DIY 40 Breeder Stand

[Willhersh34]

This is my first DIY stand build thread. I built this stand a couple years ago and am finally getting around to writing it up.

Some background first. At the beginning of the pandemic my company sent us all home and I have been working remote since. As part of fitting out my office I decided to setup an unused 40 breeder I had laying around as a mixed reef. I have kept freshwater tanks and a FOWLR tank for years. I decided to do a reef to add to the, uhhhh, ambience in my office. Knowing I wanted a stand that was both functional and looked good I came to the conclusion DIY was my best bet.

I preface the remainder by saying I started with the idea I would save money. That is in fact untrue. I ended up spending about $150; I could have bought a prefab stand for somewhere in that price range so if you are looking to save money you probably can but don’t be disappointed if you don’t.

I also made some minor mistakes which I will point out as I post things. Nothing major and the finished product turned out both functional and I think looks pretty good for what I was trying to accomplish.

With that we begin

Materials list
2 x 4’s
1/4” birch sheeting
Trim/finish boards
Polyurethane black paint
Killz primer
Liquid nails
Wood and deck screws
Finish Nails
Cordless drill
Circular saw
Carpentry clamps
Level
Square

Immediately there are 2 minor mistakes. Firstly, I used construction grade 2 x 4’s. I recommend against this. Finish grade are much straighter. This did not cause any real issues for me but made it more difficult to gat the finish work square.

My second mistake here was using stainless steel wood screws. While they are perfectly fine from a strength and functionality standpoint I quickly realized after stripping the head on every third screw my mistake. Changing course to stainless steel deck screws fixed this.

I don’t have pictures of everything but I do have the frame boards.

I’m somewhat of a planner for this kind of project so I laid the frames out prior to construction

I next secured the frames. This is straight forward although besides the screws I put a thin strip of Liquid nails. A completely unnecessary step but since my wife was concerned with strength I added that step. Happy wife happy life.

I decided to counter sink the screws for a cleaner finish. Also, prior to securing your corners ensure you square them up as much as possible. You will thank yourself later.

Next attach your supports. I used a single support in each corner then added an L brace outside to distribute the weight.

Single corner supports

Added cross bracers

All pieces are once again secured with deck screws and liquid nails.

I next added the L braces to each corner

And added cross braces to the floor.

I ensured everything was level at this point

And cross braces to the top and installed the floor

Note the cross braces above the floor. My original plan was to install recessed panels on the sides. I quickly decided to just “skin” the sides. Point being those cross braces are completely unnecessary.

I next skinned the sides. Cut and attach the birch pieces using liquid nails and finish nails.

I next applied Killz to the inside of the stand. There are 2 reasons for this. First, using the polyurethane base will help with moisture wrecking the stand. Second, the bright white helps tremendously with seeing things when you’re working inside it.


Note that I applied Killz prior to skinning the front. I did this to ease the painting process and to not get splatter/runoff/drips onto the front skin.

Attach the skin to the front, again using liquid nails and finish nails

I clamped the skin to allow the liquid nails to dry. I likely don’t need the finish nails but again, to appease my lovely wife, I added them to ensure a secure fit.

Finished stand prior to painting.

Next I included my wife by having her paint. She’s better at it than I am. I don’t have pictures of this step but it’s painting. We used a flat black polyurethane based spray paint from Krylon. I’m sure there are better alternatives but the key take away here is to use something non-toxic that will stand up to moisture and salt creep.

Finally, the finished product, in the office with the tank, sump, and components installed.

You can see from the last photo I have since replaced the original sump.

I will point out one last “mistake”. The stand is longer front to back than I’d like. Originally I intended to install a flat top. I decided against this, a result of using construction grade lumber. That lumber caused slightly unsquare finishes and while I had options to correct that, the tank sits level on the stand without the top. This in no way impacts function or detracts from the aesthetics so I rolled with it.

Some take always for the next build.
As noted, finish grade lumber. I’ll pay more but not enough to offset the issues the lower quality stuff causes.

As this stand will support the weight of a smart car I would eliminate some bracing. This thing is waaaaaaay overbuilt.

