Aquarium Stand - question

[Roger Los]

I have told my wife (possibly when drunk) that I would build her an aquarium stand, and now it's coming back to haunt me. :eek:

It's a 40-gallon tank that will weigh somewhere around 300-400 lbs when full.

My initial sketches are of a stand 15" deep by 36" wide by 30" tall, with 3 x 3 uprights in the corners, 3/4 edge-banded plywood for the top, the same for a bottom shelf, and both of those supported with 1.5 x 3.5 stringers complete with diagonal braces in all corners to keep it all square. There will in addition be sides and a back, the sides consisting of 3/4 ply to support an adjustable shelf.

Now, my question. I'm in between shops at the moment and have a guided saw, router, etc. but will essentially be building this "on site." As such, mortise and tenon will be a pain in the kiester. Would either biscuit joinery or pocket screws provide enough strength for the corner post to stringer joints?

I hope some of the above is decipherable. :rolleyes:

[Jack Wood]

You can count at least 10lbs to the gallon for water and then the gravel filters etc. could easily push your weight to 500lbs:eek: So building a stand is one of your problems but what comes to my mind is what is the stand and tank going to be sitting on? A slab floor will be good, but a floor over a crawl space might need to be bulked up some. As to the joinery I would pocket screw the stew out of it with water proof glue to boot on every connecting surface. I had a 55 gal tank crack on me and it was not a pretty sight at all, if the tank shifts at all once full, it could spell disaster. Good luck!:)

[Doug Shepard]

With all that weight I personally think I'd want some help from a wood joint as well as the pocket screws. Could you make a template jig and notch out a pocket for the stringers with the router (maybe 1 to 1.5" long) into the posts. Then another template to round over the stringer corners so they'd fit into the pocket ?? Then add screws as well ?? Just one thought.

[John Hemenway]

You might be over-building just a little. :)

I have two comerical build stands for 60G. tanks. Butt joints, particle board, 3/4 in. thick.

Since you have a router, dado for bottom shelf and top (depending on design), glue w/ waterproof glue like Titebond III. Back can be made up of 2 or three ply pieces. Use the 3/4" here. This will keep stand from racking. Leave gaps so you can get wires/hoses from bottom to the back of the tank.

You didn't mention face frame. If there is one you can make the top rail 'substantial' (4 "?) and use a ledge on the backside of it to support top.

Paint the interior gloss white, your wife will really appreciate it! The interior becomes a black hole without it. Another nice touch for the custom stand is the shelf covered in 'high pressure laminate' (aka, Formica). Seal the intersection of shelf and side so water can't get to the joint.

I don't think Whidbey Is. is earthquake prone, but bracing the stand to the wall gives lots of shear strength.

[Jim Young]

Here is one I made for my 75g tank. It's made of 3/4" cherry and the joinery is made with dowels. This was "very" early in my woodworking hobby so dowels were the first thing I could do. I would feel very comfortable doing it with biscuits now.

http://www.simoli.net/images/Woodworking/Projects/OddsEnds/jy_Fishtank3.jpg

Here are some more pics and a short write up.
http://www.simoli.net/pages%20woodworking/Projects/Mics%20projects/fishtank.htm

[Ian Abraham]

I'm with John on this one, you dont need fancy joinery for a fish tank stand, you need lots of 4x2s and plywood ;)

You do not want there to be any chance the top could sag, that will crack the tank.

I would go for 6 or 8 uprights, 4x2 or 3x3 etc. 4x2 pine is cheap and plenty strong enough as long as it's braced correctly. For bracing use the plywood sides and back, screwed and glued to the uprights. Now a 4x2 frame for the top and bottom, also screwed and glued to the ply. The top will just rest on top of the uprights, but is held in place by the ply sides. A few pocket screws and diagonal bracing wont hurt, but the ply will be the main bracing. So long as your ply & 4x2 box cant fold up you will be OK, and it wont because the ply acts as diagonal bracing.

Now do a fancy frame and doors for the front, and put some matching solid trim around the side panels to hide the screws, finish of choice is some sort of Poly as it's going to get splased with water at some stage.

Think, inside is built strong, like house construction, outside is finsihed with nice ply, trim and finish, like furniture.

