big tank owners... hows this stand look?

[loaches r cool]

Ok, so I am finally getting somewhere with my glasscages 240g project. I have the frame of the stand built and in the house. I'm thinking it should be fine but wanted to see from anyone else who may have built stands for some larger tanks.
http://tristan.homelinux.net/fish/240g/stand1_400.JPG (http://tristan.homelinux.net/fish/240g/stand1_800.JPG)<click

It basically has 8 vertical colums supporting it, its hard to tell but they are actually 3 2x4's arranged into 4x6 colums (well the corners are a bit different but still 3 2x4's each). I'd say I built it to hold up a car but that would be marginal... so I hope it can hold up a truck ;)

Note that it isnt finished (its just the frame), will have pine tongue and groove around it as well as 3/4" mdf on top with some foam board on top that.

[IceH2O]

Looks pretty solid to me. I might be inclined to add support studs to the bottom same as you did with the top though.

Also don't know if you planned this or not but add plywood to cover the bottom supports so you have a shelf bottom.

edit: Noticed the support beams are more towards the middle. I built mine at 16 inches on center just as a wall would be built which gives me 3 equal cabinets. Not saying it won't work but there is a lot of open space without support.

[legendaryfrog]

Looks ready to hold 3000 pounds to me.

[Rbishop]

Looks fine.

[kj5kb]

Looks great...Hope it's going in the basement! I was iffy about a 30G on a dresser in my 60-yr-old house.

Darn ham guys...always over-engineerieng the heck outa everything :)
outa-region ham guys are the worst...

Don KJ5KB, Cleveland OH

[180gz71]

Looks solid. When I built mine I used 2x6, but Im paranoid. I had me and my brother jumping up and down on it, and it didnt budge or wiggle the slightest. ANyways, I would use it.

[littledick]

looks great to me i use 2by4 on my 110 gal tank also should hold that truck up.

[Plecosterone]

Will definately hold. Will probably hold 6 times the weight you are going to put on it. Well done. Now just skin it birdseye maple or something.

[loaches r cool]

edit: Noticed the support beams are more towards the middle. I built mine at 16 inches on center just as a wall would be built which gives me 3 equal cabinets. Not saying it won't work but there is a lot of open space without support.

Yeah, if I made them on 16" centers I'd probably not have tripled them up. But that wouldnt have left enough room to get my equipment in. I wanted to make sure I had enough room especially for my sump tank to go in and out if need be. Which I actually did goof in the design so I'm shopping for a new sump tank seing how I'm not taking that back apart. :wall: Just in what you see there I used 250 2.5" screws and still have to screw a few pieces in still since I ran out.

kj5kb - nice to see another ham radio op here... not that I have been on the radio in forever. And I'm also an Ohioan, just never changed my call sign. Anyhow yeah its going in the basement (family room). But I do plan on putting a 150G upstairs! But it'll be sitting over the main beam and supported with steel jacks (or colums or whatever the official name is). Thats the next project.

[loaches r cool]

Ok here is a quick shot of the main supports FWIW.

http://tristan.homelinux.net/fish/240g/joinery1_400.JPG (http://tristan.homelinux.net/fish/240g/joinery1_800.JPG)
Originally I just doubled up the 2x4 supports to make them roughly 4x4's. I thought this would suffice but I just didnt think it was overbuilt enough... and I had the great sturdy 2x6 across the bottom and 2x8 across the top with nothing between. So I cut out and extra 2x4 to fit in there tight and now theres 3 2x4's for every column:
http://tristan.homelinux.net/fish/240g/joinery2_400.JPG (http://tristan.homelinux.net/fish/240g/joinery2_800.JPG)
(note that they arent screwed in yet in the picture)

[AnDr3w]

Id add a 2x4 to the bottom frame, add some sandeply with doors and call it done.

[unbeatablec]

Id add a 2x4 to the bottom frame, add some sandeply with doors and call it done.
Nah,i think it looks great, just cover it with a large piece of cloth and call it done.

[denial727]

looks beefy, I like it. It would be nice if it had some ply inside on the bottom for a shelf. I have my can in mine and it seems I'm always drippin a little water when doing maintenance.

[PDX-PLT]

Originally I just doubled up the 2x4 supports to make them roughly 4x4's. I thought this would suffice but I just didnt think it was overbuilt enough... and I had the great sturdy 2x6 across the bottom and 2x8 across the top with nothing between. So I cut out and extra 2x4 to fit in there tight and now theres 3 2x4's for every column...
I'm glad you did that. When you're dealing with loads like this, depending on fasteners to handle weights in shear is a bad idea. A 16p framing nail is rated for only about 100 lbs. or so in shear; it looks like you used screws, and most wood screws aren't even rated at all, since their narrow root diameters aren't very strong, and the thread forming process makes them brittle (drywall screws are the weakest, and essentially have no shear strength).

I noticed you used framing lumber, was it kiln-dried? Alot of framing lumber is sold wet, which will shrink, twist, and crack as it dries.

The one thing I've always been concerned about with aquarium stands is that the manufacturers say put them on a level, flat support. But how "flat" is "flat"? Within a millimeter, or what? For example, the 2x6 in the front is going to deflect under load. You can calculate how much this is. Does glasscages consider that amount acceptable? It would be nice if they'd give more guidance; compared to commercially-available stands in this size, this looks fine, but it would be nice to know a bit more.

[loaches r cool]

PDX, I used #10 wood screws instead of drywall, I'm sure not a whole lot stronger but has to be somewhat. But even before I put the extra pieces in there it was designed with solid support top to bottom on all 8 vertical columns, the screws shouldnt not be bearing any weight for the most part. Since I added the support between the 2x6 and 2x8 on all the columns they two now bear weight, and the screws should just be holding it together not really under much force. I'm not sure how 'the 2x6 in front will deflect under load', if I am missing something there let me know. And technically glasscages requires the use of commercially built stands so I am sure they would not deem any diy stand as acceptable for liability reasons. I of course will be using foam bewteen the tank and stand since its a glass bottom tank, and they do require the use of 3/4" foam if memory serves.

For the base - as I have said its not finished, I'll probably lay a few 2x4's across the bottom and cover with plywood or mdf and toying with the idea of epoxy coating the whole bottom and up the sides to the top of the 2x6's to seal the base in case I get leakage... in which case the bottom of the stand would hold 10-20 gallons.

[jm1212]

the stand looks very well built and sturdy, and adding that 2x4 in the second pic would help even more.

[Plecosterone]

The stand is not going to collapse the way it is built even with many times the load that is going to be on it. "FLAT AND LEVEL" is all that is really needed to be worried about and 1/2" white styrofoam between the tank and stand will make up any difference that might occur from warping.

[Rbishop]

You don't have anything to worry about. The front 2x6 will not deflect with the supports you have there.