Aquarium stands

[LarionOak]

Can someone recommend a store or manufacturer of wooden aquarium stands? I have a standard 55 gallon, 48" long x 13" wide x 20" high.

I've seen the other post about Ikea furniture that might be suitable for an aquarium stand. I have to admit I'm just as specific in my tastes as the user that posted the original question; I don't like most stands out there. But I feel like I'm not asking too much considering the limited variety of wooden stands available to us, even at the LFS! It seems that Aqueon dominates the market and I don't prefer their stands.

For what it's worth, I've found these two stands that may be suitable:

TruVu Malibu aquarium stands
http://www.truvuaquariums.com/mase148fi450.html
Pros: all wood, 3/4 plywood construction, glued and nailed together, affordable
Cons: Cannot see it in person (I'm in Oakland CA and TruVu *just* moved to Arizona from Livermore).

Neptune Aquatics
http://www.neptuneaquatics.com/conte...ther-woodworks
Pros: all wood, 3/4" plywood construction, appears to be screwed and glued (?) together, beautiful
Cons: $$$. They quoted me $800 for a stand in Dark Expresso stain with Shaker Style trim. Granted this stand would be made custom. They have an economy line but I'm still waiting for a quote.

[talontsiawd]

You may want to take a trip to All About Fish in Concord, CA. It's not my favorite store but not bad. It does have a ton of stands that are solid wood, or has over the years. Not nearly as nice as the Neptune Aquatics stands you listed but probably on par with the TruVu Malibu stands. It is one of the bigger aquarium stores I have been to in the Bay and probably 1/4 or more of the store is aquariums and stands, which is a lot, as 1/4 of that store is bigger than most other aquarium stores in the area.

I am not going to claim you will find the perfect stand, you might, but it's one of those places where you can find 3-4 or more stands in stock for anything from a 20 gallon to a 300 gallon. Not trying to talk the place up, worth a visit though.

[CrypticLifeStyle]

Call a local carpenter or join a local salt water tank forum, and ask who the forum stand builder is. They always have one they all tend to use, and its cheap liable craftsmanship

[Jnad]

It is not wood but what about cinder blocks, cheap and easy, and you can cover it if you want.
http://virtuallyamy.wordpress.com/20...quarium-stand/

http://www.google.no/search?q=cinder...w=1024&bih=672

Jnad

[lochaber]

LarionOak>

Yeah, I wouldn't try putting much bigger then a 10 gallon on some IKEA stuff.

If you have any woodworking skill, or are willing to learn some, take a look at some of the DIY stand threads in the DIY section. decent 2x4's are pretty cheap, and can hold an incredible amount of weight.

Not sure if you know this already, but the Oakland public library has a tool-lending library.
http://oaklandlibrary.org/locations/...ending-library

If you haven't been there before, you may want to check out UrbanOre over in Berkeley:
http://urbanore.com/
They have a lot of used furniture and counters and stuff, some of it is quite sturdy and could be used to support an aquarium. plus it's kinda a cool place to just wander around.

I started keeping aquariums back in college, and also built my first stands then, I used 2x4's from the local hardware store/lumber yard, and a cheap handsaw to cut them, and put the screws in with a leatherman (major PITA...). I really didn't like how expensive yet flimsy typical store-bought aquarium stands were, and felt it was easy enough to build a simple yet strong (and inexpensive) stand.

[LarionOak]

Thank you all for your responses! Truly helps.

talontsiawd, it's funny you recommended All About Fish in Concord, CA because I was just there this past Saturday. They had the ubiquitous Aqueon stands, and then they also had some wooden stands made by a builder in Las Vegas. Those stands were major $$$ unfortunately but they did look nice.

CrypticLifeStyle, I'm definitely going to pursue your suggestions, specifically contacting local cabinetmakers. Anyone know of a quality & value one near Oakland, CA?

Jnad (wow a comment all the way from Norway!), I'd consider cinder blocks but am dubious because I am in earthquake country!

And finally, lochaber, I was just at Urban Ore this past Sunday. They had some options that would need major refinishing...and fwiw I even found a bona fide aquarium stand made of pine but it was 3 feet in length. I considered the setup because someone had simply placed a big piece of plywood and plopped a 75 gallon tank on top, but not my thing considering it's going into my living room.

Aside from local cabinetmakers, I'm going to consider finding a pre-made 48" wide kitchen cabinet and re-enforcing it. Could work!!

[talontsiawd]

Originally Posted by LarionOak

talontsiawd, it's funny you recommended All About Fish in Concord, CA because I was just there this past Saturday. They had the ubiquitous Aqueon stands, and then they also had some wooden stands made by a builder in Las Vegas. Those stands were major $$$ unfortunately but they did look nice.

Yeah, it isn't the cheapest place around by any means. I figured it just may have something for you. If you had a bigger tank they can be worth it because of shipping but on a 55, not so much the case.