2x4 and plywood tank stand?

[pandafishowner]

ok, i changed my mind about a new tank stand again. i need something stable and closed in so my kids and cats can't get to anything. i drew out a really cheap plan of what i'm thinking. if anyone thinks it'll will or won't work, let me know and why. i'm hoping to get the supplies closer to my moving date of Dec 1st. i want the stand ready for when we move our tanks though.

anyway this is what i'm thinking of.

im hoping to make the stand 30 inches high. it'll have to be 30 inches wide by 12 inches because of my tank dimensions. i plan to have about a 2 inch space where i'll place plywood, and then some soft styrafoam for the tank to sit on. this way the bottom of the tank sits "inside" the extra space. i'll also add two 2x4 pieces around the 10inch marks along the length of the tank to add support where the plywood will sit on. in the middle of the stand, i'm going to put a plywood shelf held onto the 2x4s with braces. the sides and back of the stand will be covered with plywood. the front will have 2 pieces of plywood with door handles, hinged on the outer 2x4s that will close over the middle 2x4. i'm guessing i'll need about 30 feet of 2x4s (will probably buy more than that though).

anyway, the picture isn't the greatest but it gives you the general idea. let me know if it'll work. if something should be changed, etc. i just really am not going to go and spend money on another cheap wal-mart one.



http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y53/onebunnnywuv/tankstand.jpg

[Kabong]

I made the stand for my 50 basically the same and it turned out fine.
For best support you want your top horizontal 2x4's to be resting on top of your vertical ones.
http://members.shaw.ca/kabong/cab1.jpg

http://members.shaw.ca/kabong/PPs07.jpg

[pandafishowner]

ok, that sounds good. i could do that. but i really want the edges of the tank to have something blocking it. so maybe i'd make the stand a bit wider so i could frame the plywood with 2x4s? i don't want my tank to just sit on top of plywood. i want it to sit inside a frame. :)

[Kabong]

Just build it flat top like mine.
Then add some molding around the front and side's to get the lip look you want.

[Cazoom]

Funny i thought the same about having an edge....
when a 50 gal is full it weighs over 400 lbs... it aint gonna slip off..!!!
i don't put lips or edges on my stands anymore unless i'm trying to hide the plastic tank moulding..

[Johnny Reefer]

Funny i thought the same about having an edge....
when a 50 gal is full it weighs over 400 lbs... it aint gonna slip off..!!!
i don't put lips or edges on my stands anymore unless i'm trying to hide the plastic tank moulding..
I don't know. When I first read the first post I took it to mean that the desire is to conceal the styrofoam.....not keep the tank from falling off. Maybe not.

Cheers,

[pandafishowner]

i want the edge because i hate the black base of the tank showing. plus yes i do want to cover the styrafoam and plywood from sight. :) i'm not so much concerned about the tank falling. it's gotta weigh a couple hundred pounds anyway, i just don't want stuff showing that'll make it look uglier. lol

[Neil]

put the 2x4's across the top, ontop of the vertical legs for added support. plans look good- with that middle brace/ leg in there i think that stand will have no problems holding the weight of 3 of those tanks

[kwirky]

being an artist, I have to say I like your drawings :)

no really. don't ask lol

[pandafishowner]

lol normally i paint or sketch. i drew that last night in maybe 5 mins. i redrew it. give me a few mins to re-scan it and i'll post the new pic :)

ok i have the new one scanned. i saw some base boards at home depot or rona that are rounded. i could even use those so it gives a finished touch to it instead of 2x4s. :)

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y53/onebunnnywuv/tankstand2.jpg

[Kabong]

Make sure to lap your corners like this to give the best support
http://members.shaw.ca/kabong/corner1.jpg

Goggle sketch up is your friend :biggrin:

[pandafishowner]

how much do you figure it would cost to get the supplies? the 2x4, nails/screws, plywood? the petsmart site has a stand i somewhat like, but it doesn't have a lip. it's got the exact same layout that i was thinking of though. i checked and it would be around $135 total for the petsmart stand. but after my ordeal with the wal-mart one, i'm wondering how good an idea the petsmart one is? it has a partition though...

[Johnny Reefer]

Not much. Not sure how much wood you'll need. I leave that to you to calculate. I'll be building a wood stand for a 180g soon 72" x 24" x 36"H.
1 - 2x6 $3.19.
5 - 2x4 $1.69 ea.
5 sheets 3/4" ply $25.47 ea.
More than enough screws. $7.64
More than enough nails. $3.07
Wood glue. $2.98.
Total estimated ~ $175.
Savings on a prebuilt stand and the satisfaction of DIY...Priceless.

