Need a water tank stand? Steel vs timber vs brick tank stands

Steel water tank stand

Water tank stands provide elevated storage of water to create reliable water pressure in case of electricity supply outages and/or pump failures.  A water tank stand also ensures that the water tank is out of reach from potential vandalism, theft or tampering and also protects the tank from livestock and other animals.

Water tank stands provide a solid, level base on which to place a water tank or chemical tank so that the weight of the tank’s contents and be evenly spread over the platform.

A water tank stand is financially not a cheap infrastructure investment and thus the choice of brand and type of tank stand should be given careful consideration. Safety and structural integrity should be given first priority when making the decision on which type of water tank stand would best suit your requirements.

In South Africa, there are generally 4 options when it comes to building a water tank stand:

1. Contract an engineering firm to design, build and install a steel tank stand to you specifications;
2. Purchase a steel tank stand in kit form and install it yourself (or have a builder/contractor install it for you);
3. Build a tank stand using timber (usually treated gum/eucalyptus poles);
4. Construct a brick & concrete water tower/stand.

Timber water tank stand

Sometimes an existing building can be used or modified to carry the weight of a tank stand but it must be borne in mind that the common 5000 litre tank holds 5 tonnes of water when full!  Many people do not give much thought to structural limitations when building a DIY timber or brick tank stand/tank tower.  A 5000 litre or 10000 litre tank that collapses due to a weak or faulty tank stand can cause massive damage to nearby property and serious injury or death to anyone unfortunate enough to be close to the structure when this happens.  Wood used for timber tank stands can rot and be susceptible to termite damage and water from overflowing tanks can weaken the wood fibres over time.

Brick water tank stand

Bricked water tank stands can be costly to build, take up space, can be an eyesore and must be correctly designed and built to withstand tonnes of downward pressure.  This is why we recommend that tank stands designed and certified by structural engineers be considered.  The cost of steel is high these days but a quality steel tank stand should last decades if properly maintained.  Steel tank stands should be coated or galvanized and inspected annually for rust.  JoJo Tanks manufacture steel water tank stands which are designed and certified by a practising structural engineer and are available for vertical water tanks up to and including 10000 litre tanks.

JoJo steel tank stands are available in the following standard heights:  1.5 metres, 3 metres, 4.5 metres, 6 metres and 9 metres and are supplied primer coated, ready to bolt together.  Click HERE for more information on JoJo water tank stands.

JoJo Tanks South Africa offer a wide range of products such as plastic water tanks and chemical tanks to suit every household, business or agricultural need, including silo tanks and silo tank stands as well as other high quality JoJo Tanks products.  See JoJo Tanks’ VERTICAL TANKS, HORIZONTAL TANKS (transporter tanks), STEEL TANK STANDS and OTHER JOJO PRODUCTS and see JoJo Tanks’ NEW 6000 LITRE UNDERGROUND TANKS. Also see our FAQ and WATER TANK PRICES.