any structural engineers out there? aquarium support

The only thing I would fear is that they will suggest things that aren't necessary and it will cost more money than will need. Best to try and find some one that knows a contractor they trust like a family friend or something. I am sure with the economy there are a lot os desperate contractors in need of work that will sell you as much as they can and 10 times what you need.

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You can check any contractors credentials, and any reliable contractor will be able to assess, design and build the additional support you need. You might even be able to get a list of recommended contractors from your local building inspectors office.

 

+1 on that. I'm registered with the state and town I live in. I know most of the inspectors and have a great relationship with them. I know you said you rather not pull the drywall but the way I would fix it is to put a doubled up 2x10 lvl beam in there. But if there is eletrical or plumbing that runs in that aera, thats a different story. A single 2x10 might hold but will sag big time and cause issues down the road with cracking drywall and so on.

 

Not all contractors are bad. I agree that there are some but if you get 4 or 5 quotes it'll weed out the hacks. Also a "desperate" contractor is also a sign to watch out for. I've ran my company for close to 10 years now and have never been "desperate". Proper planning and good buisness sense can get you through some rough times.

 

Definitely agree. I know several contractors in my area that have been in business for 10+ years that are reliable and affordable. The few I've met over the years that were not only lasted 2 - 3 years regardless of the state of the economy or building industry.

 

This is why I recommend an engineer first. He/she will tell you what you need to know and can draw up some quick plans. The contractors will bid against those plans - no surprises.

 

What room is this tank going to be in? Most houses will be designed to have a load of around 20-30 psf. Which is a lot smaller than that of the aquarium on a 6' x 2' footprint. Hower some rooms like kitchens, bathrooms, utility rooms are designed for much higher loads. There are many things you can do. I would recommend spreading out the load. This can be done in several ways. It will also depend on where the load is sitting on the joist. The closer to the edge of the joist the better. If the tank is in the middle of the joist then it would be worse. I would be a little wary of the weight. Not too much. As long as it was built well the safety factors on wood are pretty outrageous. Obviously this is due to the incosistency of wood, so know how well it was built and the quality of the contractor would be important factors. If you could get some sketches of the framing and where the tank would be it would be easier. I am a structural engineer but I typically deal with steel.

 

http://www.awc.org/pdf/WSDD/C2B.pdf

Could that be of any help? I only skimmed it a little and didn't fully understand how to read it but it seems promisingly helpful.

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yea that did help a little. if i read it right 1 13' 2"x10" beam will Not support the 1500-1700 lb load of 180 gal. maybe someone smarter than me could double check that link it was like the second to last page. pulling out a small section of the sheetrock and putting up 2 2"x10" sounded like a good idea. probably not going to hire a contractor, just can't afford it. may have to put the tank perp. to the joist on a load bearing wall for now till i can prep the spot i really want it. i do want to thank everybody for the good advice and will post some pics when i get it set-up.

 

a few questions for ya ;D

the house sounds like its older how old is it?

is there a crawlspace under the house?

you could run 2x6's between the spaces in the joists to help with support if you can get to it if not I like the bucket support idea.