Safety help

[Soulpatch]

Okay, picked up a couple Klipsch r-820f floor speakers and realized just how unstable they are on carpet.  Now, we have 3 cats...two of which could give a * less about them.  The problem one is a climber/leaper.  Now, I've been looking at spiking the speakers, but all I've heard is that they destroy the carpet.  Which is possible, given these units each weight about 70lbs.  So eventually wouldn't a good pair of spikes start to sink into the subflooring?  I've trying to think of something that I could use as a base, or even make outriggers (remove the stock mounts).  But once again it'd have to be spikes.  I'd rather not have to get a bracket and bolt the them to the wall, but until I can "discourage" him enough to stop...need some ideas on either building or finding some stable mounts.  Just got these and the rest of mine are all wall mounted satellites.  Anybody have any experience with spikes?  Will I need to worry about time and how long it'll take to wear through the subfloor?  Or any other ups/downs?  Or even making a base that could be attached to the speakers instead of just "resting" them on something.  I thought about a couple marble/stone cutting boards...but again, the speakers would just be sitting on them and still on unstable carpet (and this stuff is the heavy shag...we just moved in).  And ya, I've heard all the jokes...spike the cats, get rid of them and get a dog (honestly most dogs aren't much better), etc etc etc.  Some REAL help would be greatly appreciated. 

[schuck6566]

36 minutes ago, Soulpatch said:

Okay, picked up a couple Klipsch r-820f floor speakers and realized just how unstable they are on carpet.  Now, we have 3 cats...two of which could give a * less about them.  The problem one is a climber/leaper.  Now, I've been looking at spiking the speakers, but all I've heard is that they destroy the carpet.  Which is possible, given these units each weight about 70lbs.  So eventually wouldn't a good pair of spikes start to sink into the subflooring?  I've trying to think of something that I could use as a base, or even make outriggers (remove the stock mounts).  But once again it'd have to be spikes.  I'd rather not have to get a bracket and bolt the them to the wall, but until I can "discourage" him enough to stop...need some ideas on either building or finding some stable mounts.  Just got these and the rest of mine are all wall mounted satellites.  Anybody have any experience with spikes?  Will I need to worry about time and how long it'll take to wear through the subfloor?  Or any other ups/downs?  Or even making a base that could be attached to the speakers instead of just "resting" them on something.  I thought about a couple marble/stone cutting boards...but again, the speakers would just be sitting on them and still on unstable carpet (and this stuff is the heavy shag...we just moved in).  And ya, I've heard all the jokes...spike the cats, get rid of them and get a dog (honestly most dogs aren't much better), etc etc etc.  Some REAL help would be greatly appreciated. 

maybe something like these amp stands?

On-Stage Stands RS4000 Small Folding Amp Stand

WWW.SWEETWATER.COM

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Foldable Stand for Guitar, Bass, and Keyboard Combo Amplifiers, with 100 lbs. Capacity, Steel Tube Construction, and Black Powder Coat...

 

[ENTERPRISE]

Had this problem before, however my tall heavy speakers were near the walls. So I just used a hook & eye system such as: 

 

IRONMONGERY WORLD® Exterior Outdoor USE CAST Iron Cabin Hook and Eye SHED GATE Door Latch in 9 Sizes (6" INCH/150MM) : Amazon.co.uk: DIY & Tools

WWW.AMAZON.CO.UK

---

Free delivery and returns on all eligible orders. Shop IRONMONGERY WORLD® Exterior Outdoor USE CAST Iron Cabin Hook and Eye SHED GATE Door Latch in 9 Sizes (6" INCH/150MM).

 

No animal is pulling things out of walls, assuming you have done it right. 

 

 

[Snakecharmed]

Will they sink into the subflooring though? You should still have a carpet pad layer in between the carpet and the subfloor, and that's quite a ways to go. Also, what is the subfloor made of?

 

I have spiked speaker stands in carpet, but there's not that much weight on them. Even then, I don't think a static 70 lbs. will have that much impact if you don't move the speakers around all the time, especially when the weight is distributed across multiple points.

