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Thread: 125-150g aquarium for $100 on craigslist.. Would a upper level hold this ?

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    Default 125-150g aquarium for $100 on craigslist.. Would a upper level hold this ?

    Someone is selling a 125g tank and iron stand for $100 on craigslist in my area.. im going to try and snatch it quickly hopefully no one else bought it, going to offer $75 though as the stands needs repainted due to rust and the tank needs resealed as its 32 years old. He says it doesnt leak but ive resealed aquariums before so ill re-seal this one. I want to put it upstairs in my room. To replace my 92g corner discus tank.. Now my corner tank i put in a corner of the bedroom where its the side and front of the house which i know would support the weight because of where it is. But this 125g tank (i suspect is a 150g because it looks too tall to be a 6ft 125g) will weigh alot more and id have to position on the wall facing on the side of the bedroom (side of the house) The floor beams however go towards to the front of the house not the side.. But if i put it on the front wall the window would be in the way..

    I already have my big *** up here i weigh 280lbs, my computer desk, my 92g tank a 27g tank all on the same wall.. So i think i already match a 125g tanks weight almost on this wall.. just not sure what do you guys think ? House was built in 96 if that matters. and itll be on the 3rd level

    Here is a pic of the tank.. to me this looks like a 150g long tank not a 125g.. it looks like its taller then 23 inchs to me, it looks 28 inchs.. but maybe im wrong


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    Administrator and MVP Dec.2015 Second Hand Pat's Avatar
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    Default Re: 125-150g aquarium for $100 on craigslist.. Would a upper level hold this ?

    If the dimensions are 6x2x2 ft it is a 180. Definitely larger then either a 120 or 150.
    Pat
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    Default Re: 125-150g aquarium for $100 on craigslist.. Would a upper level hold this ?

    I would be nervous with that size tank up on the 3rd floor weight wise,and age wise.I once had a 1 year old Perfecto 90 gallon tank leak all 90 gallons on the floor while we were gone for the weekend.....quite the mess and damage to flooring,drywall,ceilings,etc

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    Default Re: 125-150g aquarium for $100 on craigslist.. Would a upper level hold this ?

    thats suprising because perfecto is the best brand IMO until marine land bought em out.

    I have a 44g leak in my bedroom before i had my 92g corner i have now.. leaked about 20 gallons on the floor through the ceiling so i know all to well lol. The tank he is selling is 32 years old LOL and still doesnt leak.. but i would redo the seals before i put it upstairs. I re-sealed a couple tanks before including that 44g pentagon and they have been fine since. With this tank being 32 years old the glass is also thicker then the usual 125g and it has no braces because of it.

    He told me its 6 feet long and he think its 18 front to back but wasnt sure on the height.. he said he doesnt think its anymore then 2 feet tall. or 24 inchs. If thats the case then i guess it is a 125g. Do you think itd be worth the hassle of putting a 125 6 foot tank in my room and moving my 92g corner down stairs ? I think the ceiling would hold.. I mean its holding my 92g and my 27g next to it and me weighing at 280 lbs with my desk..

    Do you guys think its worth it spending the 100$ on for a 32 year old 125g, which i will re-seal.. It isnt hard re-sealing just takes time . I mean if anything i could just keep it on the middle level and sell my 55g tank and put the 125g in its place

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    Default Re: 125-150g aquarium for $100 on craigslist.. Would a upper level hold this ?

    Price wise,it is a fair deal,especially since you have no issue in resealing it.Placement is up to you babygirl! Your 92 seems made for the spot it is in.Without seeing your house,only you can make the final decisions on placement that not only looks good,but is in areas of your home where you spend time to enjoy the fruits of your labor.I have made the mistake of placing tanks in areas where I am not in front of often enough to really enjoy the fish,or in areas where the tank is not visible while sitting on chairs/couches,etc.Hopefully never again.

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    Default Re: 125-150g aquarium for $100 on craigslist.. Would a upper level hold this ?

    For one dont call me babygirl.. Im 30 years old and very much a man.. And that comment you made is either very gay.. and also very insulting



    Well where my 92g is its against the outside "brick front" wall and against the other outside "side wall" of the house.. So its on two load bearing walls, but due to the shape its only supported by maybe 3 Joists (joists are the main beams under the floor) The 125g being 72 inches long i would have to put it against the outside wall (the side wall half my 92 sits on) and it would be sitting like this ----------- And the beams under the floor also go like this --------- so itll only be supported by 2 joists. Now if i put it along my outside (the brick wall of my house) it would be going this direction ( l ) and the beams are still going ----- which means itll be supported by about 5-6 joists.. Only issue with that is itll block half of my window. Im not worried about algae or sunshining in on the tank, but having half my window covered kinda sucks.. But then 5-6 joints on the outside wall is honestly the strongest point of the room.


    Here is a crude picture on how the room and floors are laid out, and the two only possible places i could put the tank


    Last edited by Candydiscus; 11-29-2016 at 05:41 AM.

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    Default Re: 125-150g aquarium for $100 on craigslist.. Would a upper level hold this ?

    Candydiscus,
    Sorry for the comments above. Whether you are a girl or guy doesnt matter here. Same respect should be given.

    On your question. Positioning your 125 like that is not ideal. ~8 lbs per gal is alot of weight. Do you know what size those beams are?

    I have a125 gal in the exact same configuration and its been fine for 10+ years but honestly I cringed doing it and I was advised by an engineer relative against it so I cant really tell you go for it. I did it because that was the only place it could go.. i would prefer it supported by many beams. One thing I had in my favor is a diagonally running slatewood subfloor and plywood.

