Well, as I said, I'm buidin' all my aquarium stands. I've regrouped and resketched my layout based on the 29, 2 20 longs and multiple 10s that I found broken when I started gettin' stuff together. The ultimate goal is to get a couple of more large tanks in place of those that were broken. Maximize the number of tanks I have, ya know.

One Idea I want to pursue is building a stand for the 180 gallon and 225 gallon 6' tanks that will allow a 4' 75 gallon or 55 gallon tank to be put beneath them.

At this point I'm bouncin' between 2x8s, 2x10s and 4x6s for construction of the frame. So what are some thoughts on this?

WYite

Oh, BTW, ya only have MTS if ya admit it's MTS.

Are you just trying to conserve space or did you have some plan for a sump or something in the 55/75?

If I were building a stand like that I'd use 4x6s or bricks. Though if memory serves bricks wouldn't really fit the decor of your fishy room.

I wouldn't do it though either which way. I keep the smallest tanks up top, and the larger tanks lower. If a shelf fails and drops a tank the smaller ones will do less damage than if I had a 75 on the top. If that stand fails whatever is in that 55 is splat.

What would look nice (and what I want to do at some point) is to get two 65g tanks, (36x18 by however tall) and build up a stand over the 6 foot tank.

I would go with 2x4's doubled up and 2x8's fo the supports. I too woud consider the smaller tanks on the top...That way the structure wont be top heavy and you wont have to use as much lumber.

I would go with cinder blocks, pressure treated 2x4s (the longer the better) and plywood. As S_F mentioned above, the blocks may not fit your decor, but you could always paint them and the wood as well.

You will sacrifice some space with the blocks but, with their wide foot print, you will be gaining stability. With the added strength of this set up you could place the blocks closer together in some areas along the shelf which, should make it a lot safer to put the larger tanks on the second tier. You could even stack the blocks higher on the ends and have a few of your 10 gallon tanks, resting safely on the third tier. Plus, if you should ever feel the need to rearrange the room, deconstructing and reconstructing the shelves would be a breeze.

Ivan, I gotta tell ya bro.... Even if you decided to scatter the tanks around on the floor, I'd still be jealous!

What ever you decide to do, best of luck with you new aquatic sanctuary. Ed

For my 135g plywood tank I'm buliding (taking my sweet a$$ time buliding) I bulit a a stand out of 4x4x12's and 3/8" exterior grade plywood. I made 6 legs with the 4x4's and made a shelf and a top out of the plywood. my suggestion would for you to run cross braces at the ends and the center to support the weight of the tanks.

here's a quick side shot of the stand. I need to pick up my fish room and take a pic of the front.

Good DIY thread by A-T's resident carpenter for exactly what you are doing.

http://aquatic-terrors.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=15140&st=0

I have personally viewed his work and it is far stronger than most wood stands out there. Chance of failure is minute. I wouldn't build my next stand any other way.

Keeper

Thanks, Dragonkeeper. Looked at the thread and like what he had done so far. Like to see some pictures of the finished stand.



Well, the above was the construction I was contemplating, all 4x6s, with a 3/4" plywood top. I'm a little confused with the suggestions to use doubled up 2x4s, I'm not convinced they'd be any stronger across the 4 ' span than a 2x8 or 4x6. I was trying to decide if 2x8s along the outside edge of 2x8 legs would be better than the 4x6s resting on top of 4x6 legs, now I'm wonderin what I'm missin'.



WYite

Truthfully you could easily build this stand with 2x4's and be plenty strong. I think that you are wasting you cash with 2x8's. If you are worried about the 4ft span then take 2 2x4 and sandwich them together with a 4" sheet of plywood.

Just a thought
Keeper

Yes. If you do it correctly 2x4 are for sure enough . Ive made alot of wood stands in my days and only used 2x4 and 1/2 inch cdx plywood. The biggest tank i made this way was for a 270 gallon on top and a 180 gallon on bottom. so i know it will hold.

I'm sure that the 2x4s are good enough, but I like the extra girth of the 4x4s.

There's a lumber yard by me that gets 4x4s of "deck grade" cedar, that now and again come in that they can't use for decks. They have knots, or a little warping or whatever. The edges are all sanded down just a bit, so they're not as sharp as the PT 4x4s and they're gorgeous. I grab them cheap every time they have any rejects in, but if I were building out stands from scratch that would be what I'd use.

It takes stain like a champ too.

Sounds like a plan!

Not a fan of the 4x4 lumber. It seems to twist and warp way to much.

Prefer the 2 2x4's or 2x6's with ply inbetween if I need that kind of power.

Keeper

Your design will work fine WYite. Either 4x6 lumber or 2x8 will work fine. You'd probably be fine with 2x6 using that same layout but I usually like to go with the beefier lumber too.

DK, you'd gag on what the local lumber places by me try to pass off as 2x4s then. We have the exact opposite problem here.