I’m in the process of building a stand for my new 180 gallon tank. I have built stands for other smaller tanks but this is my first stand for a large tank. I’m looking to use 2x6 lumber for all the framing with 3/4 plywood for the top frame (where the tank will sit) and for under the bottom frame (which will sit on the hardwood floor). My question is dealing with the center support in the front (and the back). I’ve always put a center support in but it’s always a pain when coming to replacing a sump and/or maintaining the sump. Therefore, if I use 2 2x6 joined together (as a header) for the front and back part of each frame can I eliminate the center support in the front as well in the back? Obviously I don’t want to take a chance of stressing out the middle of the 180 gallon tank and causing the glass to crack and/or leak. Any input would be appreciated. Thank you.
DIY stand for a 180 gallon tank.
- Thread starter Bakeman
- Start date
T Diddy
Happy to be here
I’m sure you plan to put a cross member from front to back in the top middle portion of the stand. You can buttress that cross member with pieces cut at 45degrees, as opposed to a vertical support under the cross member.
When you assemble your header, take note of the crown of each piece and assemble them with crowns opposite each other banging it straight as you work along nailing or screwing it. This makes a very strong header that resists sagging.
Another possibly unusual option would be to a use i-joists. you would only need 1 front and back but unfotunately I think the smallest dimension is 9 1/2"
Another possibly unusual option would be to a use i-joists. you would only need 1 front and back but unfotunately I think the smallest dimension is 9 1/2"
Did we convert you away from the metric system?
I've been in tool and die for most of my career and we never used metric. Ironically every US customer gave us every drawing in metric. I'm wondering now if they wasted their time converting it for us. As for lumber, I've never seen anything other than occasionally MDF sheet thickness listed in metric.Did we convert you away from the metric system?
T Diddy - yes, I’m planning on putting in 3 cross members front to back. I use to build homes and in the old days (before I-beams) we use to put in 45 degree cross sections between each joist (2 pre joist). I had forgotten about that. Would that be equivalent to having a single center support between the upper and lower frames?
Definitely will be putting the crowns towards the top but thank you for the comment. Still trying to see if anyone else has built a stand without center support between top and bottom frame with a huge tank and been successful. I did see on YouTube clip of a guy that used a single 2x10 without a center support for a 180 and so far he seems to be ok. My research shows that 2 2x6 (header) is about 10% stronger than a single 2x10. But I want to hear your guys thoughts.
T Diddy
Happy to be here
Perhaps not equivalent, but certainly enough to bear the load on 2x6
OldReefGuy
Well-known member
You could use steel/alum I beam for the top supports
I want to thank everyone for their responses and ideas. I’m putting a lot of money into this 180 so I’ve decided to modify my stand to allow sumps to be inserted on the side and I’ll just have to live with working around the center supports when doing sump maintenance. I’m also hearing that softwood (any type of 2x) can twist or wrap through time which can also cause possible tank failure. So I’m just going to go with what I have and put on a good coat of polyurethane on all 2x’s/plywood prior to putting on the finishing wood. The finishing wood will be stained and also receive a coat of polyurethane. Hopefully that will give me the longevity that a hardwood or steel/aluminum stand would have given me.
OldReefGuy
Well-known member
Nice....you might want to use Marine polyurethane and give it that added extra waterproof level.
That's not going anywhere. I really like the flexseal idea. Good job.
Vinny Kreyling
Premium Member
T Diddy
Happy to be here
I was hoping to see a screen door incorporated somewhere in there
Well played my friend, well played
