Pavement Section over Underground LP Gas Tank

[surfjewl]

I have an underground lp gas tank, 1000 gallon and can use hold downs and concrete deadman below the tank to hold the tank down to resist buoyancy. I have done the design on the hold downs for tanks and am very comfortable with that, but normally the tanks are in a grass area. This tank is in a parking area and I am told I have 12" from top of tank to top of grade. I was looking at a 5" concrete section with 7" of base, but this does not seem enough for traffic loads.

Traffic sections are not my specialty. Does anyone have similar experience with concrete section over a tank? Help please.

 

[MiketheEngineer]

What kind of traffic? - cars or 18 wheelers.

Parking garages are typically 50 psf with a 2,000 lb point load anywhere. Check IBC.

AASHTO specifies highway standards.

Hope that helps.

 

[cvg]

you can't just design for cars. what about fire trucks and garbage trucks, those are probably your design load. 5 inch thick concrete pavement is probably not sufficient. a concrete bridge is usually used to support the load over the tank. Inverted U section with reinforcement over the tank.

 

[chicopee]

Put stanchions spaced 4' along the perimeter of the tank so as not to allow traffic over the tank. About the dome that will stick out of the ground?

 

[bimr]

Underground propane tanks should be in a place where they are not going to be underneath any sort of vehicular traffic. A propane tank placed under where a driveway is to be installed is not a good idea and nor is it legal. The underground tank should be placed in a location where it is not going to be underneath anything other than dirt and earth.

http://www.propane101.com/undergroundpropanetanks.htm

LP gas tanks must be installed 10 ft. from any building, property line, or potential ignition source (such as a car).

To bury a 500-gal. tank, you need a hole approximately 5 ft. deep, 5 ft. wide, and 12 ft. long. The tank should be bedded in sand for drainage and backfilled with sand or clean fill to prevent damage to the tank coating from rocks and debris. The upper few inches of the dome should be exposed to allow service access to valves and regulators. Slope the ground away from the dome to keep water out of it. Landscaping can be done around the tank to hide this area even further; just make sure to leave a clear path for delivery people.

http://www.finehomebuilding.com/how-to/qa/can-a-propane-tank-be-buried.aspx

If the LP Tank is located near pavement, install protective bollards spaced on 4-foot centers 10-feet away from the tank perimeter to prevent vehicles access.