DIY stand

[John Holbrook]

I'm noticing now that 2 of my larger 2x4s going vertical are slightly twisted so the top won't fit smoothly. Is it wise to replace these boards or will it be okay once everything is screwed in together??

That really depends on how trusted they are. If it just has a little Tristan that will straightened out when you put the top on then you will be ok, if you want build them up like what you did to your center, if I remember right, you have a couple there. Make sure it will still be square. If you want to feel more at ease, there is a formula you can look up that tells you how to figure out how many psi a 2x4 can withstand, I forget where I found it

 

[Sobo's Reef]

I just went to lowes and bought more lumber.. I wanna make the stand wider anyways so I just got replacement pieces.. we'll see what happens. I plan to have this completely framed together today then do the plywood on Monday or Tuesday

 

[John Holbrook]

I just went to lowes and bought more lumber.. I wanna make the stand wider anyways so I just got replacement pieces.. we'll see what happens. I plan to have this completely framed together today then do the plywood on Monday or Tuesday

Ok, I'm still trying to find it. I used it once, and it seems like it was around 5,000 psi, but DO NOT quote me on that, I do know it was a lot of weight

 

[Sobo's Reef]

When it comes to plywood, obviously you wanna use 3/4" for the top surface but do you use the same for inside the stand? I'm trying to calculate how many sheets I'm gonna need. My plan was to do top and inside 3/4" and then the front and sides in 1/4"

 

[John Holbrook]

When it comes to plywood, obviously you wanna use 3/4" for the top surface but do you use the same for inside the stand? I'm trying to calculate how many sheets I'm gonna need. My plan was to do top and inside 3/4" and then the front and sides in 1/4"

Yes you can do that, when you do, seal the inside with at least a varnish, and you can calk the plywood in at the bottom to keep the water from going through to the floor. In case you spring a leak.

 

[Neil D Yanez]

So I'm gonna attempt to build my own stand but I've never done this before. Off the top of your head, what items should I be picking up? I have some tools at my house(drill, jigsaw, circular saw, screwdrivers, level, etc etc) but as far as glue, hardware and wood/finishes go, I'm unsure. Like I said, first time doing this so bare with me lol

If you're doing it yourself, go to the web for your design, use 2 by 4's. After you get your design down and measurement drawn up. Make sure that you use 3 2 by 4's for the legs of the aquarium. Take it to Lowe's, they will cut the wood to the length's that you want. Make sure to label the pieces of wood A,B,C,D etc that way when you get home it'll be easy to put together. Make sure that your design is big enough for whatever your placing under your tank, example aquarium pipes, sump, protein skimmer, height and width. Get a box of wood screws, some wood squares will help hold the corners together when screwing them together. Make sure to get the top piece and the bottom shelf piece.

 

[Velcro]

Here is the one I recently built. I used birch 3/4" plywood and no 2x4's.

That looks amazing. Do you know of any plans or videos on how to build an all plywood stand?

 

[Sobo's Reef]

Hey guys so as far as cutting out a spot for the overflow pipes, do you guys just cut out a big square or just do circles for the pipes?

 

[redfishbluefish]

Don't think small here.....you want a big enough opening to be able to undo the bulkheads while the tank is sitting above. So think big!

 

[John Holbrook]

Hey guys so as far as cutting out a spot for the overflow pipes, do you guys just cut out a big square or just do circles for the pipes?

I've done the hole saw cuts, but you have to be pretty precise with them go a couple sizes bigger then the pipe. I've also seen them with a square cut out just leave some over the frame. If you go that route you can always cut it a little bigger as you go

 

[Sobo's Reef]

Yeah I was thinking about just cutting out the big square that I drew up. Just so I do have enough room just in case anything happens

 

[FlyinBryan]

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[Idoc]

quick sketch of what I mean

I just built my stand similar to the layout you have drawn out...i used 1/2 plywood around the outside of my frame... and used 1/2" for the top... used 1/4" on the back. My build thread (in my signature) has pics throughout the build. I still need to put the doors on the stand! I built it deeper than the tank to give more room inside the stand to better accommodate a 40g breeder sump.

 

[flsalty]

Post #2 said to use deck screws. I am no expert but I believe the shear strength of a deck screw compared to a standard wood screw is different. Unless you have notched your main supports, I would never use a 'deck' screw to carry loads of weight.

Deck screws are wood screws. They are just coated differently.

If properly designed, the screws are not what is carrying the load. If you look at post #15, the purple boards are what is carrying the load.

 

[FlyinBryan]

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