Stand Questions (30 gallon breeder)

C

CharleyDog

AC Members
Feb 7, 2011
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Edmonton, Alberta
I am looking at upgrading my tank from a 29 gallon to a 30 gallon breeder.

I have an existing bench / stand, that I was thinking of modifying for the new tank. It is 36" long by 18" wide and made from 1/2 inch plywood. I was thinking of adding a 2x4 frame inside the plywood shell, however, I'm concerned that the plastic rim of the tank will actually be slightly larger than the existing top of the tank. If I add an additional sheet of 1 inch plywood that is 37" x 19" on the top of the existing plywood shell plus the new interior frame, will that be sufficient to properly support the tank?

Or will I be better off to take apart the existing bench, reuse what plywood I can, and build a 2 x4 frame with the proper dimensions?

Thanks!
 
I think you would be better off building a stand. you can make a decent stand from about 3 1/2 2x4's.
I just made one today for a 40 breeder. Did it in just about 3hrs by myself. the 40 breeder is 36"x18" i made the stand 30" high.

You need 2x4 lumber cut as follows
4 1'7" (19") for sides top and bottom (green)
4 2'10" (34") for front and back top bottom (grey)
4 2"6" (30") for long legs (yellow)
4 1'11" (23") for short legs (red)
Here is drawing of what it looks like.

Screenshot-40breed-stand.skp - SketchUp.png
 
Oh I understand. But IMO if I was going to upgrade, I'd get at least 10 gallons bigger
 
koipoloi said:
I think you would be better off building a stand. you can make a decent stand from about 3 1/2 2x4's.
I just made one today for a 40 breeder. Did it in just about 3hrs by myself. the 40 breeder is 36"x18" i made the stand 30" high.

You need 2x4 lumber cut as follows
4 1'7" (19") for sides top and bottom (green)
4 2'10" (34") for front and back top bottom (grey)
4 2"6" (30") for long legs (yellow)
4 1'11" (23") for short legs (red)
Here is drawing of what it looks like.
Click to expand...

The end grain of the sides should be hidden by the front and rear 2 x's. Also you never really want the frame to sit fully on the floor. Give it some legs and it will be easier to level.

To the OP. look at this thread.
http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?246677-Stand-questions
 
TabisFish said:
Oh I understand. But IMO if I was going to upgrade, I'd get at least 10 gallons bigger
Click to expand...

The capacity for fish is primarily determined by the surface area of the tank("footprint"). A 29 gallon tank has a "footprint" of 30x12(360), a 30 breeder - 36x18 (648). So in theory you should be able to keep 80% more fish even though the tank is only a gallon bigger. The 30 breeder would need more frequent water changes with that stocking, because nitrates(and other bad things) will build up faster.

Also if you go to racking tanks, the 30 breeder is a great tank to have because you won't have to build the racks as high.
 
I was looking at upsizing the tank because of the larger foot print, more so than the volume of water. I like planted tanks, so the different shape of the 30 gallon breeder would let me play around with the aquascape a bit more than the 29 gallon does.

The tank is supposed to be a display tank in the living area of my house, so I want it to look nice.

If I decide to go with the 30 gallon breeder tank, I will just start the stand from scratch. Thank you for the links on stand building.

L
 
GraphicGr8s said:
The end grain of the sides should be hidden by the front and rear 2 x's. Also you never really want the frame to sit fully on the floor. Give it some legs and it will be easier to level.
]
Click to expand...
Not to derail the op's thread but I have to disagree a bit.
You will have the butt ends showing to the sides or the front regardless of how you do it and if you skin it with plywood i can't see how it makes a difference. As for the frame setting fully on the floor most commercial stands are made with a skirt of lumber at the bottom. with a little care in building it there is no problems with leveling it. Seems to me it makes it much less tippy than having individual legs to the floor. the yellow pieces also go from floor to top.
 
Thanks Koi!

I hope you don't mind but I used your design and modified the measurements for a 70 Gal aquarium!

70gal52x22measure.jpg
 
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