I've bought the hardware and glue, but still have to get the wood.
(Disclaimer. Lumber prices , lumber being a commodity, fluctuate. Above quotes are Home Depot from a few days ago).

I don't imagine yours would come anywhere near $100 as you wouldn't need near the amount of plywood I'll be using.

HTH,

[fkshiu]

A cheapy stand from any establishment ending in "mart" won't have anywhere near the strength or quality of a good DIY stand. Forget about solid pine or even ply, those stands will be made of particle board which will literally melt if you get any water on them.

Such stands are built according to the bottom line: the absolute MINIMUM necessary to get the job done.

The easiest way to DIY a cosmetic lip is simply to ring the top of the stand with crown moulding.

[Kabong]

The cost will really be determined by the type of plywood you go for.
I can range in price from $26 as Mark said up to near $100 a sheet.
Remember though you don't need nice board for the back. Or the top in your case.
So you should be able to get away with one sheet and use a pressed wood for the top and back.

Of course another question is do you have the tools to do this?
Or are you gonna have to get them to do all the cutting at the store?

[phillybean]

Here's my DIY stand, for a 75 gallon. Might help you.
http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i158/phillybean/DSC00057.jpg
http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i158/phillybean/blackstand.jpg

I screwed and glued two 2x4's together for the 4 side posts, one side was cut short so the top would sit on the 2x4's. If the top is just screwed in, it will fail sooner of later. My only regret is that I made it too small. Not enough room side to side and I wanted the pipes to come down thru the stand, but not that can't happen. When making your stand, plan for years ahead, draining a tank to put it on a bigger stand is a big job/waste of time/money. Going for bigger sump, closed loop or Auto Top Off down the road might mean a bigger stand.

[Johnny Reefer]

Of course another question is do you have the tools to do this?
Or are you gonna have to get them to do all the cutting at the store?
I sussed this out too. First two cuts are free. $0.25 per thereafter.

Cheers,

[pandafishowner]

we have the tools to cut it ourselves :) i'd need approx 30 ft of 2x4's

[pandafishowner]

Make sure to lap your corners like this to give the best support
http://members.shaw.ca/kabong/corner1.jpg

Goggle sketch up is your friend :biggrin:

i think to get that to work best, i think i'll use 4x4's for the 4 corner posts. :) this way there's a shelf already, can put the plywood and styrafoam there and it's done. my husband says it'll probably work good that way too, and 4x4s are stronger. what do you think?

[pandafishowner]

I screwed and glued two 2x4's together for the 4 side posts, one side was cut short so the top would sit on the 2x4's. If the top is just screwed in, it will fail sooner of later. My only regret is that I made it too small. Not enough room side to side and I wanted the pipes to come down thru the stand, but not that can't happen. When making your stand, plan for years ahead, draining a tank to put it on a bigger stand is a big job/waste of time/money. Going for bigger sump, closed loop or Auto Top Off down the road might mean a bigger stand.

looks good. i'm not using mine for saltwater though. my 29g is strictly freshwater. :) i was planning to use PL400 glue and screwing it together. we used PL400 on our dresser, headboard, and other random wooden things and they're really strong, doesn't move at all, never fallen apart :D

[Kabong]

4x4's are generally more expensive then 2x4's so I'd stay away from them.
You can easily achieve the same results with 2x4's

Heres an actual model of the frame on my tank to give you and idea to work with.
http://members.shaw.ca/kabong/frame1.jpg


Oh and just in case you did'nt know 2x4's are actually 1.5 x 3.5.

[pandafishowner]

thanks. gives me a good idea on how stands are generally done. i'd want my corner posts face to face though to create the ledge i want for the plywood and styrafoam :) the rest looks pretty much the same

[pandafishowner]

ok well, i think i'm going to end up building the stand before we move and just tossing it in the furnace room til moving day. there's a ton of spare 2x4s upstairs. my husband says he'll start on it tonight. :) i'll take a pic and all when it's done and show you guys. i sure hope it works out the way i want it.

[calgarycal]

i think it will work out fine, i kinda know what im doing. lol.
I built the in wall stand a while back for adidas, if any of you remember almost a year ago... he has a 120G.

[Pan]

It's easier to move loose 2x4s then fully assembled stands :)

[pandafishowner]

yeah but the stand needs to be assembled before we move because we can't build it on our moving day because all the tools are where we're at ;)

[Pan]

that makes sense