The Planted Tank Forum banner

My DIY Stand Build (56k warning lots of pics)

6K views 26 replies 7 participants last post by  Evilgrin 
#1 ·
This is a brief Photo Journey of how I choose to build my Stand for my 55g tank. Some may wonder why I choose the dimensions I did all will be explained over the course of this rambling post.

Ok first off I built my stand at 40" to the top most sheet of plywood now with a standard 55g that puts the top of the tank at 5' approx. off the floor did this for two reasons 1. at 6'2" I can still reach in and touch the bottom of the tank with little trouble. 2. I wanted to see the tank from a seated position (bar stools) and not feel like I'm looking down into the tank. and 3 my toddler can't reach the glass to bang on it :). Eventually I plan to build a custom tank from acrylic that matches the dimensions of the stand but they may be 2 - 3 years down the road, but figured why build 2 stands when I have the materials on hand to build one big enough now.

Any way the stand dimensions are 40" tall 48" wide 24" deep it's B I G. Corner posts are 3 X 3 with 2 X 4 cross members. Plenty of room underneath for a sump or just another tank or two. I'm currently still in the build process but the base frame is pretty much done still need a few more strings for the bottom shelf but other then that the base frame is done. Now on to the pics.



In the Above pic I have all the wood laid out after making all of my cuts. Skipped taking pics through most of the actual build process the curse of working alone, but did take some shots of the joints.





And Below we have the completed base frame.



Total cost so far about 10$ for a box of 2 1/2" screws all the wood was reclaimed or left over from another previous project.
 
See less See more
5
#3 ·
At this point my options are still open was thinking 1/4" play for the rear wall leaving a 10" gap from side to side for hoses and such to run up into the tank and wrapping the rest in birch plywood.
It's home is going to be that little alcove behind it in the last pic once the wall is done being painted and I've run my electrical and plumbing, some genius thought it would be a good idea to have the main sewage line 4' above the basement floor so I have to plumb in a pump assisted drainage line up and across the basement (oh joy!). hopefully I can get all the work done this weekend since my filter and substrate will be arriving on Friday and I still have to build my lighting and the tank hood.
 
#5 ·
Well here is am update to my progress so far, I had to stop work on the stand for a bit to work on building the frame for the canopy before I got too involved in the stand, that and the stand make for a great workbench as is.

Here are some pics of the canopy as it sits currently.




Now I'm no carpenter and my woodworking skills are not what I would like them to be but I think I did a passable job so far with the limited tools I have available. Now the fun part wrapping my brain around how to cut down a 2 X 4 sheet of wood to fit the canopy that has a width of 49" hmmm something will dawn on my sooner or later. :redface:
 
#6 ·
First, look for a good plywood stretcher.

That is a very good frame design, and with good tools, isn't that hard to make either. Good job! Did you use glue at all of the joints? I would always trust good quality glue more than screws, and with both, you have a indestructible frame.

Why don't you look for a pre-built door or doors for the front, then design the "skin" to go with the doors? Those doors aren't excessively expensive for what you get. The downside might be the difficulty of matching the canopy to the stand/doors.
 
#7 · (Edited)
Plywood Stretcher going to have to check for that on my next trip for supplies. Lol

Thank You I mainly used a sliding compound miter saw for all the cuts on the frame a bit time consuming to make the notches but it worked out in the end since I still have yet to get a hold of my circular saw, and here's to hoping the misses got the hint and I'll find a table saw under the tree come Christmas time that would have simplified things oh so much more.

Right now it's just screwed together I'm going to have to swap out 2 of the 2 X 4's since they are slightly warped then I'll redo all the joints with glue & screws. Right now the stand is rock solid been using it as a work bench while building the canopy still have to get the actual top for the stand the plywood that's on there now is just temporary it's not even secured just held on by gravity.

Thought about pre made doors last night while enjoying an adult beverage going to have to price them out see if it's in the budget cause right now I'm nearing the end of my allotted cash and really don't want to over reach at this point. May just skin it and leave it open for a bit till I can get some spare cash for doors. Right now the opening into the stand after skinning it will be 24" tall X 35" wide hopefully I can find something that will fit.



Well here is where I am with the canopy so far I'm not entirely happy with it as I said I'm no carpenter and my ambitions have meet with reality but I did learn a few things and what will need to be changed in order to get it to what I envisioned but for now it will do the job it was designed to do. My construction budget is nearing exhaustion so I'll have to live with it for a few months. Thankfully this is going to live in the basement so looking great is not that important, down here in the dungeon it's more about function then looks.




Still need to paint the inside and stain the outside and mount the lights that should be interesting.
 
#8 ·
You've got a lot more wood and weight in that canopy than you need. You could have built the whole thing out of plywood and it would have been lighter and stronger. And you wouldn't have needed the plywood stretcher.
 
#9 ·
Total weight of the canopy is about 10 pounds. main frame is pine furring strips and three 4 foot 1/2" square trim pieces left from another project the wrap is 5/16 lauan ply came in 2' X 4' sheets (all they had available).

If I used 1/4 ply it would have been heavier then what I have and with out a table saw cutting it to size would have been a pain in the rear for me. Don't know about the big box lumber dept's in your area but over here finding some one in the lumber department is a rarity let alone someone that can use the panel saw and then can get the measurement correct on top of all that I'll take my chances on my own. Just had a 4x8 sheet of maple cut for me the other day 30 min to find the guy who had the codes to run the saw then he took ten min trying to figure out that 4' was the center of the 4x8 panel. If I could have fit the whole sheet in my car I wouldn't have waited at all but 4x6 is the largest I can carry in my car. Was so tempted to just buy a cordless circular saw and cut in the parking lot then return the saw would have taken just as long as looking for the lumber guy.
 
