Hot water heater stand

Sep 23, 2006 10 Replies

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Eigenvector 19 years ago

Since my previous owner decided to perch the hot water heater on this unsafe contraption involving 3 on end cinder blocks (of different manufacture and style I might add) holding up a circular concrete pad (paving block probably). It does not look safe at all, nor do I want to keep it. I think it meets code though, since the water heater is nominally 18" off the floor of the garage.

I looked around the web some and didn't really find any good examples of what people put their gas heaters on to keep them 18" off the floor. Taking a leaf from my engineering days (oh boy!) I decided that placing it on 2 cinderblock stacks should suffice - a ciderblock is 8x8x16 and that should give me 16" + the concrete pad which is about 2", plus the water heater itself has a 2" air intake foot under the pilot light. So I'm looking at 2 rows of 3 cinderblocks stacked on each other (12 total cinderblocks) plus the pad as my water heater stand.

What's normally done here. I was fully expecting to find a pretty standard water heater stand - but I'm not pulling anything up.

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HeyBub 19 years ago

Use scrap 2x4s to build a sturdy box.

The water heater weighs, oh, 150#. Fifty gallons of water weighs 400#.

Total: 550#. Not a lot. If your box will support you and two male friends, you're good to go.

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BobK207 19 years ago

24" x 32"? I'd go 4 full block & 1 half block...two layers it will give you a square platform

normally these things are framed out during constrcuton of the garage if you go with with wood make sure the 2x4's against the concrete are treated

I'd go with cinder blocks (CMU's) & use a little SIKA construction adhesive to glue everything together...if you're in e/q country doin't forget the strapping

cheers Bob

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hallerb 19 years ago

just buy a stand they arent expensive..

wood is flammable:( and not very strong with 600 pounds ion such a small footprint.

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HeyBub 19 years ago

I just put in a water heater and saw where the sucker, if in California, had to be strapped to the wall.

Why?

It's not like it's going to fall over from fright or something or even get knocked over! And even if the water heater just got so tired it collapsed from exhaustion, so what?

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lwasserm 19 years ago

Part of the code in Ca for increased earthquake survivability.

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BobK207 19 years ago

We have earthquakes in California and anything approaching (or above) a 3:1 height to base ratio is a possible tipping hazard.

A DIY installation of strapping is cheap insurance to help prevent water damage or a gas leak (fire)

cheers Bob.

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BobK207 19 years ago

per hallerb's suggestion

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This thing would never fly in CA as sold....no lateral resistant, but you could box it out with four plywood skins

cheers

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HeyBub 19 years ago

Thanks, Larry and Bob. I forgot about earthquakes.

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Steve Barker LT 19 years ago

where do you get the 600 lbs figure from?

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BobK207 19 years ago

Yeah, the 600 lbs is a little high but I think installers just multiply the w/h capacity by 10 to get a rough (but conservative) weight estimate....

At 10 lbs per gallon you'd be about 20% on the weight of the water alone but the w/h hearter probably wieighs about 1 lb per gallon of capacity so 10 lbs per gallon for the entire installion isn't all that "wrong"

plus its much easier to do the arithmetic :)

cheers Bob

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