Tank Stand other than 'official cabinets'

[sub.z]

Does anyone have any ideas for a tank 5x2x2 foot?

I dont want a metal or wrought iron stand as such

I thought maybe a buffet table but they are hard to find that wide

Ideas and pics much appreciated 8)

[Andrew_W]

2 by 4 frame, With ply board around the outside.

[sub.z]

I may have to get the other half to get building

Hmm..

[Andrew_W]

Ok, your base and top want to be same.

You want your 2/4 so the vertical face is the 4" side.

Your want you long 5ft bit to be one continous piece. and the 2ft sides to one piece.

Your upright will butt-up to the base and top.

You want every piece of 2/4 used in the lid and base to be sitting on top a 2/4 upright, so that all the weight is on the 2/4 upright not the joins in the top.

Stick it all together how ever, glue and screw it. (i wouldn't use nails)

then make like a top for the top of the frame fom like 18mm marine ply, glue and screw to your 2/4 frame.

you should probably screw and glue some sheets of wood to the sides and back, going into all the uprights. this will stop it racking, and keep it all square ect.

http://img219.imageshack.us/img219/3605/dsc00232on9.jpg

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Bill.

sorry forgot to click the buttom that shrinks it.

doesn't the site shink them to 800/600 anyway? or is it just my pc? :-?

When I posted it, it looked 800/600

[HummingBird]

Here's a pic of the stand I made recently for my 4ftx3ft tank:

I used screws and glue to put it together. I put mdf on the top too to spread the weight under the glass, and will eventually put some mdf on the outside to make it look better.

[Ianab]

The stand ideas shown with the 4x2s, either braced with diagonals or plywood back and sides are good. Holding up the weight is not a problem, if a stand is ever going to fail it's going to be by racking, folding up like a stack of cards. Not a solid 4x2 breaking in simple compression. The bracing is the key. I also like to have a bit more width then is strictly needed, more stable earthquake wise etc. A solid ply top helps give an even surface and make sure the base spreads the weigth out over the floor too.

This is one stand I built a while back for a friends 4 ft tank.

It's a lower stand, coffee table height, but thats what she wanted.

It's a basic wooden frame and clad with solid T&G timber for extra support and bracing plus the looks. Front has simple doors made from the same T&G and the top is a solid slab of macrocarpa.

I dont seem to have any pics of it with the tank though

Cheers

Ian

[Caryl]

Love the look of that one Ian

[smidey]

on a design level is all about how you support & transfer the weight to the floor. the floor is holding your tank & stand up! if that tank is 500L it'll weigh 500kg plus substrate rock etc & plus stand. it may end up being 650 to 700kg total. i would recommend a flat base rather than legs to spread the weight evenly across its length rather than 4 or 6 legs that point load the floor.

[sub.z]

That stand looks really good, do you have any plans?

[sub.z]

What does everyone think of this?

http://www.fishandtips.com/step1/step1. ... p3=checked

[Ianab]

What does everyone think of this?

4x4s is probably overkill, but I dont see any bracing in the plan?

Better to make a frame out of 4x2 like Hummingbird posted (although I see it has 4x4 corners?) and then clad it with plywood. Back, sides, top and bottom.

Umm... no plans for mine sorry, I just sort of start buildling and keep going till I have a tank stand. The 26x1.5" top board isn't something you will be able to buy in the shops either, but a heavy piece of ply will do the same job.

Cheers

Ian

[sub.z]

Ok me and my bf though 4x4 was overkill aswell

They do have bracing but you had to click on the word bracket. I will definately put them on anyway

Do you think it will be ok to be 4x2 on the whole thing?

[HummingBird]

yeah the 4x4's are probably overkill, but I figured I might as well because then I could do the bits where the horizontal 2x4's go on the notches on the tops of the 4x4's, which are cool.

As has been mentioned there's no danger of wood itself breaking under a fish tank - it's tensile strength is something like 720 pounds per square inch, so what's actually important is the way the stand is put together, so it won't collapse (diagonal beams help here.) What's also really important is making sure the weight is distributed under the tank so the glass isn't stressed at all, basically you just need a slab of wood (or mdf) like what's pictured in ianab's photos there.

[Ianab]

The angle brackets they show will hold the joints together, but you want large diagonal braces to prevent racking. If you look at Hummingbirds picture above you can see the 45 deg wooden braces, those will do more to stop the stand folding up than a small metal angle. But securely attaching plywood to the outside of your box is probably the strongest of all. Imagine how much force it takes to twist a sheet of ply lengthways, especially when it has some 4x2s glued and screwed to it!

Mine are clad with solid timber T&G boards, has a similar bracing effect. looks nicer and I have the boards. (Plywood I have to buy) Plywood would actually be stronger though

If you built the stand from 4x2s and clad it in 12mm ply (screwed and glued) it's going to be stronger than the house it's sitting in. Bracing is the key.

If you want it to look nice, then build the strong box and clad it in any fancy finish you want.

Cheers

Ian

[Ianab]

yeah the 4x4's are probably overkill, but I figured I might as well because then I could do the bits where the horizontal 2x4's go on the notches on the tops of the 4x4's, which are cool.

Yeah.. I figured you used the 4x4 corners so it was easier to make the lap joints that hold it all together.

That stand isn't going to collapse in our lifetimes

Cheers

Ian

[sub.z]

Great i will bet my bf to attempt to make it

Just to confirm i will need to put a slab of some tye of wood on top of the stand/under the tank?

[HummingBird]

Yes indeedy.

[sub.z]

Excellent :bounce:

Thanks everyone for you help

Will post a pic once its done

[Ianab]

Just to confirm i will need to put a slab of some tye of wood on top of the stand/under the tank?

yup.. plywood is the best option. The top especially. For the base it's not as important, you can spread the weigth OK with the bottom rail 4x2s.

Cheers

Ian

[Ianab]

This is another tank stand I built a while back, only just got some pictures of it with the tanks though.

Macrocarpa timber again and 2 x 2ft tanks

Cheers

Ian

[sub.z]

Is the wine by the tank for the fish 8)

That looks really good

[Thunderstorm]

this section of my gallery shows shots of my stand before i covered it, it holds a 6 x 2 x 2 all up 1000 litres including sump, sand etc etc.

Click Here

Its made from 3x4 and 2x4 timber held with 6" nails and "no more nails" glue, super strong it is.

Peter

[sub.z]

For anyone whos interested ive ended up picking this up cheap off trademe. Got to love trademe

Anywho I reckon that it needs stabilising

Would some 4x2 be enough put a couple of times through the middle with angle brackets?

I thought between the doors because the doors wont be seen as im going to use the brown side as the front

[sub.z]

5 Foot tank ordered

[David R]

Hows this for creative??

Made from old jarrah power poles, with copper from an old hot water cylinder covreing the middle parts. There's a matching hood thats not in the photos. It weighs a ton, but is solid as a rock!! The only downside is that when my friend built it, he forgot that in any other location you wouldn't be able to access the back, so it needs to be re-designed with some doors.