Home-mde stands

[Ptolemy]

Anyone here make their own tank stands, for what size, and w it cheapr than buying one? You expieriences please.



















Claudius,

[DIYMatt]

I have made several stands. They can be cheaper or more costly than buying prebuilt depending on what you want to do. But, if you value your time, you have to factor in that as a cost also. Most of the stands I have made were for cost saving reasons, and I think some of the less expensive stands in stores were kind of flimsy, I don't trust 1/2 inch unfinshed particle board to carry 800 lbs if it gets wet. Most the stands I have made are basically square boxes with two doors made of MDF, then I got creative with the finishes, kind of "trading spaces" style. But, I always seal them inside and out. The stand under my 75g cost me about $40 including hardware and finish plus time. I built a birch plywood one for a friend that was more elaborate for about $100 including hardware and looks good to me. But, I like more clean contemporary looking furniture. If you get into solid wood stands, lots of detailed trim, and elaborate looking doors it could cost a lot more than buying prebuilt.

What are you thinking about making and what tools/experience do you have? Maybe I can offer more advice.

[elgecko]

I built my own stand for a 40 gallon breeder tank. I used 2X3 for the frame and verneer oak plywood for the skin. You can see it here:

http://www.geocities.com/elgecko1989/community.html

http://www.geocities.com/elgecko1989/Woodworking.html

[beviking]

I've made a couple. I liked this one:

http://community.webshots.com/user/beviking

I made it a bit overkill and would us thinner plywood next time.
I did it DIY for the same reason of particle board getting wet and fear it would collapse.
Like DIYMatt said, you can do a lot of things and be as cheap or expensive as you'd like. If the stand is 4' or under, one sheet of 1/2" plywood (for the skin) is around $30 (US) and looks very nice when stained and finished.