhere.
 
With a one piece no problem. I am talking about people with pedistal stands or even the standard bow front stands .... no lip.

Its hard to prepare for something that is going to happen and you do know when or where.

tyler
 
Yep., my stand has no lip, but the point of the discussion is to see what can be done to minimize (however minutely) the chances of disaster.

I'll be adding a lip to my stand. Which is a piece of crap anyway.

V
 
I have a question... how long does the power stay out after a big quake? I am kinda new to california i moved here 4 years ago, and have never felt a quake.... Does the glass just shatter? All of my tanks are glass.
 
ha ha my stand is deffinatly not gonna withstand a big quake. Its my desk in my room, and it has a 29 gallon seahorse tank on it. It wobbles when I move the water arround in the tank. I can imagine what will happen when the ground shakes. its going to fall no doubt. (im such an optomist i know)
 
I can't remember where an old friend purchased this nylon
web matieral, but it was FOWLR safe and he wrapped his aquascaping with it and tucked it under, he did this just in case. and so when Northridge hit it stayed together, that way pieces didn't roll off and hit the glass. the webbing had 3/4 to 1" holes so it didn't block growth or the ability to attach frags'
 
When the big one hits, and there's still fish in my tank; it may become my dinner.

If your tank survives a big earthquake, will you really use precious energy (gas, electric, etc. ) on your tank when there may be a short supply for hospitals, etc? after the big one?

For small earthquakes, we get them all the time so what's the big deal?
 
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