Small, cheap, and "strong enough" stand for 7.5 gallon tank using 1"X2" lumber and a lot of glue. . .

[MoshJosh]

Have a small frag tank I want to make a small stand for. . . plan is to use 1"X2" lumber (think it's $2 a board right now), a single piece of plywood, and a lot of wood glue (maybe some dowels). I plan on "doubling up" all the lumber making the legs and supports all effectively 2"X2". This will allow me to make overlapping joints without making Dado cuts (as I don't have the tools or patience for that right now). . .

tank is 7.5 gallons and "sump" would probably be a 2.5gallon rimmed tank.

I am pretty confident that this would hold just fine as I have used 2"X2" lumber to hold more weight in the past. . .

 

[Dan_P]

Have a small frag tank I want to make a small stand for. . . plan is to use 1"X2" lumber (think it's $2 a board right now), a single piece of plywood, and a lot of wood glue (maybe some dowels). I plan on "doubling up" all the lumber making the legs and supports all effectively 2"X2". This will allow me to make overlapping joints without making Dado cuts (as I don't have the tools or patience for that right now). . .

tank is 7.5 gallons and "sump" would probably be a 2.5gallon rimmed tank.

I am pretty confident that this would hold just fine as I have used 2"X2" lumber to hold more weight in the past. . .

Are you sharing your innovation, looking for input, other?

 

[MoshJosh]

Are you sharing your innovation, looking for input, other?

I don't know if I would call it an innovation haha. Guess looking for input. Any alternatives that will be as cheap?

Also, this would be a more accurate side view, but note it is not to scale. . .

 

[Beau_B]

Why not all ply? I built this with a circular saw, pocket screws, and wood glue for a 16g tank… out of a single sheet of 3/4 plywood (sanded). No dimensional lumber at all:

 

[spsick]

My only input would be not to use glue unless you are planning on milking the lumber yourself. 1x2 are pretty crappy for dimensions and finish so you will not get good right glue joints.

 

[MoshJosh]

My only input would be not to use glue unless you are planning on milking the lumber yourself. 1x2 are pretty crappy for dimensions and finish so you will not get good right glue joints.

At first I was very confused haha but I think you meant milling? But no, I wont be doing the milling, so that is something to consider.

 

[spsick]

At first I was very confused haha but I think you meant milling? But no, I wont be doing the milling, so that is something to consider.

Oops yeah haha don’t try milking your wood!

 

[SteveMM62Reef]

I would make the top of the Cabinet Bigger than the Aquarium on all four sides. It will give you a place to set things down, and keep water from running down the sides of the stand. Just put multiple coats of Spar Varnish or Topside Paint on the top. I did this with my, 29 gallon Biocube Rescue, I actually wish I’d made the top bigger, but that’s the plywood, I had to work with.

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

Imo, no reason to use the dimensional lumber on this stand. An entire plywood case would be just fine.

Your original plan of laminating one by twos to create half laps is a good one but overkill.

Plywood when used correctly can be very sturdy.

 

[TangerineSpeedo]

I have been thinking on doing a 2020 2040 extruded stand. Not inexpensive, but not terrible either. Plus you just need a chop saw and an allen wrench

 

[MoshJosh]

A lot of great ideas! Was at Home Depot today, but the dimensional lumber they had was pretty expensive, don’t know if it was a different type of board, but it was looking like four dollars per board so I held off. . .

I did construct this abomination today:

Found this desk and piece of fiber board? For a grand total of five dollars. . . Don’t think I will be going with the stand as it kind of looks hideous ha ha but I had time to spare today and it was an interesting project

 

[spsick]

Imo, no reason to use the dimensional lumber on this stand. An entire plywood case would be just fine.

Your original plan of laminating one by twos to create half laps is a good one but overkill.

Plywood when used correctly can be very sturdy.

Quality post. And good plywood cut to size will usually square up better than framing lumber from the home center.

 

[xCry0x]

I have a 10g quarantine tank sitting on top of a plastic organizer lol.

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

Quality post. And good plywood cut to size will usually square up better than framing lumber from the home center.

Thank you.

It's all fun and games until you knock the table saw fence off 90 and cut Every piece before figuring it out .

 

[MoshJosh]

So after some tinkering, I don’t totally hate my desk stand ha ha I took a piece of plywood and made it the shape of the original top, to retain that desk look. Then with the leftover ply made a shelf for a sump or canister:

I still need to add a couple coats of poly on top, but I think it will work just fine and it isn’t totally hideous