earthquake proofing

[acocacolagirl]

I searched the archives and got some info about earthquake proofing and there was some good info. Looking for an updated input. There is this museum clay stuff for sticking under heavy/delicate object so they dont fall, but if the tank is acrylic (not sure which it is yet) I assume I should not use this stuff because there would just be a lump in each corner so the tank would be subject to warping...does that sound true?

[sumthin fishy]

Are you not sure what kind of tank you have, or what kind you are getting? It should be easy to tell if it is acrillic or glass. Most likely it is glass which won't pose a problem. I've never heard of this clay, but if they use it museums it must work. However, you could always just make/buy some brackets to hold the tank in place. Simple metal would work, or you could get some ones with plastic covers or ornamental metal. Of course you will have to look arround for something not designed for your application and make it work for you.

[YoFishboy]

I had purchased a 75g acrylic tank JUST before the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989 - i was on the third floor - the tank bounced around and sloshed water, but it held..i still use it...any way, another idea is to secure the stand to a wall, then you could add an attractive wood railing/trim/lip to the stand that the tank would set into...

[OrionGirl]

Glass tanks should NOT be secured with the museum mounting putty--they need a flat surface just as much as an acrylic tank. You can secure it to the wall with brackets and such, but ultimately, glass tanks are not as good for earthquake zones as acrylics. Glass is too brittle, and more likely to break under shaking stress. Acrylic is the better bet.

[nanahachi]

Great thread, acocacolagirl.

I have 3 tanks in my apt, and live on the top floor of my building. I've been worried about how to secure 2 of the tanks (and their stands) to the wall so that they don't fall over. (The third tank is secure as it is, sitting on a long counter in one of my bathrooms).

I was thinking of wrapping some sort of line (clear plastic band of sorts?) along the top and bottom of the tank (Where the 1" thick black trim is), and securing those 2 lines to the wall. The stand could be similarly bolted to the wall. But i have no idea what sort of materials to use, and dont want to obscure my view of the tanks or cause undue stress on the glass.

If anyone has any tips, I know I would love to hear them.
Thanks for bringing this up acocacolagirl, I have been meaning to for a long while.

[acocacolagirl]

Are you not sure what kind of tank you have, or what kind you are getting? It should be easy to tell if it is acrillic or glass. Most likely it is glass which won't pose a problem. I've never heard of this clay, but if they use it museums it must work. However, you could always just make/buy some brackets to hold the tank in place. Simple metal would work, or you could get some ones with plastic covers or ornamental metal. Of course you will have to look arround for something not designed for your application and make it work for you.

I don't have the tank yet, and it is used. When I looked at it yesterday, I didn't think about what it was made of I just took the measurements and unfortunately, it is in a second hand store, so they know nothing about it.

[acocacolagirl]

I just had a thought for anyone who lives in CA or other eq zones and already has a glass tank. This might at least help until a rescue tank can be set up: They make some kind of clear plastic coating sticks to windows so that if they shatter, they are held together rather than flying every direction...although the weight of the water would probably bust through that I guess, but it couldn't hurt to have it in place, it might contain things slightly.

Also, I liked the clear plastic band idea, but I also dont know where something like that could be found. http://www.quakehold.com/quakehold/ has strapping in "decrotive colors" but I don't know if they have clear.

[Jericho]

What part of CA are you in? may help in determining what stores are around you. I am also in CA Bay area.

[acocacolagirl]

I am in S.F. East Bay - otherside of the tunnle. I havent really gone out looking for anything yet. I dont even have the tank yet, so I wont be sure what will work until after I get the tank. I was just curious what others have done.

[Jericho]

Keep an eye on craigslist people give taks away all the time in the bay area... There have been a few recently in the east bay...

[nanahachi]

update:

acocacolagirl,

I picked up some of those Quakehold straps last week, and attached 1 set to the top of my 20G cichlid tank. I will try to get some pics up when I can (I'm sick, atm), but here is what I did:

1) found studs in the wall, and marked them
2) drilled into wall to make a hole for the screw, then screwed the included screws into those holes
3) attached the straps (I bought Black, to match my tank) to the top edge of the tank (on right side and on left side), onto the black plastic trim.
4) - need to do still - repeat steps 1-3 for the bottom edge of the tank &/or the aquarium stand itself.

What did you, or anyone else, end up doing?

good luck

[acocacolagirl]

Thanks for the input.
Thus far, I haven't done anything but I did like the idea for strapping.