I would consider a more “screwless” design instead using biscuit joins and liquid nails. I have to explore this idea more and I‘m not sure I have the skills to pull it off but the idea intrigues me.

Install LED lights around the top of the interior. Not needed for any practical reason but would help with sight inside the cabinet and just looks cool

I would resurrect recessed side panels. Again, no functional reason, they just look cool.

This is a very basic design from a somewhat unhandy IT nerd. If I can build so can you!

Happy DIYing and reefing!!!

 

[Eagle_Steve]

Awesome write up.

 

[PotatoPig]

Hey! I recently made a similar stand also (also first time trying this) - looks nice!

For the screws - using torx wood screws works nicely IME, as they have a smooth portion at the end that causes the screws clamp the pieces together and relieves some external clamping requirements during the build. Obviously not useful to your build here as it’s done… but as a future item.

Do you plan on putting a front on, or are you going for an open front?

 

[Willhersh34]

Hey! I recently made a similar stand also (also first time trying this) - looks nice!

For the screws - using torx wood screws works nicely IME, as they have a smooth portion at the end that causes the screws clamp the pieces together and relieves some external clamping requirements during the build. Obviously not useful to your build here as it’s done… but as a future item.

Do you plan on putting a front on, or are you going for an open front?

Originally I was going to add some of those chic barn style dorrs. Now that I have it in with the open front I can see what's going on and plan to leave it that way.

I'm going to use this same build for a stand in my living room which will get doors as that's in a high traffic area and I'm sure the wife would want to NOT see the gear/sump. Lol.

 

[PotatoPig]

Originally I was going to add some of those chic barn style dorrs. Now that I have it in with the open front I can see what's going on and plan to leave it that way.

I'm going to use this same build for a stand in my living room which will get doors as that's in a high traffic area and I'm sure the wife would want to NOT see the gear/sump. Lol.

For the next one - do you mean with the X wood on the front?

If you want to save some work you can get one of those finished panels (similar to what you’ve used on the sides of your current one) and then glue 1/4” hobby boards to the front of it to get the trim. Sand and paint and you’re there.

Then attach a small light gauge clip to the top of the inside frame, a small light gauge plate to the top of the door, and stick a magnet to the back of the clip and you have an instant pop-off panel.

/apologies if this is something you’re already familiar with and have sorted already…

 

[Willhersh34]

For the next one - do you mean with the X wood on the front?

If you want to save some work you can get one of those finished panels (similar to what you’ve used on the sides of your current one) and then glue 1/4” hobby boards to the front of it to get the trim. Sand and paint and you’re there.

Then attach a small light gauge clip to the top of the inside frame, a small light gauge plate to the top of the door, and stick a magnet to the back of the clip and you have an instant pop-off panel.

/apologies if this is something you’re already familiar with and have sorted already…

I haven't done it in practice yet but am definitely considering that approach. The new stand project won't kick off until March at the earliest. I live in Wisconsin and don't have a proper workshop so all my stuff has to get done outside. Obviously that ain't happening in the winter. Lol.

 

[cdbias]

This is my first DIY stand build thread. I built this stand a couple years ago and am finally getting around to writing it up.

Some background first. At the beginning of the pandemic my company sent us all home and I have been working remote since. As part of fitting out my office I decided to setup an unused 40 breeder I had laying around as a mixed reef. I have kept freshwater tanks and a FOWLR tank for years. I decided to do a reef to add to the, uhhhh, ambience in my office. Knowing I wanted a stand that was both functional and looked good I came to the conclusion DIY was my best bet.

I preface the remainder by saying I started with the idea I would save money. That is in fact untrue. I ended up spending about $150; I could have bought a prefab stand for somewhere in that price range so if you are looking to save money you probably can but don’t be disappointed if you don’t.

I also made some minor mistakes which I will point out as I post things. Nothing major and the finished product turned out both functional and I think looks pretty good for what I was trying to accomplish.

