My 190 gallon build

[greengeco82]

I was going for a 120 gallon, but obviously I got distracted. I bought the 190. I wanted a good deal, but figured to get the tank the way I wanted it, I would have to build it myself. So, here it is.

 

[greengeco82]

Right now it is not even close to done. This is just the progress so far. This stand is a little over 42 inches tall and 5 feet wide. It will have 4 doors (2 in the front and 1 on each side). It will also have a tall hood. Ill keep posting pics as I go.

 

[Reefer1225]

Nice! Will be following build!

 

[DC650]

Looking good so far.

 

[tr1gger]

Looks awesome! You are obviously handy with carpentry following along for your build.

 

[jfeva0049]

looks good, cant wait to see how it turns out.

 

[scuzy]

Looking good but one thing I am wondering how are you keeping the legs from shifting? We do live in a quake zone so by having the legs screwed under the frame it could still shift a bit.won't it be better to add an extra 2x4 perpendicular to the legs be more stable?

 

[insomniac2k2]

Looks like the ground works for an awesome stand! Cant wait to see more.

 

[Dapg8gt]

Nice.... is that stand design from the rocketengineer thread? Ive been contemplating redoing my stand before the tank goes up as I dont have any room with the way the previous owner overbuilt the srand. I literally have 13" on a 23" wide tank.. its def not gonna break but sucks for equipment . I like yours but I thought for over 110 gals you should have 2x6 beams for the top span? Maybe they are im on my phone so I cant really tell

 

[scuzy]

I built mine based from rocket engineers diagram.

 

[greengeco82]

The stand is made mostly of 2x4's. The legs are held in by cross brases so they wont move. I considered 4x4's for legs, but took a look at most of the mass produced stands. The mass produced stands dont even use 2x4's. They typically use 1x2's and 3/4" plywood, so I feel 2x4's should be sufficient. I wanted to to 2x4's horizontal in the middle, or perpendicular (to connect the legs), but want as much room as possible for equipment and cleaning. So instead I used cross braces. Using 2x6's for the top rim is a great idea, but I'm at the point of no return. Sink of float time!!! I'd be lying if I said I wasnt scared. This tank is going to weight somewhere around 2,000 lbs.

I didnt see rocket engeneers thread here, but I did steal some of my design from a youtube video. (Maybe that was rocket?) Making the top frame and bottom, then connecting them with the legs was pure stolen tactics.

 

[insomniac2k2]

If you are worried about the 2x4 not being able to Cary the weight, you can always add a galvanized building strap on the inside. Use deck screws that go about half to 3/4 of the depth of the wood. A screw every 2 inches or so in a stagger pattern should do the trick. You will have about the same load bearing capability as a 2x6.

 

[greengeco82]

Today I put tile down and also covered those verticle 2x4's with some trim. Will be working the next 4 days, so may not get to update pics for the next 6 days.

Also, there are 3 verticle 2x4's in the back to support the weight. In the front there will also be 3. The newest pics only show 2 (2x4's) because I temperarily removed the middle to make painting easier. I do like the idea of galvanized straps for added support. Ill look into it.


Just stole this pic from another thread, and wanted to show what holds a 175 gallon bowfront in the air. Not much, but it works. I think Ill be fine with 2x4's.

 

[Planet Q]

did those bergia ever fix your aptasia problem ... build looks nice i like the tile around the top of the stand

 

[dogfish499]

the stand is looking good. love the Tiles!!

 

[greengeco82]

the stand is looking good. love the Tiles!!

Thanks!!! One of the guys at neptunes gave my fiance that idea, and she made me do it. He made it sound practical, where you can put your wet tools on the tile without worrying about water damage.

did those bergia ever fix your aptasia problem ... build looks nice i like the tile around the top of the stand

Thanks again. Ther bergies are doing their jobs, just slowly. I thought they were dead because it seemed the aptasia wernt dieing. I forgot about them and quit watching the aptasia, then one day realized the aptasia were almost gone. I still have a few aptasia left, maybe 1/10th of the original population.

 

[maddog2002]

look great!

 

[smokenax]

Man good carpenter skills,following.

 

[reev]

Tagging along. Great job on the stand. Looking forward to see the rest.

 

[greengeco82]

Thanks poeple for the suppport.
I almost did an in-wall after seing yours smokenax. Your tank is by far, the best I have seen in person. You should share some pics.
Here is the extent of my build so far:


There are not going to be door handles. The doors will open by pushing on them, then they spring open. The sides were going to be doors, but I decided to purchase some earth magnets. The magnets will be counter sunk into the pannels and, will hold them in place.