what kind of wood for stand frame

terrorman

Premium Member
I'm planning to build a stand for a 156g oceanic 60x24x24 tank. I remember reading somewhere that pressure treated wood is bad? in that it warps? So, what kind of wood is good for the frame? I'm planning to build it out of 2x6's.

Thanks!
 
Get douglas fir. It is stronger than pine. I like to buy a size larger so I can rip to width to make sure it is straight. The hard part these days is finding dry stuff.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6987202#post6987202 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by horkn
pine is fine
Yep. Look at any commercial stand, we DIY'er will over engineer it to extreme. Pine is fine.
 
Treated wood is not something you wanna put in your home.
Something about the treating process.
Tank that small you could get away with vertical plywood as well.
People often underestimate the strength of plywood in the vertical application.
Pretty hard to argue with 2x4s and 2x6s.
Good luck.
 
thanks for the help guys!!

pine sounds like to right choice then. I was also considering trying LAM boards? Are those any good? Seems like lots of trouble having to glue 3 pieces of plywood together to make a single frame piece?
 
I used 4x4 pressure treated for the frame and 3/4 plywood for the sides and top.

Sturdy sturdy sturdy...

victor6er
 
Go to HD or Lowe's and look for KD (Kiln Dried) 2x4's and 4x4's. They are a bit more, but they are kiln dried to a very low moisture content so they should not shrink or warp as wetter lumber (especially pressure treated) would. Stay away from PT because it is very wet, plus it is treated with CCA (a compound containing arsenic). Not something I want in my house, especially if I had small kids running around.

Of course if you want to really over-engineer, go for a couple of the glu-lam beams held up by 4x4 legs. A stand made out of those could hold up your house.

Mike
 
pressure treated wood is no longer beingsold with arsenic in it.

but, a good kiln dried pine is just fine. yeah, we DIY guys sure overbuild stuff. my 35g stand way overbuilt. and way heavier han it needs to be.. oh well, i made it, and it was cheap:)
 
The reason your walls in your house are not pine is because one board with a bad grain will twist and then ruin everything. Use the kiln dried european softwood that is available at Lowes or HD. The wood has a good grain and is very strong. Look for a brand called Storenso or Stallinger. Those are good mills.
Pressure treated..CCA pressure treating is no longer available to the public, commercial yes. There is only 2 types available now CAB and ACQ PLEASE READ!!! ACQ is some strong stuff, it will chew up regular steel and will walk right through aluminum. I know. Use very good coated screws or stainless..ESPECIALLY if you are doing a project where the wood will get wetr often. I have seen the threads get completly rusted off screws in a year on some signs that I did.
 
stora enso gets their wood from the usa. not europe.

houses are still built with american pine. yeah, msot of it is kiln dried, but its american wood. imagine how much the transportation fees to ship wood from europe would be?

plus, wood from europe sounds funny all by itself. I have been there, and the few forests are very highly regulated, and wood is at a premium there alone....

what kind of screws got the threads rotted away? non coated ones i imagine.

i have not seen one home made stand built with cheap non coated hardware. thats one area not to skimp. you save a lot of $$ by doing the work yourself, cheap screws are not an option.

i am not trying to be argumentative KH, but merely informative.:)
 
would old growth cypress be a good lumber to use if it's available?
and also, are there any other threads contain specs or pictures of DIY stands and canopes
 
yes cypress would be good if its available.

but it is usually pricey..


i got my stand instructions off of GARF's website.
 
great info guys. I make sure to get stainless steel screws/fastening plates. i'll check out the storenso wood at lowes.
 
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