Concrete slab for 1400Gal

Everglades

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Apr 10, 2016
10
11
8
Hey mfkers,

Next month im going to pour my concrete floor (13.7” thick) where my 1400gallon plywood tank is going to sit on(78.7”x78.7”x51.5”).

My question is how long i should let the concrete cure before i start filling the tank?

Kind regards,
 

Rhyno8

Peacock Bass
MFK Member
Mar 15, 2017
527
803
115
34
Hey mfkers,

Next month im going to pour my concrete floor (13.7” thick) where my 1400gallon plywood tank is going to sit on(78.7”x78.7”x51.5”).

My question is how long i should let the concrete cure before i start filling the tank?

That kind of weight I’d suggest minimum 14 days ideally 28.
 

Kvandy

Piranha
MFK Member
Jan 31, 2018
171
266
77
Roseville, MI
Hey mfkers,

Next month im going to pour my concrete floor (13.7” thick) where my 1400gallon plywood tank is going to sit on(78.7”x78.7”x51.5”).

My question is how long i should let the concrete cure before i start filling the tank?

Kind regards,
I will start by saying I drive cement truck. If the slab your pouring is 13.7 inches thick than technically it will take the concrete 30 days to fully cure. There are ways around this. You can add .5%-2% chloride as a accelerant or pour a mix that is high in cement powder like a 7 sack or 9 sack. Side note here in Michigan are major freeways are 12 inches thick so if your doing almost 14 inches just for your tank you don't have to go that thick.
 

Fish Tank Travis

Potamotrygon
MFK Member
Feb 28, 2016
3,277
2,158
164
36
Dayton, OH
As I recall from when we put in a small concrete slab for a pool heater, the quickcrete stated that it had a load rating of 5000psi within a few days of being poured at 4” thick. This means that you could put 5000 lbs on a one inch square area and the concrete will hold. Pretty strong stuff. Lol

For how long you need to wait, you need to check the load rating of the concrete based on the amount of time cured. For instance, the load rate of the quickcrete was rated at a certain percentage of the full load capacity for different time periods leading up to fully cured. You just need to make sure it cures long enough to handle the load that the tank will generate when filled.

Another thing to consider is that the thicker the concrete, the more time it takes to cure. An example of this is the Hoover dam. Believe it or not, some sections of the Hoover dam are so thick that the cement is still curing today.
 

Dloks

Potamotrygon
MFK Member
Feb 5, 2011
2,020
3,064
164
in a car
13.7” concrete slab? That’s extremely overkill and expensive. I’ve never had to pour more than 4”-6” back in the days when I did construction and pond building. We did a 50k pond and didn’t pour anywhere close to that
 
zoomed.com
hikariusa.com
aqaimports.com
Store