DIY Stand Height?

[Lt4Mike]

I’ll be building an overkill 2x4 stand for my 55g tank. It will be viewed standing up, is there a maximum height I shouldn’t go over? Tank is 48 1/4” long, 20 3/4” tall and 12 3/4” wide.

 

[Crabs McJones]

I’ll be building an overkill 2x4 stand for my 55g tank. It will be viewed standing up, is there a maximum height I shouldn’t go over? Tank is 48 1/4” long, 20 3/4” tall and 12 3/4” wide.

Most common store bought stands have the height at 30 inches, but alot of diy reefers will make it 36 or even 38 inches tall, not sure if you can go taller. As long as the base of the stand is wide enough I'd imagine you could go taller. @jsker perhaps may know as he designs stands :D

 

[Lt4Mike]

Most common store bought stands have the height at 30 inches, but alot of diy reefers will make it 36 or even 38 inches tall, not sure if you can go taller. As long as the base of the stand is wide enough I'd imagine you could go taller. @jsker perhaps may know as he designs stands :D

Thanks for the reply crabs!

 

[Bayareareefer18]

I made mine 30" for my 75.

I defitnely wish I had gone taller now. Would makes things much easier for maintenance. Running a 40b sump and things are a bit tight

One thing I totally did not take into consideration is overall internal dimensions. Thought I would have lots of extra room but didn't take into account space loss due to the 2x4 framing

 

[chris85]

No higher than your armpit so you can reach the bottom!!

 

[Lt4Mike]

No higher than your armpit so you can reach the bottom!!

I thought about this but following that rule, I still have some more “arm” to spare lol. So I guess I can go alittle higher than that? My thing is stability and ease of viewing. Stability being number one with a 1 year old running around even though he is never unsupervised.

 

[George Lopez]

I made mine 34" because I have a 2" lip to hide my bottom trimand at 36" it matches my cabinet height.

Also take into account space you loose from the 2x4 and ply skinned inside the sump area and the height you loose off the top too my 34" height gives me about 25.5" of space if you take out the niches for the top supports and 29" including them but of course with supports in the way

 

[Greybeard]

My standard method of calculating stand height. Measure from your armpit to the floor, subtract tank height.

Taller, and you need a step stool to access the tank. Lower, and you're wasting valuable space under the stand.

Note, my latest tank does not follow this method. No equipment under the tank, didn't need the space, wanted it lower.

 

[Jakobe]

I usually go with 36" but if you want to go taller just make sure the stand is well built, and wider than your tank footprint. Its gonna be top heavy though. ;Nailbiting

 

[Lt4Mike]

I really want a tall tank for viewing pleasure but like I said not going to sacrifice stability. Think I’ll just go with the 36” tall base and mount it to wall for more tipping security. Thank you everyone for the advice. Will post pictures when I’m done and during if I remember.

 

[Jakobe]

you should post pictures! im building a stand today too, for a biocube. 36" tall

 

[Redleg]

If your going to attach it to the wall, I'd say 42". That is as long as you can reach inside. Also I would plan on running 4" or longer screws into the wall studs.

 

[zieg9479]

No higher than your armpit so you can reach the bottom!!

haha.
My current build, the stand + tank, comes up to my jaw (~5' 4"). Not that the convenience of armpit-height matters. I can't reach the bottom without bending down into the tank from a step stool.

to the OP, my stand height is a 34" plus 30" tank. After having a combined tank+stand height of 30"+21", I now love that I can stand next to my tank and look in with a perfectly straight back.
Also note that tank needn't be eye level because even standing straight, it is natural to tilt the head down. That plus standing 6-12" from the tank means you could get away with a tank+stand height 12" lower than your eyes.
Personal preferences, but just something to consider. For the most part I sacrificed convenient top-down viewing but that's why I have a shallow tank in the works :)

 

[jsker]

I thought about this but following that rule, I still have some more “arm” to spare lol. So I guess I can go alittle higher than that? My thing is stability and ease of viewing. Stability being number one with a 1 year old running around even though he is never unsupervised.

Can you screw the stand to the floor or wall, that would solve the stand for getting knock over with the tank.

 

[jsker]

If your going to attach it to the wall, I'd say 42". That is as long as you can reach inside. Also I would plan on running 4" or longer screws into the wall studs.

I like this answer:)

If you were to go this route, one could also screw block to the wall before scrucing the cabinet to the wall to give space behind it.;)

 

[Lt4Mike]

If your going to attach it to the wall, I'd say 42". That is as long as you can reach inside. Also I would plan on running 4" or longer screws into the wall studs.

I’ll see what I can do stud wise. House has metal studs. I would think some heavy duty drywall anchors should do alright? It’s just extra insurance.

 

[doughboy]

Use the Golden Ratio to calculate the stand height. That’s what Da Vinci used to make things look aesthetically pleasing.

So if your tank is 20.75” high, the stand must be 20.75 x 1.618 = 33.5375” high.

You can round it to 33, 33.5 or 34.

My tank is 18” tall so I made my stand 30” to follow the Golden Ratio.

 

[rossco]

I made the stand for my 210 gallon, (72 L x27 W x 24 H) 42 inches tall. I wanted it tall enough to view without bending over. I also put some drawers in it which take up about 8 inches. There is still plenty of height for my equipment underneath.

I have to use a small 3 step ladder to work in the tank. Including the canopy the whole setup is just shy of 7 feet tall.

Because my tank is 27 inches wide it is plenty stable with the stand being that tall.

 

[Lt4Mike]

I made the stand for my 210 gallon, (72 L x27 W x 24 H) 42 inches tall. I wanted it tall enough to view without bending over. I also put some drawers in it which take up about 8 inches. There is still plenty of height for my equipment underneath.

I have to use a small 3 step ladder to work in the tank. Including the canopy the whole setup is just shy of 7 feet tall.

Because my tank is 27 inches wide it is plenty stable with the stand being that tall.

Yeah I wish mine was wider. Long and skinny is what I’m working with lol

 

[Lt4Mike]

Is there a way to do a reliable cinder block stand for a 55 gallon?