Aquarium Stand?

Tom Pritchard

Member
Messages
22
Location
Rochester, New York
Hi all!

Just wondering if anyone has a good plan for a simple and quick aquarium stand? My son is buying a 29 gallon high tank (29H I think it's called), and wants something that we can do before he goes home after Christmas break:eek: . Do you know of any websites I could use? Thanks in advance for any help you can lend!
 
Don, thanks for the reply. My son and I went through the majority of sites listed in your search, however we are still looking for a simple 29H stand. The ones listed didn't always have very detailed plans. The search continues....
 
I have never seen any detailed plans for a good stand*. Best bet is find something you like and alter the dimension to suit. There are really only two critical factors in a stand.
  • The top must be flat! (Unless you like water on the floor)
  • The stand can't rack or twist.

Other than those two there is not much else to worry about.

* Good meaning not built from 2x4's to support the weight :rolleyes:
 
I have never seen any detailed plans for a good stand*. Best bet is find something you like and alter the dimension to suit. There are really only two critical factors in a stand.
  • The top must be flat! (Unless you like water on the floor)
  • The stand can't rack or twist.

Other than those two there is not much else to worry about.

* Good meaning not built from 2x4's to support the weight :rolleyes:

Thanks Jeff, but what do you mean by "Good meaning not built from 2x4's to support the weight."? Almost all the plans I've seen so far list 2x4's as the main ingredient for the grid that supports the top and bottom (like joists under a floor), then it gives various methods of enclosing the 2x4 frame. Do you mean I should go heavier (4x4's)?:huh: Thanks.
 
Not a plan but this linky has a few pics of the stand I made for my 75g tank. It is made with 3/4" material, frame and panel. That will be plenty strong for your tank size.

jy_Fishtank3.jpg
 
Sorry Tom, I just get so annoyed at the 2x4's. I should have explained, they are WAY overkill! Frame and panel (Like Jims), 1/2 plywood box, etc are strong enough to support a car. So don't stress over that part. Just build a good rigid box and you will be fine. As long as it doesn't rack, that is the only real concern. Any movement and it could fail. Compress failure from the weight of the tank is not an issue. Look at any commercial stand and you will see than are very light weight construction. Never seen a 2x in one. :)

I have plans for a 120 gallon that will be open on 3 sides as a room divider. The stand has to look good as it is focal point. It will most likely be frame and panel construction. Haven't really sat down to design it. But IT WILL NOT have a 2x4 frame, that I am sure of.
 
So Jeff...how do you feel about using 2x4s for the frame? [ducks and runs...] :rofl:

Tom, are you looking for something that looks nice, or something quick and rugged for a college dorm room?
 
So Jeff...how do you feel about using 2x4s for the frame? [ducks and runs...] :rofl:

Tom, are you looking for something that looks nice, or something quick and rugged for a college dorm room?

Been there and done that :thumb:

Like Jeff and others are saying, if you build it out of 1/2" plywood and have a solid top, bottom sides and back, with something like a face frame on the front, just to make the doors easier to hang, and to cover the edges of the plywood, you will be plenty strong. If you are REALLY concerned, (after all, 29 gallons of water would make a mess:rolleyes:) then put a center panel in side the is basically a third side, but in the middle, that way you could put shelves on one side and a large open space on the other.

I think you will get the best support for the unit if you build it so the sides of the tank sit almost directly above the sides of the cabinet, but it can also be a bit wider and you can put an edging on it to cover up the bottom corner of the tank.

Good luck, take pics, we will be waiting to see what you come up with.

Cheers!
 
more tank suggestions

28 gallon tank will weigh in at...
.280 pounds of water, gravel or whatever other substrate, and the aquarium itself...
so about 400 pounds:eek:

Oh and if it falls over you will have about 13mm of water covering the entire floor of a 10' x 10' room...thats if the room doesn't leak (and it will):(

I have built a few myself (from crude to pretty) and here are a few extra suggestions.

A basic box like Stuart is suggesting will work great...it will give you some storage space underneath. You can also build a matching cover for the top if you have the time.

Note that Jim's 75 gallon tank stand sits directly on the floor...just think what that whole unit must weigh? Don't put legs under it...that way the weight is distributed over the entire area not just 4 small points.

And I left a space out of the back at the height of the wall sockets...often you locate the tank infront of a wall socket so you can hide all the wires in the bottom box. And once you set it in place it is very hard (and risky) to move if it is full of water. So that way if you have to place the stand in front of a socket ( or telephone or cable outlet) you can still access the socket.

