Mobile Home Aquarium Setup

[murphy357]

Looking for personal experiences with 200+ gallon reefs in double wide mobile homes. Looking for ways of supporting the tank and the floors and other “hacks” making the hobby easier and more enjoyable. Thanks!

 

[Ron Reefman]

As a home maintenance provider, I replaced floors in several mobile homes over the years. My advise is to be EXTREMELY careful with what you are considering. A 200g tank of water will weigh in at about 1700+ pounds!

I'd recommend you go into the crawl space and find a spot where you can reinforce the floor dramatically. Either by adding big joists between the metal framing structure or adding supports from the ground up to the floor where you want the aquarium to sit. If you're on a concrete pad, that should be enough of a solid base. If you are on bare ground, you need to set the supports such that they don't sink into the ground when it gets wet, and it will get wet during the summer in Louisiana. Those supports sink a tiny amount and you run the risk of putting stress on the tank and causing a crack and a 200 gallon flood in your home. I live in SW Florida and our houses are built on concrete slabs and I've seen 4 180g and bigger tanks crack as a result of just the stand not being perfect over the long run.

All that said, good luck (seriously).
I'd love to see the build thread that includes the reworking of the floor. Please do an @Ron Reefman when you do so I get an alert that you've started it.

 

[Mjrenz]

Good advice above, my advice would be to consult a structural engineer to see what needs to be done. There can be a lot of variables involved and it would be best to have someone who knows what they are doing design it so it's safe.

 

[leepink23]

As a home maintenance provider, I replaced floors in several mobile homes over the years. My advise is to be EXTREMELY careful with what you are considering. A 200g tank of water will weigh in at about 1700+ pounds!

I'd recommend you go into the crawl space and find a spot where you can reinforce the floor dramatically. Either by adding big joists between the metal framing structure or adding supports from the ground up to the floor where you want the aquarium to sit. If you're on a concrete pad, that should be enough of a solid base. If you are on bare ground, you need to set the supports such that they don't sink into the ground when it gets wet, and it will get wet during the summer in Louisiana. Those supports sink a tiny amount and you run the risk of putting stress on the tank and causing a crack and a 200 gallon flood in your home. I live in SW Florida and our houses are built on concrete slabs and I've seen 4 180g and bigger tanks crack as a result of just the stand not being perfect over the long run.

All that said, good luck (seriously).
I'd love to see the build thread that includes the reworking of the floor. Please do an @Ron Reefman when you do so I get an alert that you've started it.

This is all great advice! I added a 120 gallon to mine and went ground up for added support, also went long ways with the tank over several joists. No problems after a few years. Some have suggested place by a load bearing wall as well.

 

[leepink23]

Good advice above, my advice would be to consult a structural engineer to see what needs to be done. There can be a lot of variables involved and it would be best to have someone who knows what they are doing design it so it's safe.

I agree with this as well, I didn’t do this at start but when I added a porch I had the builder verify my support, he was impressed with it but I should have done that in the beginning.

 

[Pntbll687]

As a home maintenance provider, I replaced floors in several mobile homes over the years. My advise is to be EXTREMELY careful with what you are considering. A 200g tank of water will weigh in at about 1700+ pounds!

I'd recommend you go into the crawl space and find a spot where you can reinforce the floor dramatically. Either by adding big joists between the metal framing structure or adding supports from the ground up to the floor where you want the aquarium to sit. If you're on a concrete pad, that should be enough of a solid base. If you are on bare ground, you need to set the supports such that they don't sink into the ground when it gets wet, and it will get wet during the summer in Louisiana. Those supports sink a tiny amount and you run the risk of putting stress on the tank and causing a crack and a 200 gallon flood in your home. I live in SW Florida and our houses are built on concrete slabs and I've seen 4 180g and bigger tanks crack as a result of just the stand not being perfect over the long run.

All that said, good luck (seriously).
I'd love to see the build thread that includes the reworking of the floor. Please do an @Ron Reefman when you do so I get an alert that you've started it.

^^^ Listen to this guy!!

Reinforcing the floor is going to be the number one thing you need to do. You may want to consider trying to get the structural plans from the company that built the home and take them to an engineer for advice.

