My new 75G DIY stand

[baotchi]

Hi there

As I told you a couple weeks ago, MTS got me, and I got myself a 75G to be a cichlid tank. I am in the stand building process, and as it goes fine, I wanted to show you what it looks like so far.

This is the tank itself that I got for cheap at Big Al's :

Now the stand... As a full 75G tank with rocks and sand and everything will weight around 1000 pounds, I built the frame with 2x4s with 2x2s, it means that all the legs have 3 square inches floor contact.

Here it is :

You can't see very well, because I forgot to take pics of the steps before... but this is what the frame is like. Nevermind the pieces of wood laying on it, its a canopy I was building for a 10g.

I installed a bottom shelf inside, to store my fish things and the 2 Fluval 304. Then I covered the frame with some pine wood. I don't know how it's called, but it's used to cover walls in houses I think. It's rather thin, and each pieces slips into the other, there is a rail on one side and a bump on the other side... I know you see what I'm talking about. Best feature this pine wood has, it's cheap. It took me 2 packs to do the entire stand, and it cost 6$ a pack at Home Depot. And it looks really good once stained and varnished. So here it is, laying on it's back on the floor :

So this is what's done so far. Tell me what you think about it, and if you have any sugestion or comment don't hesitate.

Thanks guys

Simon

 

[bigfoot150]

Well I can't say that its the prettiest stand I have ever seen thus far or even the most sturdy IMO with just a buncha screws holding things together, but if it does the job more power to ya.

 

[Jaws My Shark]

Homemade Stand

Looks pretty cool to me.

With all the effort you're putting into it, it would probably be cheaper to just buy a stand. But it's very nice. And I know building something yourself gives you a real satisfaction. (I built my own electric guitar in wood shop, that was good enough to play when I was in a ska band that performed paying gigs!)

Looking good so far. Hope everything works out.

 

[baotchi]

It definately would have been cheaper buying one already done. Like Jaws says, I find satisfaction and entertainment in doing it myself. Also, it will be as I want it to be. The size will be perfect for me, it will fit perfect in the place I'll put it, and the color will match the rest of my furniture in my office. Those are the reasons I'm building it myself.

What it looks now is far from what it'll be like once finished. I am also building a color matched custom canopy once I'm done with the stand.

I'll keep you guys informed!

Simon

 

[Kyle]

I think it looks good so far. Once you fill in the screw holes, put doors on, and stain it, I think it will look really good.

 

[baotchi]

no need to fill any screw hole... none of this will be visible, it's all gonna be covered with some pine wood

you'll see when it's done...


Simon

 

[TurbineSurgeon]

I don't want to rain on your parade, but I see a potential problem with this stand. Since all the weight of the tank is on the bottom rim, the weight of the tank (with all its contents) is being supported solely by the 20 or so screws that tie the inner 5 joists to the outer frame. Screws are not designed for sheer strength.

 

[fishdude07]

i personally like it alot. i think itll look great once stained. good idea with the shelf...itd be nice to have a shelf in my 55 gallon tank stand if i could somehow put one in without taking the tank off the top of the stand. does anyone know if theres any way to install a shelf inside the tank stand without taking the tank off the top? anyways, it looks like itd be pretty sturdy to me...but then again i dont know much about that kinda stuff so i would have no idea if it was sturdy or not.

 

[baotchi]

the bottom rim of the tank is the exact size of the bottom frame, which is a little smaller than the top frame. the joist on the top are laid directly on the 6 legs, and not supported by screws. hard to explain or describe... tell me if I aint clear. at least I know what you mean and no it aint like that.

Simon

 

[fishdude07]

yeah i edited my last post...i kinda got confused. before i edited the post, i only saw the first pics so i thought it was only on those four legs and not on a bottom base or something if you know what im talkin about. i personally would rather have the top the same size as the bottom but i think itll look great when stained

 

[TurbineSurgeon]

the joist on the top are laid directly on the 6 legs, and not supported by screws.

That's exactly what I am talking about. The outer frame that wraps around the joists are what will support the tank. It looks like the only thing keeping that outer frame connected to the joists are screws.

 

[1979camaro]

i agree with TS here...i would go look at the stands at the lfs and try to understand the physics of the thing...you are going to be super pissed when it falls down

 

[TurbineSurgeon]

I did a quick edit of one of your pics to illustrate what I am talking about:

 

[bigfoot150]

Well to go along with what Turbine has said.... all that wood is pine. Pine is not known for its strength.

 

[baotchi]

Okay there seems to be a little confusion here now, so I took some better pics to clarify things a little.

I took 2 pics, 1 from the front and 1 fron the side. The red outline is where the tank will sit. Like I said, the top shelf is wider than the tanks footprint, so the tank sits directly in the middle, directly on the legs.

These pics will explain better than my words :

Hope it helps

Bigfoot : the pine wood holds nothing in this stand, it's there for beauty, to look good only.

Simon

 

[bigfoot150]

Bigfoot : the pine wood holds nothing in this stand, it's there for beauty, to look good only.

All of those 2x4s that you are using are made of pine. The legs also look like they are 2x4s cut in half and in this case they would be pine as well. Don't get me wrong here, your overall design is pretty good, its just that with as soft as pine is and the fact that screws are holding things together.... well it just leaves a bad taste in my mouth as to what could happen. It wouldn't of been a bad idea to use wood glue to help hold things together along with the screws.

Now I am sure you have done the numbers but lets not forget that once this thing is filled with water, gravel, etc it will weigh close to 800lbs(1 gallon of water weights 8.31 lbs).

 

[baotchi]

the legs are not 2x4's cut in half, they are a full 2x4, that is hidden under the joists, (6 total) reinforced with 2x2's, so it's like 6 legs that are a 2x4 AND a 2x2 each. The top joists, which will hold the weight, are not secured by screws (yes they are but it does not hole the weight) they are laid on top of the legs. Like a T, yeah its like a T. I now you dont see what I mean, cause you would not think 1 second that it can be weak... I'll try to take another picture tonight, cause I would really like you to understand my design.

Simon

 

[bigfoot150]

Yes I do see how it is in T form. I supose it will work. Only time will tell I guess.

 

[Purple]

If you put a single piece hardwood base on top of the stand that's exactly the size of the bottom of the tank you will get an even weight spread across the supports - that should alleviate some of what TS is getting at.

Watch out for pine - that stuff bends and moves about, so a hardwood top would help a lot.

Make sure there are no knots in the wood where it's fixed - knots shear too.

Are you confident about sideways torque capability ? - that's a lot of weight on there, so don't think only in vertical terms.

 

[baotchi]

right now, I could not be more confident about it... The top will be 1 or 2 solid 3/4 inch pine piece.