FraserNZ Posted November 16, 2011 Report Share Posted November 16, 2011 I have decided to give stand building a go as I think it will be a lot cheaper to do it myself. Does anyone know if any good step by step instrutional websites I could get some ideas from? Or, better yet, any good previous forum posts on this topic that I might be able to get some tips/ideas off? Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squirt Posted November 16, 2011 Report Share Posted November 16, 2011 Have you seen i smarts latest topic? He seems to kno how to build them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FraserNZ Posted November 16, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2011 Have you seen i smarts latest topic? He seems to kno how to build them. Yeah looks pretty impressive... Is he a builder?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squirt Posted November 16, 2011 Report Share Posted November 16, 2011 Umm not sure, but it looks very well made. Maybe you should ask him :thup: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaxxnz Posted November 16, 2011 Report Share Posted November 16, 2011 how big is the stand you going to build? I built my 2m glv stand for my tank.. its not that hard if have the welding gear..regards to the metal pipes, you can order in pre-cut..piece of cake..just when welding make sure you dont leave a bow on the pipe..(start off welding one end, then move to the opposite end welding.) do not weld joint by joint, metal will shrink and leave a big bow) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FraserNZ Posted November 16, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2011 welding... I wish I could weld :-? but unfortunately this I'll be building this stand out of wood. Does Bunnings offer a cutting service, to cut wood to length? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
si_sphinx Posted November 16, 2011 Report Share Posted November 16, 2011 Most places that sell timber will cut it to length for you for free, but don't count on it being perfectly straight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FraserNZ Posted November 16, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2011 Most places that sell timber will cut it to length for you for free, but don't count on it being perfectly straight. See that is my only real problem... I only have a handsaw and I work in an office so my cutting skills are pretty minimal, I'm not a complete tool... But I know that the cuts will need to be dead straight. Do you think most places would mind cutting all the lengths for me? The stand is for a 60cm x 60cm tank so pretty small... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
si_sphinx Posted November 16, 2011 Report Share Posted November 16, 2011 I work in an office too but if you take your time (and use a drop saw) its easy to get the cuts straight. If you ask nicely I don't see why Bunnings wouldn't cut them to length for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ismart120 Posted November 17, 2011 Report Share Posted November 17, 2011 Yep, Bunnings cut to size, apparently they're supposed to charge per cut but every time I've been in its been free so far. I told them what it was for and they tried to get as straight a cut as possible; I just sanded down the rest and it seems to have come out ok. What wood are you looking at using? I went for h3 treated 3x2 for a 900mm stand, for a 600, you'd get away with 2x2 easy. Design wise, I actually half copied si sphinx, with a little more bracing between the legs - making sure you spread the weight out over as big an area as possible is key. And nope, not a builder, just a uni student doing ecology, thanks for the compliment though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
si_sphinx Posted November 17, 2011 Report Share Posted November 17, 2011 I would say 2x2 would be fine. Ply acts as the bracing if you use plenty of fixings/screws. Otherwise diagonal bracing would be the best option IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FraserNZ Posted November 17, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 17, 2011 Thanks for the response guys, I think I'll go 3x2 as its going to be a cube 60x60x60 or 61x61x61 haven't decided yet, ether way it will have 200+ liters of water so will be quite heavy. Ismart120, did you get all of your wood cut to length at bunnings? That would of been a fair few pieces wouldn't it? Also what screws/nails are you using to hold it all together? PS, How much is 3x2 worth these days? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted November 17, 2011 Report Share Posted November 17, 2011 my seahorse tank is similar foot print used 2 x 2 for legs and 3 x 2 for top frame MDF well painted for sides and ply for tank base Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ismart120 Posted November 17, 2011 Report Share Posted November 17, 2011 Yeah, bigger and stronger is generally better if you're happy to work with 3x2 - all of it was cut at bunnings, about 35 pieces in total? And its about $3 or $4 a metre - for my stand it came to about $60 for all the wood, cut more or less to size. I'm using 10g 75mm treated pine screws, cost a bit more than I thought they would but seem to be pretty good. Also putting aluminum brackets on some of the more important corners and nail plates on the inside of the legs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ismart120 Posted November 17, 2011 Report Share Posted November 17, 2011 Oh, and the screws don't reach all the way into the 3x2 into the next one when its being put through the tall side so I drilled out a 3/8 hole halfway in that allowed the screw head to go into, thus extending the reach of the screw total. Hope you can understand that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FraserNZ Posted November 17, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 17, 2011 Do you have any plans for your stand that I could have a look at? I might just do the upper and lower frame in 3x2 and do the legs in 2x2 to make putting the screws in easier in that case. Are you using MDF or Ply for the top base and sides? Did bunnings cut all of that to size also? I would be keen to see how you setup the support brackets also if you get a chance to update your stand build post. I'll probably start this project this weekend Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanjury Posted November 17, 2011 Report Share Posted November 17, 2011 Make sure the legs sit under the top so they transfer the load down.. Bracing is your friend even diagonal ones help heaps and I would use ply, MDF shouldn't be around water, unless you plan to spend lots of time sealing it and then even one stratch through the sealer will let water in and it will fall apart. I have build a few hori stands and got a mate who is a builder out in the weekend to "help" build a new one, needless to say he had build a stand to hold 2 big 5ft tanks in about 2 hours from statch and it was 10 x sturdier than anything I could make.. If it helps with the cutting I can loan you a circular saw (providing you don't chop any body parts off with it) but if your only doing 3 or 2 x 2 then a sharp hand saw should be pretty easy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ismart120 Posted November 18, 2011 Report Share Posted November 18, 2011 Yeah, I'll try to get some photos of them once I've finished priming tonight. the aluminum ones I plan to use are still at the hardware store - I'll be putting them on after painting. Still umming about the wood for the floor, the sides will be out of laminated ply, its just reasonably expensive so I might look at going with mdf for a floor as I have quite a bit of sealer here. haven't got either yet, not sure if Bunnings will cut to size I mainly looked at what other people had done and looked over a few websites for ideas: two that I kinda used are http://www.austinglass.com.au/aquariums.html http://www.fishandtips.com/index.php Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunbird73 Posted February 3, 2012 Report Share Posted February 3, 2012 I have always found Bunnings good for cutting to size, never had a problem. Even if they do charge $1 per cut (never have been charged the full amount for my cuts tho) its still worth it if you don't have power tools. Their cuts are straighter than our circular saw & jigsaw so I still get them to cut mine. Just re-iterate that you can't cut it at home so they are extra careful with measuring etc. DH built a fish tank stand years ago from MDF, painted it all well. Then under the tank we used a sheet of vinyl to protect against dribbles. Used it for around 3yrs under the tank with no bubbling. So it can still work but you have to be careful. I don't think I would worry too much if it was just the floor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beets Posted March 3, 2012 Report Share Posted March 3, 2012 i am a builder and built my stand out of 18mm mdf and 25mm chipboard flooring for the base to sit on. (holds 900ltr tank fine) if u no of any houses being built in your area u should try asking the builder there as he might give u the materials for free as the lengths u require will be in the rubbish pile as they are often too small for us and i would make it for a box of beer if i was asked cos its that quick and easy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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