P.S. my old 38" and 48" tanks never cracked, although the 48" stand we cheated and it had a steel frame inside. But that's just because Dad was a better welder than carpenter and it was his carpet it was sitting on :D

Cheers

Ian

[Bob Aquino]

For a 40 gallon tank, you dont need anything along the lines of 2x4 for construction, a plywood box made of 3/4" should be fine to support the weight. I recently built a stand for a 90 that is built using just plywood and it does fine for the weight. Here is a link to an online stand calculator: http://www.idahoreefs.org/Tank/BuildStand_2.asp

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2005-11/1100992/newstand1.JPG' width=432 height=576 >

[Mac McAtee]

Wood in the compression mode will stand a tremendous amount of weight. You could build a stand out of 3/8" plywood like the one Bob has posted above, and it would handle all the weight you could put in a 40 gallon tank and more. Once you make the corners the thing is like a tank. (Sherman not glass.)

[Ian Abraham]

The guys are right, a stand just made from ply should be fine, most of the commercial ones are just MDF.
But I tend to err on the heavier side when building things. 2x4's are cheap, and wont be visible, so throw some in for good measure ;) Use the 2x4s to create a solid join between your ply sides. No way they are going to fail then.

Over-engineered, maybe... going to fall down - not in this lifetime :D

Ian

[Jeffrey Makiel]

Bob...Nice reef tank. I take note of your Percula Clown and Yellow Tang!

Mac...I have a 150 gallon tank that is built into a wall. I used standard 2x4 framing material with plywood cross bracing. I think the cross bracing is very important, especially when cleaning the aquarium when water (and me) are moving and sloshing sideways.

It is very, very important that the top of your stand be level and supportive of the full area of the tank's footprint. If it is not level, undo stress is put on the tank's walls and will result in premature leakage a few years down the road. Poor support is something I have experience with! :( My first 150 gal tank did not have cross supports by the mfr along the top, and the silicone that glues the glass together finally gave out.

Also, if your decide to make a canopy top for it. Account for slight bowing of the glass when filled. Also, account for high humidity conditions.

cheers, Jeff :)

[Byron Trantham]

I had two 125 gal tanks whose stands were made from 3/4" pine! A pine top and bottom and pine verticals. It stood the pressure for over seven years (I sold them)! The back was pretty much open with only a couple verticals. The front had the same verticals but the spaces were filled in with doors. The inside seams were connected with 1x2 material screwed and glued.

[John Shuk]

The pocket screws will do great. Most stands sold retail are pretty much slapped together but they do just fine.

[Scott Fernald]

I built the stand for my 180 gallon tank out of 4 2x4 half-lapped box frames tied together with 4 6ft 2x4 stringers, again half-lapped together. Thats the static load bearing portion (as long as its a glass tank) around the perimeter. Plywood in the base and on the back to prevent any twisting. Been in service for 8 years and survived a move no problem.

I clad it with 1x4 pine (to mimic basement furniture) but that is just decorative...

This is way overbuilt for the load it takes (the empty tank is almost 400 lbs.) so using a frame that large for a 40 gal. is going to be overkill.

[Bill Grumbine]

Roger, I built an aquarium stand for one of SWMBO's coworkers. It sits under a 75 gallon saltwater tank. I used 3/4" ply and solid wood throughout, pocket screwed and glued. I do not know how much weight the tank is with all its water, rocks, sand, and fish, but I got on the stand to see if it would hold me (400 lbs) and it held me with no problem. It was also much stronger than the store bought stand they originally bought.

The test is, it has been in service for a year now, with no problems. It sits in a relatively new house, split level, on a plain old non extra support floor.

Bill

[Roger Los]

Wonderful information--thanks, gentlemen! The tank is acrylic, so it weighs about 45 lbs by itself, but the water and other goodies will push it past 400. Apparently with acrylic it's important to support the entire underside evenly, but I was planning on doing so in any case.

I think I will revise my design a bit, maybe I'll post it here if it's at all readable.

