DIY Stand

TheEngineer · Apr 3, 2018

siggy said:
Edit: but if I lived in Pennsylvania I think my Wife would insist we drive to the Hershey area and see what the amish folks have Good luck

Haha. I live in Amish country

Greybeard · Apr 3, 2018

siggy said:
If I built a stand for a cube, I would do a oversized cabinet too, but with a 10-12" side counter and offset the tank. I see a lot of cubes here with packed cabinets and it drives me nuts. I would use some type of solid surface top, ether granit or smoked glass. The carcass would be 3/4" plywood in oak, maple or cherry and I would use biscuits and pocket hole joinery and 1" by-pine or scrap-3/4" to reinforce where needed and probably order nice doors from lowes

Check out my old cube

24" x 24" tank, sitting on a 36" square stand. 3x3" solid poplar corners, 3/4" poplar ply, dado joinery, glued and clamped, in matte black. I had a daughter finish the 'shelf' around that system with a mosaic tile design. Stand could have doubled as a stool for an elephant.

TheEngineer · Apr 3, 2018

Greybeard said:
Check out my old cube 24" x 24" tank, sitting on a 36" square stand. 3x3" solid poplar corners, 3/4" poplar ply, dado joinery, glued and clamped, in matte black. I had a daughter finish the 'shelf' around that system with a mosaic tile design. Stand could have doubled as a stool for an elephant.

Nice!

My tank sits in a corner. I’m thinking about putting it somewhere else but that’s where it has been. I’m a stickler for symmetry so an offset counter wouldn’t work but a full border like that is what I’d like. Gives me a place to set something down.

Greybeard · Apr 3, 2018

TheEngineer said:
My tank sits in a corner. I’m thinking about putting it somewhere else but that’s where it has been. I’m a stickler for symmetry so an offset counter wouldn’t work but a full border like that is what I’d like. Gives me a place to set something down.

Nothing asymmetrical about a corner stand with a ledge on two sides...

I had a thread on RC at one time entitled 'A place to rest my beverage'

I got rid of that cube some time back, but my new peninsula has an even wider shelf around the perimeter.

siggy · Apr 3, 2018

Yes @Greybeard I have read your build and I envy your useable counter/bar space. The reason I would offset is to allow my wife to place some FISH (her definition of Reef) related decorea and soften the presence of the glass box in the room and......for me to use when needed

TheEngineer · Apr 3, 2018

Greybeard said:
Nothing asymmetrical about a corner stand with a ledge on two sides...

I had a thread on RC at one time entitled 'A place to rest my beverage' I got rid of that cube some time back, but my new peninsula has an even wider shelf arout the perimeter.

Absolutely right! I’m updating my drawing. I think I found a new issue though regarding my light mount... to be continued!

jsker · Apr 3, 2018

Great ideas here. I like the armpit mesure that @Greybeard uses. Built a few stands and did not ever think about this practice.

Greybeard · Apr 3, 2018

This is the first system I've ever suspended the lights from the ceiling on... and I really, really like it. Totally out of the way.

TheEngineer · Apr 3, 2018

Greybeard said:
This is the first system I've ever suspended the lights from the ceiling on... and I really, really like it. Totally out of the way.

Could be an option... I really like my light mount though.

Greybeard · Apr 3, 2018

siggy said:
Yes @Greybeard I have read your build and I envy your useable counter/bar space. The reason I would offset is to allow my wife to place some FISH (her definition of Reef) related decorea and soften the presence of the glass box in the room and......for me to use when needed

Yeah, I have a carved, painted (freshwater) angelfish, and two abstract metal 'fish' wall hangings as decor, both were my wife's donations to the cause. The coral and fish painted on the shelf, however, were my idea, even if not my artwork... I can't draw a straight line with a ruler, my daughter Kaitlyn is the artist, on both the new peninsula stand, and the mosaic tile on my old cube stand. My artistic additions were in the design of the system itself, and the 1" tall brass model of the antique diving helmet I keep on the shelf

Rakie · Apr 3, 2018

Nice looking build! Custom stands are where it's at, just like a custom sump in a lot of ways -- Perfectly tailored to YOUR tank/needs.

Greybeard · Apr 3, 2018

TheEngineer said:
Could be an option... I really like my light mount though.

Depends on the implementation... I had an arm mount on my cube that worked out very well. To hang a 48 x 24" T5 unit, without having some support on the viewable end of the peninsula, would have required a welded steel boom lag bolted to the wall

Ceiling mount solved the problem nicely. I actually positioned the aquarium with this in mind, aligning the ceterline with the edge of one of the box beams on my vaulted ceiling, specifically to be able to easily hang the light.

TheEngineer · Apr 3, 2018

Here is the concept drawing with the door design. I like it! Hope the wife does too.

What is nice about this in addition to the design is that it gives space for air to flow through the sump area and relieve some of the humidity.

Now here's the problem.... My light mount is designed to sit flush to the back of the tank and center my light over the tank. Best base is I can get it to be a few inches back from the center. That's gonna drive my OCD nuts!

View from the top. The light gray is the shelf, light blue is the tank, dark blue is the light, black is the light mount. The dark blue line in the white opening is the frame of the stand. The stuff in gray and red is my drain and overflow.

siggy · Apr 3, 2018

New 80/20 diy light bracket in the works
edit : I have been wanting to try this with the flat alum (not 4-side) and have a slim mount

jsker · Apr 3, 2018

TheEngineer said:
Here is the concept drawing with the door design. I like it! Hope the wife does too. What is nice about this in addition to the design is that it gives space for air to flow through the sump area and relieve some of the humidity.

Now here's the problem.... My light mount is designed to sit flush to the back of the tank and center my light over the tank. Best base is I can get it to be a few inches back from the center. That's gonna drive my OCD nuts!

View from the top. The light gray is the shelf, light blue is the tank, dark blue is the light, black is the light mount. The dark blue line in the white opening is the frame of the stand. The stuff in gray and red is my drain and overflow.

I like it, has air flow for the sump!!

jsker · Apr 3, 2018

siggy said:
New 80/20 diy light bracket in the works

80/20 is some cool stuff. I have seen some nice stands left open using 80/20

Greybeard · Apr 3, 2018

Widen the base a bit more, and put the attachment point on the inside of the frame

On my old cube, I had an external return. Mounted a bulkhead in the 'shelf' for the return to pass through, though it wasn't under water. Wonder if you could do the same... drill for a bulkhead, and ream out a bulkhead so that the mount pole would pass through it unobstructed, but tight enough to make it look right.

siggy · Apr 3, 2018

TheEngineer said:
Here is the concept drawing with the door design. I like it! Hope the wife does too. What is nice about this in addition to the design is that it gives space for air to flow through the sump area and relieve some of the humidity.

Now here's the problem.... My light mount is designed to sit flush to the back of the tank and center my light over the tank. Best base is I can get it to be a few inches back from the center. That's gonna drive my OCD nuts!

View from the top. The light gray is the shelf, light blue is the tank, dark blue is the light, black is the light mount. The dark blue line in the white opening is the frame of the stand. The stuff in gray and red is my drain and overflow.

You must be an Architectural Engineer

TheEngineer · Apr 3, 2018

Greybeard said:
Widen the base a bit more, and put the attachment point on the inside of the frame

On my old cube, I had an external return. Mounted a bulkhead in the 'shelf' for the return to pass through, though it wasn't under water. Wonder if you could do the same... drill for a bulkhead, and ream out a bulkhead so that the mount pole would pass through it unobstructed, but tight enough to make it look right.

Wider? I have it on the inside now and it will be off by about 3”. I guess that’s not terrible.