Plant 125 Gal
- Thread starter achubbard
- Start date
I'm hoping to go get the wood for the stand today. I need to have tank out of my dad's garage before the end of the week.
Where would I look for a center brace? Could I build one?
I also need to re-silicone it. The bottom silicone is starting to peel.
Where would I look for a center brace? Could I build one?
I also need to re-silicone it. The bottom silicone is starting to peel.
Here are some pics thus far.
I'm basically building my "Stand" to the specs of a heavy duty work bench as it's going in my basement so I'm not super concerned about looks. I had a stand built similar to this for an old 75 I had years ago.
I still need to pickup some thick plywood/counter top material for the top of the stand. I didn't pick any up today because of the snow and the lack of a cap/tonneau cover on my truck.
The stand is going to be held together with 1/2" lag bolts through the 2x6's into and through the 4x4's. The bottom half of my stand will be a shelf for my filter(s), etc. I will be putting a set of doors or something along those lines on the front to hide it all.
I'm basically building my "Stand" to the specs of a heavy duty work bench as it's going in my basement so I'm not super concerned about looks. I had a stand built similar to this for an old 75 I had years ago.
I still need to pickup some thick plywood/counter top material for the top of the stand. I didn't pick any up today because of the snow and the lack of a cap/tonneau cover on my truck.
The stand is going to be held together with 1/2" lag bolts through the 2x6's into and through the 4x4's. The bottom half of my stand will be a shelf for my filter(s), etc. I will be putting a set of doors or something along those lines on the front to hide it all.
Hey Guys,
Made some more progress on the stand. Almost everything is cut. I realized after I put away the saw that I forgot to cut 21" 2x4's for the bottom shelf/brace. Front section is framed up and tacked together with screws. Need to drill and put in my lag bolts.
Hopefully tomorrow I will have it all together. I still need to go and pick up a sheet of plywood for the top. The bottom will get Polly'ed and bolted down then the top will be polly'ed. I need to do similar to the bottom half to make a shelf.
The sides are going to get some sort of paneling/plywood on them and the front is going to get doors (All to keep my cats out from underneath, plus adding sides will strengthen it.) The back section will remain open as it will be up against the concrete foundation of my parent's basement. I think I am going to pick up another 2x4 and bolt that in the middle of the back section so I have something to mount my power strips/timer etc on.
Once the stand is secure, the re-gluing of the tank can occur. The goal is to have the tank in place by the end of this week. I'm off of school and work, so theoretically, it shouldn't be a problem :dance2:
Anyways, here are some pics of the progress.
Me measuring the legs. I got (3) legs out of (1) 4x4. (Tip: Although I'm sure I'm the only one who didn't know, a 4x4 is actually more like a 3.5x3.5)
This is an upside down shot. It's showing the (2) 21" center braces. Each 2x6 is 1 and 1/2" thick, the stand is 24" wide. There is a 2x6 on each side, thus needing to knock off 3". That is how I arrived at the 21" center braces.
Another upside down shot. Nothing is bolted together here.
Assembling the front section. For the moment, to get everything aligned properly, I drilled pilot holes into the 2x6's and used 2" (I think) drywall screws. Tomorrow I will use my 1/2" drill bit to drill holes through the 2x6's into the 4x4's for my lag bolts.
Front section screwed together.
Made some more progress on the stand. Almost everything is cut. I realized after I put away the saw that I forgot to cut 21" 2x4's for the bottom shelf/brace. Front section is framed up and tacked together with screws. Need to drill and put in my lag bolts.
Hopefully tomorrow I will have it all together. I still need to go and pick up a sheet of plywood for the top. The bottom will get Polly'ed and bolted down then the top will be polly'ed. I need to do similar to the bottom half to make a shelf.
The sides are going to get some sort of paneling/plywood on them and the front is going to get doors (All to keep my cats out from underneath, plus adding sides will strengthen it.) The back section will remain open as it will be up against the concrete foundation of my parent's basement. I think I am going to pick up another 2x4 and bolt that in the middle of the back section so I have something to mount my power strips/timer etc on.
Once the stand is secure, the re-gluing of the tank can occur. The goal is to have the tank in place by the end of this week. I'm off of school and work, so theoretically, it shouldn't be a problem :dance2:
Anyways, here are some pics of the progress.
Me measuring the legs. I got (3) legs out of (1) 4x4. (Tip: Although I'm sure I'm the only one who didn't know, a 4x4 is actually more like a 3.5x3.5)
This is an upside down shot. It's showing the (2) 21" center braces. Each 2x6 is 1 and 1/2" thick, the stand is 24" wide. There is a 2x6 on each side, thus needing to knock off 3". That is how I arrived at the 21" center braces.
Another upside down shot. Nothing is bolted together here.
Assembling the front section. For the moment, to get everything aligned properly, I drilled pilot holes into the 2x6's and used 2" (I think) drywall screws. Tomorrow I will use my 1/2" drill bit to drill holes through the 2x6's into the 4x4's for my lag bolts.
Front section screwed together.
Last edited:
Thanks for the tip 
I'm probably going to have to shim one side of the stand when it gets to the basement as the floor down there isn't perfectly level according to my dad.
That being said, so far, it hasn't been too bad of a project considering I've never done something like this before.
I'm probably going to have to shim one side of the stand when it gets to the basement as the floor down there isn't perfectly level according to my dad.
That being said, so far, it hasn't been too bad of a project considering I've never done something like this before.
its not to hard to build. harder to make it look nice lol.
As for a center brace, there are two types.
one is built into the plastic frame, the other usually is a piece of glass glued to the two sides.
My 130 has the glass center brace, while the 75 has the plastic frame.
Mike
As for a center brace, there are two types.
one is built into the plastic frame, the other usually is a piece of glass glued to the two sides.
My 130 has the glass center brace, while the 75 has the plastic frame.
Mike
