Please Help Answer My Question!

[Pico1]

I am 15 years old and love reef-keeping. I have never been able to afford anything bigger than my 55 gallon reef which cost me a little over $1000 to set-up. My dad's friend had a professional come and set-up a 150 gallon reef in his office which includes a beautiful stand and canopy, wet/dry filter w/built in overflows, huge skimmer, metal halide lighting w/fans, lots of completly purple live rock, live sand, fish, corals and an auto-top off system. He is paying $400 a month for someone to maintain it and it is getting to expensive so he said I could have EVERYTHING for FREE because he knows that I would take good care of it! My bedroom is upstairs and I was wondering if it could hold the weight considering our house is about 10 years old. My dad says he is not comfortable having such a large amount of water upstairs even though the tank is acrylic! PLEASE tell me if its safe or not to put this tank upstairs and help me convince my dad to let me put it upstairs with your comments.

 

[Gobie]

Why would you want it upstairs? If you put it in your room, nobody would see it. Unless you want everybody to be in your room. I would want it where it would be seen.

 

[RobbyG]

Tank stand sump all together will probably be near 2000 lbs.
Only some one with construction skills can answer your question, you need to get someone to look at the flooring and see if it will work. Personaly I would put it downstairs like Gobie said.

 

[jdoenumber2]

(150 gallons X 8.33)=1250 thats your water weight alone. So lets say you have a total of 1600 pounds total. Then it has a foot print of 9 sq ft. Your floor will need to be able to support about 175 pounds per sq ft. You should be ok. To be safe call the builder of the use and ask them.

 

[Pico1]

my room has a beach theme like you would see in a restraunt so it would be a nice addition to the room and i want it where i spend most of my spare time so i can enjoy it to the fullest and also i don't want people complimenting my parents on "their " beautiful tank when i'm the one putting all the work and money into it, and lastly evertime someone was coming over my mom would nag the crap out of me to make it perfectly clean and who knows what the housekeeper would do to it because she comes when i'm at school-she'd probally think she was doing me a favor by putting bleach in it to get rid the algae!

 

[jdoenumber2]

:idea:Better yet tell hime for 200 a month you will take care of it.:idea:

 

[Pico1]

lol, i like the way you think jdoe2

 

[Pico1]

or i might sell the tank and just upgrade everything and add a bunch of stuff to my 55

 

[anjhof]

I'm not a builder, but 150 gallons would be pushing the limits. It is not likely to fall through the floor, but it will likely cause minor problems with the house, such as squeaking floors, doors sticking, etc... due to the house structure being under so much strain. A tank that size tank should probably not be on the second floor. You should probably sell it and buy a 75 or 90 gallon for your room. A 150 gallon reef tank is going to cost a small fortune in monthly expenses, such as salt, calcium, not to mention the cost of electricity. You will probably be spending (or your parents) about $100-$150 a month - without buying corals or fish. I am not trying to scare you off, but you and your parents should know what you are getting into before you waste your time. If your parents don't mind the extra expense, I would suggest putting in on a floor with a concrete slab. Have fun!

 

[MeuserReef]

I like jdoenumber2's idea... even $150 a month to take care of the big tank where it is would give you an AWESOME budget for building up your 55 (not to mention you could always get free frags from the 150 to put into your tank.)

Keep in mind that you will have this income EVERY month.. until he gets rid of it... which would probably be him giving it to you.

 

[boxfishpooalot]

Even if its not in your bedroom at least you got it in the house! I would be carefull about it being upstairs. Your house may not support the weight.

 

[RobbyG]

You forgot the sump in that calculation, if he does'nt have one he should and probably will someday.
I added in a 40 gal sump for that size tank.
Thats 1582 lbs of water plus tank, stand and sump itself. Near 2000 lbs total

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6713842#post6713842 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jdoenumber2
(150 gallons X 8.33)=1250 thats your water weight alone. So lets say you have a total of 1600 pounds total. Then it has a foot print of 9 sq ft. Your floor will need to be able to support about 175 pounds per sq ft. You should be ok. To be safe call the builder of the use and ask them.