[Mike Goetzke]

I built a stand for a corned bowed tank. I used 3/4" ply and 3/4" oak which as mentioned above is plenty of support. A couple of other things to look for. Make sure that not only the tank but the floor are level. Make sure the top/platform for the tank is flat and supports the tanks frame fully. I built mine with my boys and had lots of fun:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v212/mbg/Aquarium%20Stand/100_0001_1_1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v212/mbg/Aquarium%20Stand/100_0003_2_1.jpg

[Dave Fifield]

Some nice examples above! :)

I once skinned a very large metal frame tank stand (tank was 5' x 2' x 18" IIRC) with cherry veneered particle board (sides, doors, shelves, top - no back) for someone. It looked great and was incredibly strong and didn't cost much to do. No pic, sorry, this was way before digital cameras were invented.

[Bruce Page]

Roger, I think your basic design will be plenty strong, but I would add some support to the middle area.

Here's a couple of pics of my 110gal setup.

[Roger Los]

More nice examples, unfortunately I pointed my wife at this thread and now she has "expectations". :eek: :D

Another question: I was going to make this "legged" and I note every stand above has an entirely flat base. Is this purely preference or another thing I should consider? With 4 legs it would be about 100lbs/leg on the floor. This will be standing on a hardwood floor. I didn't think this was excessive, or is there something I'm missing (other than any sort of sense).

[Dev Emch]

Wood is great in compression and most likely will work. But I recall from my college days that dorm dressers make horrid tank stands. My dorm neigbor BORROWED a plate glass window from shopping mall construction project and built a 100 gallon tank out of it. He and his room mate were a bit over zealous in the brewskies dept when they borrowed that window. They cut the window up and glued it up with silicone rubber cement and banded the upper edge. Capacity was about 100 or gallons. They needed this for our dorm mascot... CLYDE. Clyde was a fat red and green pirranea fish from south america that would eat only live gold fish and dorm caffeteria liver. Go figure!

In time, the dresser began to buldge and spread apart. The mitre joints had moved about 1/8 inch apart along the top edge by the end of the school year. Its hard to say if this was caused by the weight or by slow leaks. But most folks were paying more attention to Clyde and making remarks about Clyde needing an orthadondist and braces.

[Bill Fields]

Roger--
15" X 36" = 540 Sq. Inches, So At 500#, That's Less Than 1# Per Square In.

3/4 Ply With 2x3 Or 2x4 Uprights Should Do The Trick.

(sorry About The Caps--keyboard Is Acting Up.)

Bill

[Chris Barton]

Water weighs just over 6 lbs/gal. 300lbs is a reasonable stress requirement. The vast majority of tanks made today come in at least 10% below their advertised cap.

[Norman Hitt]

Roger posted this, as we sure weren't getting much response to another Aquarium related post over on the Off Topic Page. The one I will build for my Computer Guru Friend is, (IIRC) a 135 gal tank. The tank is 72 1/2" x 23" x 18 1/2". The case, (sans top & bottom hardwood 1' x 3' caps) will be 72" x 23 1/2" x 40" tall, built with standard case construction of 3/4" ply for the ends and two center dividers, 3/4 " ply for the top and bottom with a 3/4" ply back(set in 1/4") in the center section to eliminate racking, and 1/4" ply back covering all three sections.

There will be a Red Oak face frame with 3/4" x 4" end stiles, 3/4" x 2" center stiles, with a 3/4" x 4" bottom rail and a 3/4" x 6" top rail. The back will also have a bottom and top rail of the same dimensions from poplar, and the inside of the Front Face Frame will be backed by poplar. I also plan to run a 3/4" x 4" poplar support lengthwise down the center at the top, cut into the two center dividers to give support under the plywood top. The two end sections will have doors, and the center section will be open at the front with adjustable shelves for pics, etc. There will be other bracing blocks at the joints (inside) as necessary, and molding trim around the top and bottom.

Does anyone see any problem with this design for this weight load, (estimated at around 1500#).

Thanks for your thoughts.

[Randy Meijer]

My modest store-bought stand for a 55 gal SW tank is a 3/4" plywood box(?). 2 sides, a top, bottom, open back and 2 big doors on the front. 2 stringers are 3/4" x4" plywood and the face frame is 3/4" x 3" plywood. The total weight of my tank is around 650 lbs. It has been in place for over 5 years and never had a problem. it really doesn't take much to hold up a moderately sized tank. The design you are considering should do just fine. As to the leg thing, my stand has four of those little adjustable screw-in legs with the plastic glides that you see on a lot of furniture. My tank is set up on carpet over a concrete slab; but if you want a stand with legs it will be plenty safe even on any sound wooden floor. Here is an interesting discussion of residential floor loading and dealing with aquariums: http://www.african-cichlid.com/Structure.htm

One final point: Fresh water water weighs about 8.3 lbs. per gallon......remember "..a pint is a pound.." and salt water a little more...about 8.5 lbs. per pound.