Good luck:thumb:
 
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Tom, let me add my little bit of experience to this as well. I have built two aquarium stands, one for my own family and one for a customer. Ours was a wee little thing knocked together very quickly when the girls came home with goldfish won at a carnival. I made it from oak veneered 3/4" MDF with solid oak edge banding. It had an inset door, and a flat top with just a little bit of a rim to keep the aquarium from sliding around. It was butt joined with biscuits, and was nothing more than a simple box to elevate the tank to vewing height and store supplies.

The second one was a little more elaborate, and I never got pictures of it before I delivered it. It was made from wormy maple and 3/4" birch veneer ply. It was for a salt water 75 gal tank. It had raised panel doors and was pretty much a simple box with raised panel doors. It was glued and screwed using Kreg pocket screws. I splurged and used stainless steel screws since it was a salt water tank.

To reinforce what Jeff wrote, you do not need post and beam style construction with 2x4 lumber. My tank is in storage, but it saw lots of service in its day. The other tank is going strong in place for a year now with no problems. A properly constructed tank with square joints and solid joinery (like pocket screws) is perfectly capable of holding a tank full of water. Square and level is essential, so if the floor where it is going is not level, you need to plan for levelers in your construction.

I hope this helps you out some.
 
Well I went with my son today and bought a 4x8 sheet of 3/4" maple/birch plywood, and some nice figured 3 1/2" wide by 3/4" thick maple for the trimwood at Lowe's. I'm going to use an Anelin dye for the first time on this project, and probably a superblonde shellac over the top of that. I was a little concerned with water on the shellac, but my son assured me that there won't be much of that:rolleyes: ! I am going to try and use pocket screws where possible. Tomorrow I'm going to try and sketch something up a little more concrete, and then get started. I'll be back for more help on this one, I'm sure!

My thanks to all who took the time to reply:thumb: !
 
I have never built a pretty stand. The one I did with wood (not pretty) was with 2x4s and, for a tank of 30 gal. or larger, I wouldn't use anything less. I know, you said, "except for racking". Keep in mind, in a home, unexpected things can happen. Grandchildren playing, a careless housekeeper, drunk friend, etc. Others here have experience with aquarium stands as well and don't agree with me. That's OK. But, personally, I would never build, or buy, a pretty wooden aquarium stand. I have had aquariums for fifty years. You always contend with water problems. The water can come from just sloshing when cleaning, big fish splashing, plain old creep, the occasional leak, condensation, whatever. Water happens and nice wood things can get damaged. My preference has always been steel stands. Not the prettiest but the most practical.
 
When you make it, make sure it is a little deeper. I was told it should be at least 14" deep to help keep it from being top heavy. Good luck with it and take plenty of pics.
 
Update on aquarium stand!

Hi all! Bet you thought I had been shipped to Siberia, huh? Well, we've been pretty busy since the first of the year, and I'm just getting around to putting the stand together. OK, the material is 3/4" maple/birch plywood, and I decided to go with pocket hole joinery as someone here recommended. It will also be 14" deep at the base for stability, which someone else here recommended. I have the base assembled now, and hope to get the shelves and crossbracing done this weekend. I'm going to trim the stand with curly maple, and then use an aniline dye from Lee Valley to stain it. I'm still up in the air about the final sealer, although I'm leaning towards a water base poly. I would like to go with shellac, but I'm concerned about water drops. BTW, the top shelf that the tank will be set on is 3/4" melamine board. Thanks for looking!
 

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Looking good Tom :D
I would go with the Poly too, you know it's going to get water on it at some point.

If 4x2s are overkill then I best not show you any of my stands with the 6x2s or 8x2s. :rofl:

Seriously using some solid (but cheap) structural components on the INSIDE of a tank stand doesn't mean it has to be ugly. You can clad the strong frame you have built with whatever fancy wood or construction you prefer. Mine are usually clad with cypress or pine 4x1s with T&G profile, but thats because I have solid timber, and would have to BUY plywood. I realise that ply is a better option structurally and cost wise for most people though.

Over-engineered? Possibly...
Going to fall apart? Not is this lifetime ;)

Cheers

Ian
 
I'm probably not adding anything of importance but here I go. I have a commercially made aquarium stand and hood made of 3/4" pine with poly finish( 75gal.). Very nice looking, like furniture. You don't need 2/4s. You want something that won't sag. A 1/6 on edge won't sag. Also my stand has doors and drawers. What they did was build dividers in at two diff. directions that go from bottom to top. This ilemanates ANY sag or racking.

On another note; I saw an article in an aquarium mag. The man bought a wooden commode on sale at a clearance price and beefed it up to make a stand.
 
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