What is the easy way to add additional support for my floor??
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Vincerama2
Active member
Do you have access to the floor joists?
My Sister and b-i-l had a massive MASSIVE bathtub installed in their bathroom (It was one of those "home makeover shows" called "Divine Design") the carpeter took 3/4" plywood and laminated (ie sandwiched) each joist with plywood. My B-i-l said that doing that multiplied the strength of each joist by 6 times or something like that.
Plywood has very good sheer strength and stability due to the pay it's made (ie laminated cross-directional plies of wood) so it sounds reasonable to me. Of course, I'm not a carpenter I'm just passing on what my sister had to do.
Oh, and along with the bathtub (which took more hot water than their water heater holds!) they also added a concrete flooring ... so you can imagine how strong they had to make that floor!
V
My Sister and b-i-l had a massive MASSIVE bathtub installed in their bathroom (It was one of those "home makeover shows" called "Divine Design") the carpeter took 3/4" plywood and laminated (ie sandwiched) each joist with plywood. My B-i-l said that doing that multiplied the strength of each joist by 6 times or something like that.
Plywood has very good sheer strength and stability due to the pay it's made (ie laminated cross-directional plies of wood) so it sounds reasonable to me. Of course, I'm not a carpenter I'm just passing on what my sister had to do.
Oh, and along with the bathtub (which took more hot water than their water heater holds!) they also added a concrete flooring ... so you can imagine how strong they had to make that floor!
V
Vincerama2
Active member
Oh, and here is the bathroom in question, note the bathtub. If you look closely, you'll notice that the bathtub is being filled FROM THE CEILING. You can see the stream of water. Cool, but useless...they never use it, other than to show people. It's the most amazing bathroom I've ever seen, worthy of 5 star hotels...
http://www.hgtv.com/hgtv/dc_design_bathroom/article/0,1793,HGTV_3365_4203406,00.html
I have no idea what the capacity of the tub is, and how many tangs can safely be kept in it ...
V
http://www.hgtv.com/hgtv/dc_design_bathroom/article/0,1793,HGTV_3365_4203406,00.html
I have no idea what the capacity of the tub is, and how many tangs can safely be kept in it ...
V
What we did: get 12x's as straight and well-grained as you can get them [we were fixing a sagging ceiling and jacking, so we used ones warped with a reverse curve], slide them onto the footing, right beside the other joists, lay them flat, apply liquid nails or Elmers, put them flat against the original joist, clamp tight, and, for added insurance, bolt them together. Repeat as needed. This turns out to have your floor supported by 12x4's, which would hold up King Henry and his court.
orientalexpress
New member
i use this to support my floor http://www.homedepot.com/prel80/HDU...ID=ccefaddkmegfdmfcgelceffdfgidgmj.0&MID=9876
lapsan
lapsan
orientalexpress
New member
type in tiger js100 in the search .it's a floor jack.i use 4 of them right under my tank.
lapsan
lapsan
Phong,
How much of clearance do you need? The device (called a lally column) lapson referred to is for supporting the floor that is over a basement. You may need longer or shorter version.
I had 19"+/- 2" underneath the raised foundation of my house. My neighbor (who is one of the lead structural engineer for the state) give me a very simple solution.
How much of clearance do you need? The device (called a lally column) lapson referred to is for supporting the floor that is over a basement. You may need longer or shorter version.
I had 19"+/- 2" underneath the raised foundation of my house. My neighbor (who is one of the lead structural engineer for the state) give me a very simple solution.
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9219429#post9219429 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Reefugee
This is how I reinforced the floor. Basically - I cut two 4x6 pressure treat lumber in 60" section (a little longer than the length of my tank). I painted the end section of the lumber with some paint to reduce the chance of rot. Then I cut another two 4x6 non-pressure treated lumber into 60" section (little larger than the length of my tank).
I figured out where my tank stand was going to be. I drilled a tiny hole at each of the stand corner through the floor for reference. Then I put the wire through the hole so that when I crawled underneath the house I knew exactly where the tank would be.
Underneath the house, the pressure treated lumber laid on the ground (making sure I tried to even the ground as much as possible first). The non-pressure treated lumber was up against the floor joist. Two lally columns provided the support. I tighten up the lally columns. When the tank was filled with water, I crawled under the house again and retightened the lally columns.
You can purchase lally colums at Ace Hardware. My store didn't have them in stock, so they had to special order them (2 days). I think they were $15 each for a 8" lally column.
Anyway - here are some diagram of what I did. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask. BTW - I am supporting a 120G tank with 40G sump system.
Adrian,
Disclaimer: I am not a structural engineer. If you want to be safe, you should hire a structual engineer for a professional opinion.
It's hard to say when you should or should not put support underneath. I was fortunate that my neighbor is a structural engineer. When I told him I wanted to put a 120G tank, he took a look at my floor and strongly urged me to put in the extra support. Actually - he told me that one support should be enough. But being paranoid, I put in two supports. From what I have read - most people say that 55G and under - you should be fine. However, most people recommend that if you get anything larger, you should either reinforce the structure or have a structural engineer take a look at it.
The damage cause by a heavy load on your floor isn't always noticeable. It can take years for you to notice the floor sagging. Even though you didn't put any additional support - it doesn't hurt to put any extra support now. At least it may help prevent further damage.
Minh
Disclaimer: I am not a structural engineer. If you want to be safe, you should hire a structual engineer for a professional opinion.
It's hard to say when you should or should not put support underneath. I was fortunate that my neighbor is a structural engineer. When I told him I wanted to put a 120G tank, he took a look at my floor and strongly urged me to put in the extra support. Actually - he told me that one support should be enough. But being paranoid, I put in two supports. From what I have read - most people say that 55G and under - you should be fine. However, most people recommend that if you get anything larger, you should either reinforce the structure or have a structural engineer take a look at it.
The damage cause by a heavy load on your floor isn't always noticeable. It can take years for you to notice the floor sagging. Even though you didn't put any additional support - it doesn't hurt to put any extra support now. At least it may help prevent further damage.
Minh
Elite
New member
Minh,
I think I have around 2'-2.5' of clearance (it's a crawl space). I check HD and they have the shorter type but it's not available right now.
For some reasons my floor joists are not close to others. They are pretty far apart. I will see if I can get some pic today when I go down there again to check for other stuff.
I think I have around 2'-2.5' of clearance (it's a crawl space). I check HD and they have the shorter type but it's not available right now.
For some reasons my floor joists are not close to others. They are pretty far apart. I will see if I can get some pic today when I go down there again to check for other stuff.
orientalexpress
New member
my floor joist is about 14-15 inches apart.i use 4 shorter one and 2-4x6 under under those joist.keep checking them daily hd page.the shorter one keep selling out fast.
lapsan
lapsan
Don't foget to take into account the difference for the 4x6". Assuming you are laying the 6" surface on the ground and against the joist, you will have 3.5" on top and 3.5" on the bottom - for a total of 7". With 2.5" space, you will need a lally column that will fit 17" to 23". I would definitely take measurements before you purchase the lally column. If HD doesn't have them, you can always special order from ACE. I have never special order stuff from HD, so I don't know how fast they are.
A diagram of how your tank will sit on top of your joist would be helpful. I can't remember how far apart my joist are.
Minh
A diagram of how your tank will sit on top of your joist would be helpful. I can't remember how far apart my joist are.
Minh
Vincerama2
Active member
Also, if you are using wood, leave the wood in the crawlspace for a week or so, so that any warping will occur before you try to install it.
V
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