#10 ·
Hey if your using leftover more power to you.

Same problem here with the BBS. I have a Dakota so I can take full sheets. And even though I have a RAS that can cut it in half I mostly break it down with a straight edge guide and a circ saw. This is one case I prefer corded though. Yeah I understand cordless to do it in the parking lot.

The other thing I was thinking is you could have made it 2 hinged pieces. Then you would be able to open left, right or both.

Not sure about the new math but where I come from 5/16" is thicker than 1/4" (4/16")

And I still have a feeling this post of mine isn't going to come across as I mean it. But I did spend time to type it.

I'd hate to post a picture of the lightstrip I made 35 years ago. Fortunately there is no evidence left. It went on the burn pile a long time ago.
 
#11 ·
Hey if your using leftover more power to you.

Same problem here with the BBS. I have a Dakota so I can take full sheets. And even though I have a RAS that can cut it in half I mostly break it down with a straight edge guide and a circ saw. This is one case I prefer corded though. Yeah I understand cordless to do it in the parking lot.

The other thing I was thinking is you could have made it 2 hinged pieces. Then you would be able to open left, right or both.
Thought about doing two separate doors but figured I'm only going to open the door to feed the fish or do water changes or putz around adding plants for 2 out of 3 I'd rather have full access to the top then be limited buy the hood.

Not sure about the new math but where I come from 5/16" is thicker than 1/4" (4/16")
Actually it's 5.2 mil thick whatever that converts over to.

And I still have a feeling this post of mine isn't going to come across as I mean it. But I did spend time to type it.
No Worries.

I'd hate to post a picture of the lightstrip I made 35 years ago. Fortunately there is no evidence left. It went on the burn pile a long time ago.
LOL
 
#16 ·
I was hoping to see what the panels on your stand looked like. Got interested in that after reading your Ginormous thread. Right now all options are on the table.
 
#22 ·
Managed to get a little more work done on the stand tonight Got the under stand lighting installed I had six 6" smd led strips that I had gotten a few years back that just never got used for under counter lighting good thing to since they are perfect for this application they put out a decent amount of light and more importantly put off the most minimal amount of heat. Should work out great for extra light during filter maintenance.
On to the Pic.

 
#23 ·
Had a few days of life getting in the way of my projects but managed to get some of my lighting done and tested. So far I have 16 3w leds mounted onto a 48" aluminum project bar I think this combined with my 2 55w 50/50 compact florescent's will put me in the high light zone I'm shooting for.

Any way here are 2 pics of it on just fiddled with the camera settings to cut the glare.




 
#24 ·
Ok major update to this project had a few design changes due to my own lack of preparation and planning some things you just don't consider until you get there and all you can do is move on or give up I choose to move on and chalk it up to a learning experience.

So far the doors have been given the axe in favor of a much simpler removable panel just need to get the hardware and trim it to fit as well as getting some trim pieces to give it a nice finished look. Unfortunately Due to exhausting my construction budget that part of the build is going to have to wait till spring. The W.A.F. (Wife Acceptance Factor) is in the danger zone with all the dust not to mention the stink of stain and polyurethane so the rest of the construction is on hold till the spring.

Well on to the pics.

First of the canopy has been stained and has a one coat of wipe on poly.


Have about 4 coats of satin wipe on poly on the top of the stand



Finished up the electrical so everything is working as planned, Switch 1- Hood lights, Switch 2- Under stand maintenance lights, Switch 3- Water pump to evacuate waste water to nearest drain.


Good look at the led lighting under the stand as well as the electrical still needs to be neatened up.


Close up of the LEDS mounted on my aluminum bar complete with 60* optics, Fan mounted on the back to help dissipate heat. also a shot of my old 50/50 power compact fluorescent the bulbs are over 10 years old but they still work so I'll replace them eventually.




and the final shot of the plumbing at least on end any way ball valve is there to keep water from flowing back into the pump I'd rather leave it in the pipe till the next time. Also what I consider a must is the GFCI outlet that powers everything on the stand can't be too cautious.


All the wood is maple ply except for the top that is solid maple and the hood is clad in luaun ply (sp) stain is red Mahogany.
 
#25 ·
Ok quick update all construction on the stand has come to a halt, Wife is sick of the dust. But on a better note Tank is now setup , flooded and planted. Water is very cloudy but a water change or two will take care of that. on to the pics





quick shot of my DIY LED's in action.

 
#27 ·
Thanks I work with electricity for a living so that was the easy part of the entire build at least for me. I still have to set up some shelves for better organizing all the stuff that's going to end up under the stand but going to wait a while and see exactly how much shelving I need don't want to make it too small or way to big either. Still finding where the best spot for everything so will wait till all the components are in their final locations.


If only it was so easy by the time she comes around it'll be 2 - 3 weeks from now been down this road before, by then the cold weather will be on top of us and won't be able to vent the stain fumes outta the basement never mind the smell of the polyurethane. I'm more then happy with the amount I was able to accomplish before she'd had enough of all the dust and fumes. At least I can look forward to enjoying my fish in the upcoming weeks. :fish:
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top