Stand with no 2x4's ?

[shovelrider]

Does anyone know of any DIY's for a stand build that does not use a 2x4 frame.
I would like to build a stand for my 75g that is light and strong. I know retail stands do not use 2x4 and hold up just fine.
It would also provide for more room under the tank without the bulky 2x4s.

Something like this? This stand has something like 1x3's in the corners only.

 

[ReeferBob]

I made a stand out of 3/4" pine from Home Depot for a 40B. Basically I used the pine as I would a skin on a 2x4 stand. Strong as can be. No frame. Careful of long spans though you do not get as much support on the frame as 2x4 construction.

 

[Eggs]

Saw this on a local forum

 

[jgraz]

Just use the same design as the 2x4 template just use 1x lumber instead.

 

[JPG@CFI]

How about using 3/4" Ply and glue and screw some strips of 3/4" ply in the corners? One doesn't need to be Norm Abrams to build a wood stand. Or use some steel and skin it with whatever strikes your fancy. J

 

[Dave A]

3/4" plywood alone is plenty if it's done right. With a glass tank, all the weight is supported by the perimeter, there is no need to support the bottom pane at all in most cases. The tank needs to sit directly over the plywood and be supported all the way around.
My 90 is on a stand that is made entirely of 3/4" plywood with 1x3 pine around the top and bottom perimeter. The pine on the bottom is strictly decorative and the top surronds the tank, there is no weight on it except above the doors where there is a strip of plywood glued and screwed to it to support that much of the tank. Everything is glueed and screwed. I don't know how old the stand was when I got it but I suspect it had been in use with the tank since the tank was new (20 years ago). It was only screwed together when I got it, I toook it apart and added glue before reassembling it and refinishing the stand. If it can hold my 90, it will have no problem holding a 75. my stand also has no floor, the bottom is open. The whole thing is made of 11 pieces of plywood and 8 pieces of 1x3. The back and sides are single sheets and the front consists of 3 upright pieces (ends and center support), 2 strips (above the doors), 2 doors anda piece of 1/2" at the top, which the tank rests on. There are 4 pieces of 1x3 at the top and another 3 pieces at the bottom. I'm not sure that the 1/2" plywood top is needed and the rest of it could have been made from a single sheet of 3/4" plywood.

 

[shovelrider]

Dave A, do you have pics? Your stand fits the bill.


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[Dave A]

I don't have a pic handy and I'm away for the weekend. It's very similar to the particle board stands so I searched for those and found a pine stand that looks very similar. If you search for "AAG51020 stand" and picture that with plain plywood doors, you'd be pretty close

 

[ReefRacer]

Here is a pic of my stand for my 30 cube. Basically built as Dave stated above. Glue and screws. The wood is a bit expensive, but stains very well with gel stain. Built the same type of stand for my 120 and it worked well. I did put 1 cross support at the top of that stand.

 

[buckeyereefer]

Saw this on a local forum

HEY !!!!!! thats my stand for new 93G cube ! LOL

 

[Eggs]

Buckeye, I saw your post on CORA; thought this was cool and had to share lol

 

[redfishbluefish]

As Dave pointed out, framing directly below the outside dimension of the tank. Using standard face-frame construction of ¾ ply would hold any tank....up to the 200 or so range. Pocket screw the joints. Your top brace would need to be four plus inches wide, and dependent on the tank length, the potential of multiple vertical supports. A 75 gallon (four foot tank) could be built with no vertical center supports, if you wish. Simply look at commercial stands to get ideas of actual design.

 

[shovelrider]

@ ReefRacer, Did you use pocket scews to hold the stand together?

 

[redfishbluefish]

@ ReefRacer, Did you use pocket scews to hold the stand together?

He/she did not use face-frame construction, but instead cut out the center of an entire piece to build the sides. You may do this as well, but you will need considerably more wood. If you take this approach, there is no need to pocket screw the stand.

 

[shovelrider]

So, just glue is holding that stand together?

 

[redfishbluefish]

So, just glue is holding that stand together?

In the post it says "glued and screwed." I'm not seeing evidence of screws, so he did a good job covering them up. With this kind of construction you could use finishing nails or screws at the edges to hold everything together.