DIY Stands Template and Calculator

[cpeisher]

also, to absorb any slight bumps and discontinuities in the surface where the tank will rest, you may want to consider getting some foam board to place under the tank. You can find it on home depot and many of the other builds here have used it for that purpose. It's useally pink and 1/2"-1" thick

 

[RokleM]

Foam is absolutely not recommended under a glass tank with plastic trim. It's only recommended (almost required) on glass flat bottomed or acrylic.

 

[cpeisher]

Why would you not want to place foam under a tank with a plastic rim?

 

[Triadguppies]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10644589#post10644589 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by RocketEngineer
saltwaterfishlover
Here is the simplest idea I could come up with:

Orange = 66"
Red = 63"
Green = 34.5"
Yellow = 21"

Depending on what you made the top frame out of, you could either put a leg at each of the outer corners and at each corner of where the tank would sit for a total of 8 OR one leg at each outer corner, one leg under each of the front corners of the tank and one in the center at the back.

Could you not put 4 legs under the Tank corners then use 2x2's for the outer corners sine the will mainly be for attaching the skin rather then structural support?

Joe

 

[Triadguppies]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11179656#post11179656 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by saltwaterfishlover

stand is 62" long 36" front to back and 33" tall

2x6 upper frame and 2x4 for the rest
andy

Looks like you used Hangers for the center 2x6 and the two tank end supports. how is it holding up so far?

 

[Triadguppies]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12901466#post12901466 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by SNAKEMANVET
.I have thought about doing a load test by taking the stand where I work and putting a skid of axles on it.That skid is 40'' wide and 7' long and weights about 4500 lbs.

YES YES YES YES!!!!!! :rollface: :strooper: :eek1:

I would love to see that!!!!!

 

[SNAKEMANVET]

The stand is almost done.I will defiantly take a few pics.

 

[neilanh]

Hi gang, awesome, awesome thread. I've been tormenting myself on a basic design for a week now, until I found this thread, it gave me a lot of confidence.

However, Im wanting to do something a bit different and I'm still a bit nervous about it.

72g bowfront tank. 48.5"x18" in the center. I plan to add 2 braces to the top, and cover with plywood to help distribute the weight. First, is this safe?

Secondly, even though the width of the tank in the center is only 18", I want to make the stand 24" deep to accomodate a 20H sitting front to back (intend on having a 29g and a 20g under the stand). With using the plywood on top, is this even safely possible?

I'm planning to start building in the morning, so hopefully it's good to go. Would love some confidence in this, or to just be told not to do it. lol

Thanks!

 

[Triadguppies]

Also I was a PetSmart and they had a 150 Gal stand that I was looking at and it was made out of 1x4's!!!! It seemed sturdy enough but not sure I would trust it with 900+ lbs My 29 and 30 stands are also made out of 1x4's as well but they weight a lot less. now I did notice that the 1x4's were on end so they will support the load from the end not length wise as a beam. We do tend to over build things but again, I do not want to file a Homeowners claim either.

 

[neilanh]

This is where I got with mine today. Thanks again so much to everyone for the plans and discussion and advice.

49"x25"x36"

Yes, I'll be putting a 48x18x23 bowfront tank on it. 3/4" plywood across the top. I'm still debating whether to add additional vertical supports to help with this, I would love some feedback on the idea.

 

[RokleM]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13067536#post13067536 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by cpeisher
Why would you not want to place foam under a tank with a plastic rim?

First, it's not needed if the stand is built correctly. Secondly, the foam can actually compress, pushing on the glass, causing cracking/failure. Only true flat bottom tanks are suggested for use with foam.

 

[RokleM]

What do you guys think on a new Marineland 48 long, 36 deep, 27 tall? The equipment is in the basement, so I'm not worried about going with a braceless front.

 

[kgross]

That could make a great reef tank.

Kim

 

[RokleM]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13077190#post13077190 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by kgross
That could make a great reef tank.

Kim

I was more asking about the stand

2x6's around the top? I'm leaning towards additional verticals in the front and back in the middle. I probably won't on the left/right.

 

[Triadguppies]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13077075#post13077075 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by RokleM

[/B]

What type of Catfish is that?

If you are using 2x6" beam a 48" span should be cake without a center support.

 

[stevedola]

I love those marineland tanks. I wanted to get the 3x3 tank they have but im buying a house so Ive elected to save instead.

when building your stand, have you planned for the drain return lines? might be tight with the corner overflows when you have 2x6's on the corners...what were you thinking? do they clear the frame supports? dont forget the bulk heads need clearence too.

and why dont you want to use a center brace?

 

[d4a2n0k]

Hi all,

I just built a stand based on the original post for a new 48 x 18 x 18 glass tank which works out to 67 gallons. I used 2 x 4's everywhere but made the stand taller at 40".

The tank has no trim so needs to be supported the entire length.

I skinned the stand with 3/4" cabinet grade oak ply on the sides, 3/4" solid oak in the front (obviously the middle is open for two doors) and 1/4" ply for the back. The top also uses 3/4" oak ply.

Now that is built, I'm concerned about deflection in the middle as there are no supports. Is my stand strong enough as it is for a 67g tank taking into account that its 40" tall? I built the stand much higher than normal so I had more height inside the stand and so I can comfortably stand in front of the tank without hunching over. I will be using foam under the tank.

Being this is my first trimless tank, I want to make sure it will hold, especially in the middle, with no deflection. I can easily add a couple of 2 x 4's if needed, even though the stand is built already.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[RokleM]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13080483#post13080483 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by stevedola
I love those marineland tanks. I wanted to get the 3x3 tank they have but im buying a house so Ive elected to save instead.

when building your stand, have you planned for the drain return lines? might be tight with the corner overflows when you have 2x6's on the corners...what were you thinking? do they clear the frame supports? dont forget the bulk heads need clearence too.

and why dont you want to use a center brace?

I'm not sure I follow, 2x4's and 2x6's are the same depth, 1.5". When building following the same pattern in these threads, the board is turned on it's side. It could be a 2x4 or a 2x12 and take up the same amount of frame space.

Yes, the bulkhead locations are not ideal. One in particular is pretty close to the edge. Yes obviously I'll take that into consideration.

When I'm referring to center brace, center support, etc I mean the vertical piece, not the horizontal inside the top frame.

 

[urville]

you can use foam, youd need to cut out the center. Or just use a foam thats appropriate thickness. But you only need it if you have a planar problem.

Plywood is fine. Theres nothing wrong with overdoing or adding things. People make it sound like your killing baby seals, but your not.

You dont need it, but if you like it do it. Except the foam, thats really just an unneeded expense.

 

[puttyman]

Hi guys, great thread. Can anyone think of a reason why putting plywood inside the bottom frame instead of on top of the bottom frame to form the bottom of the stand would be bad. I was thinking this would gain me 3 1/2" of hieght.

thanks