40 Breeder Stand Design

[ChrisOaty]

Hi all. I've made a couple tank stands in my past but they've been out of 2x4s. I'd like more room within the cabinet and I know this design is overkill as far as weight support. Messing around on Sketchup I've designed a tank stand that I'd like to build for my 40B and 29 gallon sump. The proposed stand will be made entirely out of 1x4s (and 1x3s for the hood) and 1/4" plywood for skin. The tank is already installed with the overflow shown and drilled and the 29 gallon sump is already built. As far as the plumbing, I think I'd like to return (center chamber of sump) with a mag18. The back right chamber is closed off and will hold DI water for auto top off. The overflow will be split into the front left chamber (moving bed filter) and the right chamber (ATS to refugium). The stand itself will be held together with wood glue, pocket screws and long wood screws. Any input is welcomed and encouraged. Thanks for the look!

 

[PIMPALA]

im sorry... did i read that correctly?

mag 18 for a 40 breeder?

 

[ChrisOaty]

lol sry. mag9

 

[BLADEYAMAHA]

Still a lot I think.

 

[ChrisOaty]

mmm i dont think so. i like lotsa flow. it'll be diffuse. in either case, the pics are really small but i really wanna know about the integrity of the stand.

 

[BLADEYAMAHA]

Looks good, might use 2x4's on the stand part.

 

[BLADEYAMAHA]

Just don't think 1x4's will make the weight requirements on the long term.

 

[PIMPALA]

the stand looks plenty beefy. 1x4s skinned with plywood would hold 400 gallons. 40 is no worries at all.

 

[reeferman]

your design looks great but instead of using 1xs,use 3/4" cabinet grade plywood instead.no need for 2x4 frame or any other support.on the front where you plan to span unsupported for 36",double up on the plywood.with the cabinet grade plywood,theres no need to skin it afterwards as its a finished surface already.plywood is stronger and a lot less apt to expand and contract as dimensional lumber.you can check out the first pages in my build thread to see how i built the stand for my 120g.fwiw,im a carpenter and i build stands for several lfs and customers.

 

[PIMPALA]

your design looks great but instead of using 1xs,use 3/4" cabinet grade plywood instead.no need for 2x4 frame or any other support.on the front where you plan to span unsupported for 36",double up on the plywood.with the cabinet grade plywood,theres no need to skin it afterwards as its a finished surface already.plywood is stronger and a lot less apt to expand and contract as dimensional lumber.you can check out the first pages in my build thread to see how i built the stand for my 120g.fwiw,im a carpenter and i build stands for several lfs and customers.

+1. good advice.


but if u already purchased the material, or already started, your current plan will work just fine. lol

 

[reeferman]

very true but more work.lol

 

[ChrisOaty]

Not gunna lie Reggie, I have a bit of a man crush on you and your carpentry. Haha, I wish I had access to those tools or half the skill you must've acquired over the years. The 1x4s were attractive because they are very cheap and I noticed were always truer than most of the 2x4s I've seen at the local HD. I've built an all 3/4" plywood stand before and it turned out just fine but I plan on painting it black and waterproofing the whole thing anyway. Around here HD charges $25 for a 4x8' sheet of 3x4 ply but I doubt it's furniture grade.

 

[reeferman]

< blushing.haha thanks.hd or lowes has cabinet grade but its about 50 a sheet.if your going to paint and seal it,you can get 4x8 sheets of MDF for about 20 a sheet and its very strong and gives a very smooth finish when painted.make sure to look for MDF[medium density fiberboard]and not LDF[light density or commonly called presswood]theres a huge difference in strength.you can also get birch plywood that paints very well.but again,if you already got materials,use them!

 

[ChrisOaty]

haven't bought anything yet. the reason i am unsure of the plywood is that i am not confident in my ability to cut a large/true square out for the doors. the last stand i did, i simply cut 4 pieces up and while it worked, it just wasn't as confident in its integrity. when you say 'furniture grade' does that just refer to the face(s)? because i called ganahl lumber (very close to my house) and they want $38 for a 4'x8' piece of furniture grade single faced sheet. if i'm going to paint it anyway should i just get the $25 HD sheets i spoke of earlier? the faces are sanded well enough to paint. as far as the MDF, i'm worried about it soaking up any moisture and warping/expanding. i've used MDF before and it's great to work with but i know moisture does funky things to it.

 

[reeferman]

if you seal your work very well,mdf works great.cabinet grade refers to the quality of the finished face.while hd and lowes calls theirs cabinet grade,it is not.lumber yards can get true "A" grade plywood but most people cant tell the difference and with you painting it,it wont matter anyway.the problem with painting pine or oak is that you will see the grain under it no matter how well its sanded.the paint will raise the grain and no amount of sanding will ever make it a uniform surface.it will be smooth but you will see grain underneath.the better choice would be birch or maple.maple would only be found at lumberyards but you could get birch at hd or lowes.it paints up much better because the grains dont open near as much.if your not confident in your sawing,use a straightedge clamped to your work as a guide.if you have a router,you can straighten out any wayward cuts with a flush cut bit.you can use overlay doors also to hide your imperfections on the front cut out.overlay doors also stop light leaks from under the stand in case youre employing a refugium.