How impressive is the Gulf Stream Tank at our new Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science (even before it’s finished)? Let us count the ways.
- 5 million
Pounds of concrete needed to form the Living Core building, which houses the Gulf Stream aquarium tank - 12 hours
Amount of time to pour that concrete (over 2 shifts of workers) - 130 trucks
Needed to bring 250 cubic yards of concrete to the site - 9.5 miles
Length of post tensioning cables that are buried within the tank’s concrete walls, to hold the concrete in tension and prevent it from cracking - 28 to 56 inches
Thickness of the tank wall - 9,500
Surface area in square feet of the tank walls - 400
Custom formwork panels that need to be assembled for the structure of the tank - 5 to 6 weeks
Time needed to install the custom formwork, before the steel rebar beams can be placed, to be ready for the concrete pour - 500,000
Gallons of water held in the tank
And once it’s complete:
A seemingly infinite, spectacular array of large and small marine life will call the Gulf Stream Tank home, and showcase the diversity and importance of our waters.
What’s next:
A test pour in the next few weeks to verify the means and methods of the concrete pour, on a full-size mockup slice of the tank, then the official pour by the beginning of August!
Thanks to our concrete team Baker Concrete Construction for these amazing pieces of information!