40 gallon tank stand

[spaulr]

After reading many of the posts on this site I finally decided to make my
own tank stand. I just finished the upper and lower frames today.

Needed

Kiln dried 2x4 (actually measure 1.75"x3.5" , go figure)
1 box 3" deck screws
Wood glue
12v drill

I'll put more posts up as I complete the stand.

 

[trido]

Looks like a good start.. I would highly recommend using some framing nails in all those joints to. Screws are great but dont have any shear strength. Meaning if you put sideaway force on them they will shear (break) off. Nails wont do that (as easily). I typically use screws and nails when i build custom shelving and such for customers. Nails for shear strenght and screw so things dont back off.. Good luck

 

[spaulr]

thanks trido88. I'll pick up some nails tomorrow. Do they make special nails that can withstand corrosion? The deck screws I got were coated with a brown substance....to prevent corrosion. Or should I stick with standard framing nails?

 

[trido]

Standard framing nails should be fine.. If your worried you can use galvanized nails. Id bet that you really arent going to be that sloppy when you are doing water changes. :lol: Well, Better go with the galvanized.

 

[spaulr]

Just finished putting the legs into the bottom portion of the frame. Somehow it appears to have become 1/8 - 1/4" unlevel corner to corner. I plan on putting 1/4" ply on the top for the tank to sit on and 1/4" ply on the bottom for sump/pumps etc. Is the wobble a show stopper? Can I do something to fix this? I measured the wood before and after the cuts and during assembly used a 90 triangle. I guess I'm a rookie when it comes to carpentry.[/code]

 

[trido]

No. the rack in the framing is normal. Most all framing wood has a twist and one or two cuts even a half a degree off will cause a 2x4 box to twist..
Try to jump on it. If that dont work. Rest assured that water is heavy. 7.8 pounds a gallon. I dont know how bigf your tank is busk at even 30 gallons equalling 240 pounds It should get rid of the twist.
Also, I would use 1/2 inch ply instead of 1/4. 1/4 is good for a skin but not for shear or support.

 

[spaulr]

Thanks. I was stressed about that. I'm building the stand for a 40 gallon tank. I checked the other portion of the frame (still not installed - see previous pic) and it appears to be pretty level. I'll assemble the rest tomorow, add the galvenized nails, and post another picture. Thanks for the input about the plywood. I'll use 1/2" on the top and 1/2" for the shelf which will be holding a 20 gallon sump.

Any recommendations on finishing? I'd prefer not to use lamenants and spend more time for all wood. So far I think everything has cost about $35 (if you don't count the new 12V dewalt drill ).

 

[trido]

Maybe oak or maple 1x4 and 1x6. Stain any color and varnish with a good polyurethane varnish.... Now Is the time for knucklehead to chime in :lol:

 

[Anonymous]

>...Now Is the time for knucklehead to chime in :lol:

I am here.... oh wait...

I use one inch red oak planks for my latest stand. See my thread for the pic in this forum. I stain it with MiniMax (stay away from the one-step stain-vanish junk) stain and vanish. If I have to redo it, I would use the honey oak stain and glossy vanish.

The plywood I use is 3/4 hardwood plywood from HD. It is not as good as the one I got 5 years ago, and it wraps a little when I apply vanish to it, and part of the top ply comes off :x

 

[Anonymous]

Here I come to save the daaaayyyyyyyyyyyyyy...



:lol:


Looking good.

lumber is mostly sold as nominal thickness. That basically means the lumber company gets to stick it to you by selling you a smaller piece of lumber.


Hrmmmmm


The man has a smaller wood than he says he does. I wonder if any women have ever had that problem with their man....



:lol:

Anyway, the twist you have will come out.

If you build your stand framing out of 2 by's you can skin it with 1/4 inch thick plywood and stain varnish, or paint it. You can trim the corners with hardwood, there are so many options out there its hard to tell someone exactly how to do it.

SpaceAce made a nice stand, his is in this forum somewhere....

 

[Anonymous]

Seven Ephors

Did you varnish both sides of the plywood?

Its always a good idea, especially if you do not have something fastened around the edge on the face of the ply. It sort of equalizes things and helps with warping and delaminating...

 

[trido]

SORRY SEVEN EPHORS.

 

[Anonymous]

Seven Ephors

Did you varnish both sides of the plywood?

Its always a good idea, especially if you do not have something fastened around the edge on the face of the ply. It sort of equalizes things and helps with warping and delaminating...

OH

I forgot one other thing about this.

I noticed that water based finishes tend to make cheaper plywood delaminate. If you want some Nice Marine Plywood I have some, I only stock Fir and Mahogany though.....

 

[minibowmatt]

edit...

 

[Anonymous]

Seven Ephors

Did you varnish both sides of the plywood?

Its always a good idea, especially if you do not have something fastened around the edge on the face of the ply. It sort of equalizes things and helps with warping and delaminating...

I only apply a think coat on the underside. Don't want to spend all the time sanding and vanishing something I hardly see at all. I did apply three coats of vanish on the top. I also use silicone glue to fill in the gap between the plywood and the wood frame. The warping force fo the plywood is so great that it does not lay flat even after I put the empty tank down on it. When I add water to the tank, it lay flat as expected.

 

[spaulr]

I finished the frame last night and added some nails to it. I'll post a pic when I get home tonight.

So 1/4 ply for the sides and back and varnish both sides. I was looking at home depot and they have oak ply and birch. Birch looks pretty nice.

Now for the really stupid question... What's the difference between stains and varnish? And do you need to add a sealant of some sort? If (when) I spill on the stand I'd prefer not to have to think, " Where's a towel, s!@#, where's a towel?"

Oh, one more thing, should I finish the stand first, then worry about plumbing, or do my plumbing dry runs prior to finishing the stand?

 

[spaulr]

Forgot to mention. For the front and sides I was planning on making a border around the plywood on the edges. Kinda like a picture frame. Does that mean I don't need to varnish both sides of the ply?

Why does it sound like actually "building" the stand was the easy part? Finishing sounds like its going to take me a while.

 

[minibowmatt]

I would definetly seal both sides of the plywood, and their edges. If you have a sump inside this stand, you will be putting a lot of humidity out. The unsealed wood will suck this up, and eventually warp/twist/bow.

I would seal with a couple coats of Helmsman spar varnish or a Laquer. I prefer Deft Laquer because you can re-coat within 20 Min. Laquers also allow the ability to re-coat at a later time. The Laquer will melt into old laquered finishes, which allows you to re-seal or hide scratches etc...

 

[Anonymous]

>...Oh, one more thing, should I finish the stand first, then worry about plumbing, or do my plumbing dry runs prior to finishing the stand?

I have the stand very close to wall, and there is no room for running plumbing other than thru the top of the stand. I make the stand in a way that I can run 1 inch PVC pipe thru it without hiting any of the cross beams. I also drill the hole before put the tank on it.

Other than logistic issue like that, I will get the stand done first if you have a good idea of where thing needs to go.

Oh, stain is what the name says, a coloring agent that "enhances" the wood grain. Vanish is a very transparent (kind of yellow, and will get yellower as it ages) coating that give it shiny appearance.

 

[Anonymous]

Just to clarify

You can varnish or lacquer or put polyureathane on something and be done

or you can stain it and then do the above step and be done.


You can't just stain it.

Well, you can buy one step stains, but Seven and I think they are crappy