stand idea?
Printed From: Utah Reefs
Category: Specialized Discussion
Forum Name: DIY
Forum Description: Do it Yourself
URL: http://www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=69514
Printed Date: July 03 2026 at 1:57am
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Topic: stand idea?
Posted By: Crazy Tarzan
Subject: stand idea?
Date Posted: February 07 2014 at 11:12pm
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Tossing around the idea of building a new stand for my 3' 65gal. Thinking of making it 26" front to back, by 44" wide by whatever my current stand is tall. However to save space inside, I'm considering using 1x4 or 1x6 boards in an L shape glued/screwed together, around a couple boxes ( [ ] ) with caps for floor and top of tank. The rectangles would be fastened inside the outer corner pieces. I would then fasten panels to the outside of the corner pieces to close up the cabinet. Would this be strong enough to support the tank? Or am I tempting disaster, and should just stick with my heavy duty 36x18 footprint 2x4 stand? ------------- Was that in there yesterday? Casper--WY windier than ? Down to a 20, soon to double or nothing |
Replies:
Posted By: bmac2
Date Posted: February 08 2014 at 8:58am
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Dion or Eric can speak to this better than me, due to their experience, but to me that could be disaster. The two things you have to ask is what wood am I using and how will it react to several years of high humidity with salt on it. Wipe the inside and top of your existing stand with a clean paper towel, look at it. If it is anything like mine, there is a thin layer of salt and lots of condensation and humidity hitting the wood. There is a reason that Dion ONLY uses engineered wood. 2x4 and normal wood can and will warp. I think disaster is possible depending on the type of wood and the exact design. ------------- Aquarium Creations 300 gallon tank Stand by Dion |
Posted By: Akira
Date Posted: February 09 2014 at 3:26am
| If i understand what you are trying to do correctly I would guess that it would support the weight but it would be really weak front to back and side to side . If you want to save space use steel and then skin it to look like wood. As for Dion's stands here is what I will say as I own myself. They are more expensive than an off the shelf stand but you get what you pay for in the end. Time , material. trial and error . research . and the longevity of the stand, etc,etc etc. I built my own 30 X 24 X 24 tank custom over flow etc so I can build but I still chose a Dion stand. |
Posted By: Mark Peterson
Date Posted: February 17 2014 at 6:59am
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Aloha Nate, Hey, you are one of the old timers here.  If I'm not mistaken, you started in the hobby in the 90's and joined the WMAS soon after that, right? I've been thinking about you lately, because of your helpful advice here in the forum. Also wondering how you ended up in Riverton WY.If it is a glass tank with a bottom frame, truth is, vertical support on each corner is all that is needed for tanks 48" long or less. Of course, bracing at the sides to keep it from tipping/sliding over is also important.  As you know, 2x4 construction works very well for many years and does not give in to moisture.Sounds like you are wanting a stand that is larger than the tank, right? Using some free materials at your disposal? In my experience with framed tanks, so long as each corner is level and solidly supported it will be fine. The top of the stand can even bow in the middle so that almost the entire length of the tank frame is unsupported, but as long as the four corners are solidly supported, it will be fine. The reasons for this have to do with the structure and physics of the glass box of water. I currently have a 40 gal breeder sitting on the two footboards from two kids bed frames. It was a perfect fit at 36" long. With the top frame ripped off of the tank some people might wonder, but because the four corners are solidly supported it works. Mahalo, Mark  P.S. Avoid high centering at all costs. Again, because of the structure and physics of framed glass boxes filled with water, even just a fraction of high centering along the length of any of the four sides can cause the glass to crack sometime down the road. ------------- Reefkeeping Tips, & quick, easy setup tricks: www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9244 Pay it forward - become a paid WMAS member
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Posted By: Crazy Tarzan
Date Posted: February 17 2014 at 7:34am
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Mark--early 2000's for me. I'm a tween as far as tanks are concerned. Work brought me back to Riverton (grew up here), I'm now one of 4 reefers in town, and then there is Spike in Rock Springs. Just ended up using the old stand--2x4's all around, but it does bow in the middle on the front. I've shimmed it every couple inches, but more than having the tank 'flex', it's to keep the tank nice and level--my OCD kicks in when I look in the tank and the front/back or side to side water level is off at an angle I can see. Have materials to build a stand slightly bigger than the tank, but just not sure the extra effort was worth it right now-- I actually want a steel stand, but will save up until I do my 'big' tank sometime (5' long, 2.5' front to back, 2' tall). And since I have access to a shop full of welders, I figure it shouldn't be too hard to build. ------------- Was that in there yesterday? Casper--WY windier than ? Down to a 20, soon to double or nothing |