    Hth,
    Al
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    Default Re: 125-150g aquarium for $100 on craigslist.. Would a upper level hold this ?

    whatever size wood they used back in the late 90's.. Im guessing 2x10's and they are spaced every 13 or so inches. My picture has two spots i could put it.. One would cover half the window but be supported by like 5-6 joists or the spot by the support beam in the top left corner but itll only be on like 2 joists because the tank will run in line with the direction the beams go.

    So do you think its acceptable to cover half my window ? Im not worried about algae growth. I rarely keep the window open and if i do i could always open it from the top vs the bottom.

    The only issue with the spot by the window is i forgot the floor down below has a big bay window so it isnt a wall. So the beam the joists are on has no real support. So its either, on 5-6 joints with a beam that spans over a bay window down stairs.. or put it on 2 joists that are being supported by a beam and pole.

    So where would you put it ? See my picture i marked two spots for the 125 in my room


    I have a perfect spot for it downstairs.. It would run along a wall supported by 5-6 joists and a steel beam and supported by a steel pole from the basement. That could hold a 220 gallon tank or more easy. But again.. having it downstairs would defeat the point of keeping my discus in my bedroom. I have tanks down there and i dont really look at them often besides when i feed the fish.
    Last edited by Candydiscus; 11-30-2016 at 06:25 AM.

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    Registered Member Galvatron's Avatar
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    Default Re: 125-150g aquarium for $100 on craigslist.. Would a upper level hold this ?

    For weight distribution you would be better off putting the tank divergent to the floor beams and not parallel with them.
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    Default Re: 125-150g aquarium for $100 on craigslist.. Would a upper level hold this ?

    The window spot would be safer. You can put a foam sheet on the back to insulate from draft and block light.
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    Default Re: 125-150g aquarium for $100 on craigslist.. Would a upper level hold this ?

    Yea i found the window spot, even though its directly above a large 6-8 foot bay window downstairs.. would be sitting not only on 5 joists.. but also those joists sit on top of a double header.. which is two 2x10 beams nailed together and two 2x4's on top of the beams.. So its a load bearing wall.

    I just pealed the silicone off the old stuff, wiped the tank down and used rubbing alcohal to clean it good.. And just re-sealed it.. After i did two corner my caulk gun broke... I had to push the caulk gun really hard on the metal end to get the silicone to come... that reallly realllllly sucked...I put 3 10oz tubes of aqueon silicone on the tank.. Tomorrow i plan to wire wheel the stand of the surface rust and paint it.



    Here is picture of the framing below where the tank will be.. i have big open window down below on the 2nd level just like the picture and then the double header 2x10's and the double top plate 2x4's on the top plate.. and joists all lay on top of that. This should def be strong enough right ?


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    Default Re: 125-150g aquarium for $100 on craigslist.. Would a upper level hold this ?

    Quote Originally Posted by Galvatron View Post
    For weight distribution you would be better off putting the tank divergent to the floor beams and not parallel with them.
    I agree with Mike. Its best to distribute the weight over as many beams as possible, and the closer to an external wall the better in my opinion.
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    Administrator and MVP Dec.2015 Second Hand Pat's Avatar
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    Default Re: 125-150g aquarium for $100 on craigslist.. Would a upper level hold this ?

    What was the width on this tank, asking out of curiosity?
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    Default Re: 125-150g aquarium for $100 on craigslist.. Would a upper level hold this ?

    Total dimension are 72 inch long, 18 inches deep, and 24 1/2 inches tall. It has 1/2 inch thick glass, and no center braces. It was made Sept 13th 1982. It seems taller then a regular 125g to me.. Maybe im wrong, but i sware its bigger then 125g

    I resealed it about 2 days ago, my caulk gun broke half way in when i was caulking the aqueon silicone and i panicked i had to push the tubes out by hand by pushing on the caulk guns metal thingy. That was hard, and one side of the tank started to skin... Its sealed now, but in my haste over the b roken caulk i did a messy Job on a few sides. The seams on the tank seem fine, no air bubbles in the them so the original 34 year old seams are okay i believe, i didnt mess with them anyway.

    My silicone job there is alot of little tiny bubbles in the silicone.. I hope that doesnt affect anything. But then i did glob 3 tubes on this thing.. The silicone is so thick specially on the bottom tha after 1 1/2 days its still squishy in some spots. So i probably need to wait another 24 hours hopefully it dries.. by then.. Im eager to get this thing filled with water to test it out. Sadly i live on a hilly area so i cant put it outside as the side walks and parking lot are at a angle. So i have to fill it in the house and i plan to sit there for like 8 hours maybe play some video games on my laptop or watch a few movies to see if it leaks or not. Its amazing the guy had the tank for 32 years, he said it was running 20-25 years non stop and so it was sitting empty in a climate controlled section of his house for about 10 years almost. When i cut the silicone off inside.. It was just a few thin strands like a few mm thick that was left.. it basically had no silicone inside anymore. The bottom though was very thick and took me 6 hours to peal off.. my fingers were dying from the razorblade scraping.

    One thing that has me wondering though.. is one of the long 72 inch glass panes has a very slight bow to it unfilled. I took a straight edge on it and its not alot of a bow maybe a few mm but its noticable.

    Also sanded down the rusty stand and painted it with rust reformer which is a flat black so it makes the iron stand look really nice.

    Ill upload some pics ina sec





    Last edited by Candydiscus; 12-03-2016 at 08:08 PM.

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    Default Re: 125-150g aquarium for $100 on craigslist.. Would a upper level hold this ?

    You are correct in thinking it looks bigger than a 125......according to your measurements,it is actually a 135 gallon tank! Regarding the bowing,if you look carefully,do you see any evidence of a previous center brace being there? Look for silicone remnants,water stained lines,etc that would be telltales.

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