View Full Version : 3/4" Plywood... enough support?
johnny
11/21/2000, 07:59 PM
I just made my stand for my 125g 6ft long, 19" wide tank. Its basically a box made out of 3/4" oak plywood. The stand is 3.5ft tall. I have a hole in the front of the box that is 4ft long by 3ft high. I place 2x4s around the sides and top of the hole to relieve the pressure that will be placed on the remaining center strip of plywood. Do you think this will be strong enough to support the 125 or should I put 2x4's around the entire frame?
here is (sorta) what the front piece of plywood looks like:
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Nick
It's probly best to make the frame out of 2x4"s then finish nail thin plywood on that, but 3/4" plywood is strong but I would add some 2x4"s. I would probly also brace it to the wall since it's so high which makes it top heavy unless your running like a 55 for a sump.
The stand for my Oceanic 180 is made out of 3/4 plywood with 1 by 2's on the corners. The back has a 6' span of 3/4" by 6" plywood with only one center brace of 3/4 by 6 plywood. If you're concerned about the span sagging I'd recommend a second strip of plywood screwed and glued inside the top lip. Then attach a thin (1/2" or so) piece of flat moulding on top of the two pieces of plywood to distribute the weight and give a finished appearance It'll give you as much strength as a 2 by 4 without the potential of warping that dimensional lumber has, esp if it gets wet.
Most of the diy stands are way overbuilt compared to the factory produced versions ime. As long as the weight is evenly distributed and static, 3/4 plywood on end can support your tank just fine. (Just make sure all joints are rock solid)
Agu
johnny
11/22/2000, 11:50 AM
well then what I think I will do is place a piece of 3/4" plywood across the top, to hold all the side together, and a piece across the bottom as well to give it support from flanging out. I plan on having a 55g sump and 20gal make up water down below, so I'm really not worried about it tipping =) I replaced the back piece with medium density particle board today (a lot stronger). I think I might run some corner pieces inside though to make sure the joints stay together. Thanks for the advice..... oh whooops... forgot to cut a hole in the back for power cords =) Be right back... hehehe.
Make sure to give it a good paint job. Agu is right most factory stands are built less than diyers make. But 3/4 plywood is sturdy enough as well is 3/4 MDF. But I'd throw plenty of spray paint on it then a clear coat.
Another idea you might want to incorporate is make a "tub" in the stand. Basically the front has about a 6" lip and the back as well. Then caulk the corners and make the stand waterproof. Also you might want to paint the inside of the stand white so you can see into it better.
johnny
11/22/2000, 11:01 PM
can you go over that "tub" idea in a bit more detail? You kinda lost me there.
Another prob I ran into today was I went to put the doors on and silly me forgot to make the overhang from the trim under 3/8". I made the trim hang over about 1 1/2 inch and now when i try to open the door, the trim hits the front of the stand.... WHOOPS! I'll have to look for some other type of hinge tomorrow, maybe a DIY caus I don't know of any hinges with a 1 1/2" offset =) We'll see what happens I suppose.
Nick
What I mean is make the inside of the stand painted and waterproofed so it is a "tub" and will hold water. ie say the sump overflows, it all stays in the stand. All you need is about 6" up from the bottom of the stand all the way around.
johnny
11/23/2000, 11:05 AM
ok understood, the inside will be totally enclosed and siliconed/caulked waterproof. Thanks.
Nick
Bamm Bamm
11/24/2000, 01:39 PM
The stand Iam building for my 90 is composed of 4x4's for the corner and 2x4 for the frame then it will covered with 3/4" exterior high grade plywood..the plywood will really serve no purpose except to look nice over the stand it's self in my case..the inside will all be sealed to hold water in the even of an overflow..also I will have the stand almost completley enclosed 2 doors on the front and fan's on the back and vents It will house my ballasts for my power compacts and my metal halides inside the stand they will be mounted underneatht the plywood the tank will sit on with about a half inch of speace between them and the plywood for circulation...aldo my power strips will be mounted inside hte stand...It will be totally overbuils but I want it o last especially wehen it will support a 1000lbs tank plus a 55 gallon tank in the stand as a sump...I can't wait to finish it..it will be about 32"tall and the canopy will probably be about 8-12" tall to mount the p.c.'s and MH's in...Hope this helps...Also I used all pressure treated wood to help with my confidence of the fact that the stand will last a long time and not be bothered by the humidity of the inside o fthe stand...and the sump etc...
the left side will also have a swing out door in case I ever have to remove the sump.....Dan
I'll try and post a link to the stand Iam kinda designing mine after when I get home from work don't have the link here at work..Dan
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