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!