[John Hemenway]

Good thread, guys!

Norman -- sounds good. How is the top attached to the rails? If the Poplar forms a ledge for the top you have a very strong case there.

I'm a little unclear as to the case construction. Are there two dividers front to back at the doors? If so you don't need the "3/4" x 4" poplar support lengthwise down the center at the top". Having as much space as possible in the stand is a good thing. I'd do joists front to back at the two middle stiles. That should be plenty. Is the tank glass or Plexi? Glass only touches the base at it's perimeter so doesn't need much down the middle support.

Roger -- I don't think you will have any problems with legs. Could two Bill Grumbines stand close to each other in your house without breaking the floor? :) Your tank will be fine.

I had always heard plexi needed to be supported completly, then I noticed some of the tanks in my LSF fishroom. They have 50 G. tanks hanging 4 inches off the edge of stand! Been that way for years!!

[Norman Hitt]

[QUOTE=John Hemenway]Good thread, guys!

Norman -- sounds good. How is the top attached to the rails? If the Poplar forms a ledge for the top you have a very strong case there.

I'm a little unclear as to the case construction. Are there two dividers front to back at the doors? If so you don't need the "3/4" x 4" poplar support lengthwise down the center at the top". Having as much space as possible in the stand is a good thing. I'd do joists front to back at the two middle stiles. That should be plenty. Is the tank glass or Plexi? Glass only touches the base at it's perimeter so doesn't need much down the middle support.
QUOTE]

John, I "Think" he said the tank is Glass, (I haven't seen it, just got the dimensions from him). The case will have three compartments, and will have the 3/4" ply for both ends, AND for the two dividers, (that is where the center stiles will go to face the divider Ply, and to frame the door openings for the two end compartments. The center compartment will be open with adjustable shelves for displaying pics & other items. He wants the tank to set at the front of the case with about 5" space behind it to run the wires/hoses up from the Cabinet to the tank, and the longitudinal "Stringer" is for support of the top, BUT Mainly for antiracking. (He has some real active young boys that "Might" occasionally Crash into it);), so I want it Solid. the stringer won't be seen, as the bottom of it will still be higher inside the case than the 6" wide front frame. Oh yes, the poplar will form a ledge for the top at both the front and back of the case.

Thanks for your thoughts.

[Dan Stuewe]

I've been working on a stand myself. Count me in with the over-engineered group...

I've also got a crazy idea to make it mobile. My thought was to us a couple of A-fram trailer jacks through the 3x3 cross beams. Then using four 250 lb casters. The trailer jacks are to raise and lower the stand when my wife wants to re-arrange the living room. Now I'm not so sure since a question was raised if the tank seams can handle the sloshing of a partially filled tank.

BTW, this shows the support structure. I'm planning on covering everything with a face frame and three doors.

[John Hemenway]

Dan, does your living room have a floor drain? :)

It might actually work if it's plexi. Still, having the floor drain would be good backup.

[John Hemenway]

Norman, it does sound strong. Seems like the boys need some training. (taser? :) )Running into the stand would be the least of my worries. If it's a glass tank, I'd be real worried about them hitting it, causing a stress point and 'Surfs UP!'

I also have my doubts about displaying 'pics and ...'. Always seems like there is some water spilled on and around the stand. Ah well, to each his own...

Post some pics as you make it!

[Roger Los]

I hope to get started on this on Sunday. My biggest issue right now with my design is that none of the local lumber places here on the island stocks nominal 4 x 4 timber for the corners, so I will probably be making my own from mitered 2 x 4 lumber. I'm going to go with fir as it's one of my favorite woods and the local store had some nice pieces on hand. I'll try to post a sketch a bit later on for general humorous effect. ;)

[Roger Los]

Well, here's my not-so-detailed sketch. let me know what you think. This is unashamedly cribbed from the recent kitchen cabinet series in Workbench, which I thought was quite handsome and currently the front-runner for kitchen cabinet design in our new place.