 

Otherwise, you would need something that doesn't make full-surface contact like a flat board but has robust-enough feet or pads for some stability. If not spikes, then some small diameter solid steel pucks.

Edited March 31, 2022 by Snakecharmed

[Soulpatch]

7 hours ago, schuck6566 said:

maybe something like these amp stands?

On-Stage Stands RS4000 Small Folding Amp Stand

WWW.SWEETWATER.COM

---

Foldable Stand for Guitar, Bass, and Keyboard Combo Amplifiers, with 100 lbs. Capacity, Steel Tube Construction, and Black Powder Coat...

Was thinking about something like this at one point, problem is then they are angled upward.  Kind of losing most of the sound at that point.  But Even thought about combining them with a couple of brackets welded on to create a solid point to keep them from tipping forward when changing the angle.  Problem ultimately though is the carpet.  Resting anything on the heavy shag that is in the house isn't going to be stable.  Need to find a way to counter it and it's either tear it out, which I'm not ready to do yet (too many other projects), for find another way.  That's why I was thinking spikes on outriggers.  Spikes will pass through the carpet doing little damage and rest solid on the sub floor.  But not having any experience with them, wasn't sure how much damage could be passed through.  Heavy speakers and all... 

 

 

7 hours ago, ENTERPRISE said:

Had this problem before, however my tall heavy speakers were near the walls. So I just used a hook & eye system such as: 

 

IRONMONGERY WORLD® Exterior Outdoor USE CAST Iron Cabin Hook and Eye SHED GATE Door Latch in 9 Sizes (6" INCH/150MM) : Amazon.co.uk: DIY & Tools

WWW.AMAZON.CO.UK

---

Free delivery and returns on all eligible orders. Shop IRONMONGERY WORLD® Exterior Outdoor USE CAST Iron Cabin Hook and Eye SHED GATE Door Latch in 9 Sizes (6" INCH/150MM).

 

No animal is pulling things out of walls, assuming you have done it right. 

 

Another good idea that popped into my head as well.  One on each corner.  Would allow the flexibility of sitting on the carpet since a solid mount wouldn't account for any carpet changes (sinking over time).  So was leaning a bit this way until figuring out the outriggers.  The stock mounts screw to the bottom of the cabinets.  So measured the mounting points and made the outriggers out of 1/4" x 1" steel.  Picked up some carriage bolts because of the rounded heads to experiment with when it comes to the carpet.  Eventually I'll likely have to switch to spikes for a more solid point of contact.  Hoping that the weight and rounded point on the carriage bolts actually creates enough pressure for them to at least make solid contact. 

 

2 hours ago, Snakecharmed said:

Will they sink into the subflooring though? You should still have a carpet pad layer in between the carpet and the subfloor, and that's quite a ways to go. Also, what is the subfloor made of?

 

I have spiked speaker stands in carpet, but there's not that much weight on them. Even then, I don't think a static 70 lbs. will have that much impact if you don't move the speakers around all the time, especially when the weight is distributed across multiple points.

 

Otherwise, you would need something that doesn't make full-surface contact like a flat board but has robust-enough feet or pads for some stability. If not spikes, then some small diameter solid steel pucks.

Sub floor should be the typical heavy particle board.  So I was thinking instead of a really sharp point, maybe something that has a bit more degree on it.  Hopefully the point and contacting surface area would keep it from sinking too far in?  But hard to say, like I said my experience with these is nothing.  All I know is the physics behind it. 

[UltraMega]

 

Spray your cat with water when it goes near the speaker. 

[pio]

Do extremely heavy dressers on 4 separate feet ruin the floor?  Legitimate question, as I've never heard complaints personally about it.

 

70 pounds across 4 spikes, assuming absolutely perfect weight distribution is only what, 17.5 or so pounds per spike?  I doubt that'll get through the carpet, the pad, and into the sub flooring.  I could be wrong........