With that we begin

Materials list
2 x 4’s
1/4” birch sheeting
Trim/finish boards
Polyurethane black paint
Killz primer
Liquid nails
Wood and deck screws
Finish Nails
Cordless drill
Circular saw
Carpentry clamps
Level
Square

Immediately there are 2 minor mistakes. Firstly, I used construction grade 2 x 4’s. I recommend against this. Finish grade are much straighter. This did not cause any real issues for me but made it more difficult to gat the finish work square.

My second mistake here was using stainless steel wood screws. While they are perfectly fine from a strength and functionality standpoint I quickly realized after stripping the head on every third screw my mistake. Changing course to stainless steel deck screws fixed this.

I don’t have pictures of everything but I do have the frame boards.

I’m somewhat of a planner for this kind of project so I laid the frames out prior to construction

I next secured the frames. This is straight forward although besides the screws I put a thin strip of Liquid nails. A completely unnecessary step but since my wife was concerned with strength I added that step. Happy wife happy life.

I decided to counter sink the screws for a cleaner finish. Also, prior to securing your corners ensure you square them up as much as possible. You will thank yourself later.

Next attach your supports. I used a single support in each corner then added an L brace outside to distribute the weight.

Single corner supports

Added cross bracers

All pieces are once again secured with deck screws and liquid nails.

I next added the L braces to each corner

And added cross braces to the floor.

I ensured everything was level at this point

And cross braces to the top and installed the floor

Note the cross braces above the floor. My original plan was to install recessed panels on the sides. I quickly decided to just “skin” the sides. Point being those cross braces are completely unnecessary.

I next skinned the sides. Cut and attach the birch pieces using liquid nails and finish nails.

I next applied Killz to the inside of the stand. There are 2 reasons for this. First, using the polyurethane base will help with moisture wrecking the stand. Second, the bright white helps tremendously with seeing things when you’re working inside it.


Note that I applied Killz prior to skinning the front. I did this to ease the painting process and to not get splatter/runoff/drips onto the front skin.

Attach the skin to the front, again using liquid nails and finish nails

I clamped the skin to allow the liquid nails to dry. I likely don’t need the finish nails but again, to appease my lovely wife, I added them to ensure a secure fit.

Finished stand prior to painting.

Next I included my wife by having her paint. She’s better at it than I am. I don’t have pictures of this step but it’s painting. We used a flat black polyurethane based spray paint from Krylon. I’m sure there are better alternatives but the key take away here is to use something non-toxic that will stand up to moisture and salt creep.

Finally, the finished product, in the office with the tank, sump, and components installed.

You can see from the last photo I have since replaced the original sump.

I will point out one last “mistake”. The stand is longer front to back than I’d like. Originally I intended to install a flat top. I decided against this, a result of using construction grade lumber. That lumber caused slightly unsquare finishes and while I had options to correct that, the tank sits level on the stand without the top. This in no way impacts function or detracts from the aesthetics so I rolled with it.

Some take always for the next build.
As noted, finish grade lumber. I’ll pay more but not enough to offset the issues the lower quality stuff causes.

As this stand will support the weight of a smart car I would eliminate some bracing. This thing is waaaaaaay overbuilt.

I would consider a more “screwless” design instead using biscuit joins and liquid nails. I have to explore this idea more and I‘m not sure I have the skills to pull it off but the idea intrigues me.

Install LED lights around the top of the interior. Not needed for any practical reason but would help with sight inside the cabinet and just looks cool

I would resurrect recessed side panels. Again, no functional reason, they just look cool.

This is a very basic design from a somewhat unhandy IT nerd. If I can build so can you!

Happy DIYing and reefing!!!

A 3/4” plywood box can support almost any tank up to about 6’ with zero sag. You really don’t need a single 2x4. that stand is ridiculously overbuilt.

 

[Willhersh34]

A 3/4” plywood box can support almost any tank up to about 6’ with zero sag. You really don’t need a single 2x4. that stand is ridiculously overbuilt.

Yep, that was one of those things I "learned" after the fact. Part of it was keeping the wife happy as she was concerned about the weight/strength. No way I will build a stand like this next time around.

 

[dmb5245]

I like the idea of painting the inside with white killz. I think I'm going to steal that!

And I hear you on the junk 2x4s. For little projects where the price difference doesn't matter much, 2x6s tend to be much better quality.