 

[Ron Reefman]

For those who haven't lived in or spent much time in a mobile home, I've seen where just the moisture from condensation around the floor A/C vents soften the plywood to the point you could put your foot through the floor. Mobile homes have a fair amount of structural metal beams under the floor. Many are set so a 4'x8' sheet of plywood rests over the opening between the beams. But depending on where the OP wants to set the tank, it's possible the area could span 2 or even 3 beams. And in that case I'd just add a 3/4" or thicker marine plywood base to the floor.

Another point to remember is that Louisiana does see hurricanes, hurricane remnants and even tornadoes. And I would think that in that kind of wind from a nearby storm, a mobile home would be prone to some movement. And if that movement means any twisting or flexing of that frame (remember, it was designed to be moved over highways) could also be catastrophic to a 200g aquarium.

Here in SW Florida we could feel the house move during Hurricane Charlie that passed by about 5 miles to our west and more recently a VERY small tornado touched down 2-3 miles southwest of us and then skipped up and almost directly over out house. That also shook the house more than I liked and knocked over 3 big trees and seriously damaged 2 others. But our floor is a concrete slab covered with ceramic tile, so it doesn't move at all... so no damage to the aquarium. Well, at least not until we get a big hurricane storm surge that comes a mile inland or we have an earthquake!

 

[Sod Buster]

Don't forget about your friends looking at the tank also. 2000 pounds of glass and water. Have a party, now you have five 200 +lb guys standing shoulder to shoulder looking in it?

 

[BestMomEver]

I lived in south Louisiana for a spell. Love it there! Now I live outside of Mobile. I would be really careful about how you support your tank. I’m assuming your trailer is not on a slab as most of them around here are not. I would definitely consult a builder or engineer. Our ground here (and in LA) can be spongy. Not good for heavy stuff...

Good luck!

 

[BestMomEver]

For those who haven't lived in or spent much time in a mobile home, I've seen where just the moisture from condensation around the floor A/C vents soften the plywood to the point you could put your foot through the floor. Mobile homes have a fair amount of structural metal beams under the floor. Many are set so a 4'x8' sheet of plywood rests over the opening between the beams. But depending on where the OP wants to set the tank, it's possible the area could span 2 or even 3 beams. And in that case I'd just add a 3/4" or thicker marine plywood base to the floor.

Another point to remember is that Louisiana does see hurricanes, hurricane remnants and even tornadoes. And I would think that in that kind of wind from a nearby storm, a mobile home would be prone to some movement. And if that movement means any twisting or flexing of that frame (remember, it was designed to be moved over highways) could also be catastrophic to a 200g aquarium.

Here in SW Florida we could feel the house move during Hurricane Charlie that passed by about 5 miles to our west and more recently a VERY small tornado touched down 2-3 miles southwest of us and then skipped up and almost directly over out house. That also shook the house more than I liked and knocked over 3 big trees and seriously damaged 2 others. But our floor is a concrete slab covered with ceramic tile, so it doesn't move at all... so no damage to the aquarium. Well, at least not until we get a big hurricane storm surge that comes a mile inland or we have an earthquake!

Right there with you Ron. Just waiting for the next one... it will come....I wish I could predict the future! But, I’m glad y’all didn’t get destroyed by Charlie (or any other). Having lived through more hurricanes than I can remember, I’ve seen what they can do. It breaks my heart when I watch the news and see the devastation. So incredibly hard to handle...

 

[flchamp89]

I would not consider a tank that size for a mobile. I live in a mobile and if your like me you don't want to have to loose sleep over the what if.

 

[Roc83]

Is it a mobile are manufactured? If it's a manufactured you should have 2x6 stud framing, and I would say find the location where your steel carriage intersects with your studs and that is a location that would not need bracing. For a true mobile home your framing should be 2x4, you can support the area where the tank is going to be with 8 inch concrete blocks and shims, just make sure flooring/ sub flooring is in good condition. Think about it most mobile home are held up in the exact manner just make sure you space the collums to spread the load. In any case whether it be a stick built, manufactured, or a mobile, if the structure is elevated of the ground and not on a slab, a tank this should have proper supports. Hope this helps.