 

As an alternative, you could use some heavy wood, like 1" high density fiberboard, or MDF if price is vastly different these days.  Maybe even double layer it so its 2" thick.  Bolt your spikes down to that wooden base, say at 12"x12" or whatever size you make it so they're stable, and then to the speakers.  Now its not the spikes hitting the floor, but a solid 12x12 base (or bigger / smaller depending on speakers).  Honestly you could just about have Home Depot cut the pieces to fit, take it home and screw it and glue it yourself if you don't have wood working tools on hand.  Grab some rhino liner or paint if you don't like the naked MDF look.  Or even some carpet and carpet glue.  Lots of various options for a finish.

 

You mentioned stone slabs, is there any particular reason one couldn't run a drill bit through the stone slab?  Could drill a hole, run a couple bolts and nuts through it into your speakers (or spikes + speakers), and then use some thick furniture pads on the bottom of the slab so the bolt head doesn't throw it off balance.

[Soulpatch]

12 hours ago, pioneerisloud said:

Do extremely heavy dressers on 4 separate feet ruin the floor?  Legitimate question, as I've never heard complaints personally about it.

 

70 pounds across 4 spikes, assuming absolutely perfect weight distribution is only what, 17.5 or so pounds per spike?  I doubt that'll get through the carpet, the pad, and into the sub flooring.  I could be wrong........

 

As an alternative, you could use some heavy wood, like 1" high density fiberboard, or MDF if price is vastly different these days.  Maybe even double layer it so its 2" thick.  Bolt your spikes down to that wooden base, say at 12"x12" or whatever size you make it so they're stable, and then to the speakers.  Now its not the spikes hitting the floor, but a solid 12x12 base (or bigger / smaller depending on speakers).  Honestly you could just about have Home Depot cut the pieces to fit, take it home and screw it and glue it yourself if you don't have wood working tools on hand.  Grab some rhino liner or paint if you don't like the naked MDF look.  Or even some carpet and carpet glue.  Lots of various options for a finish.

 

You mentioned stone slabs, is there any particular reason one couldn't run a drill bit through the stone slab?  Could drill a hole, run a couple bolts and nuts through it into your speakers (or spikes + speakers), and then use some thick furniture pads on the bottom of the slab so the bolt head doesn't throw it off balance.

Actually thought about doing the density fiberboard and just pulling the carpet up and slipping it under so it's not even visible.  The outriggers I built are working quite well.  Installed carriage bolts on them for the time being so the rounded heads are facing downward.  But the spikes should get here soon.  Then I'll swap them out.  The outriggers increase the footprint quite a bit, the spikes will only re-enforce it.  I wasn't concerned so much about the amount of weight...more the period of time.  The spikes are fairly sharp as to cut a clean path through the thread pattern of the carpet without causing much damage...but vibrations (movement) + mass = can over time slowly drive them into/through the sub flooring.  So I put it out there on a couple AV forums to see what kind of long term affects the spikes have over time.  Some guys are running floor speakers that are far heavier than mine and stabilizing them with spikes.  Unfortunately not many really replied and of course I got the idiots who talk about just spraying the cat, opening the door and accidentally letting it out, sell the cat/buy a dog etc etc etc.  But guess we'll give it a shot and see what happens.  Unfortunately the speakers have a very narrow footprint side to side.  So they are very tippy left and right.  No idea why an engineer would design that...but as a mechanical engineer, I'd like to * slap them and ask why they don't design them to be a bit more stable on multiple styles of flooring.  Or at least have the ability to open the back up and stack in some weights or something.  There are so many options that would not only enhance the sound quality, but also make it much more stable for kids/pets etc.  I know my rottweiler would knock them over just because he was a 120lb overgrown puppy.  So cat or dog never really mattered other than one climbs and the other is a clod lol  But I do appreciate the actual thoughts/experiences people have replied.  Sometimes even a fabricator/engineer can question their options without knowing long term effects.  Always good to get another person's thoughts/experiences. 

Edited April 1, 2022 by Soulpatch