Stand height

[witowsks]

have a 150g that is 28" tall, trying to decide how tall the stand should be 28", 33" 34", etc.....what do you guys have out there ???

[doody]

I was asking myself this same question today. I started to DIY my stand, and so far I got the frame built. It measures 48 long, 18 wide & 39 high. Could this be to high? Would it be top heavy & easily pushed over? My tank will be a 75g with water, LR/LS, fish, corals, and whtever else. I'm guessing that it will weigh over 1000lbs. Also, the frame of my stand is made of 4x4's. Can anyone shed some light on my concerns? This will be my first tank as well as my first DIY project. So, I am afraid! Very afraid!

[witowsks]

no problem with tipping over, my first stand was for my 55 made from 4x4's which was overkill, this stand is for my 150 and im using 2x4s's....my 55 was pretty tall and i had no worries...

[Bruddah Chrispy]

When I built my stand I needed a certain minumum height to allow me to get equipment in and out of the sump for maintenance. Balanced against that was the desire to keep it below a certain maximum height so that it would be comfortable to look at while sitting and staring like a mindless idiot. :bigeyes:

It ended up being about 32" high.

HTH

[KbdKid]

The stand on my 90 is 42" high. Perfect viewing height for my tastes.

[VegasMike]

The stand on my 150 is 36" high, but I would have liked it a couple inches higher. I ordered a 40" tall stand for my 450 that should deliver in about six weeks. The floor of the fish room is going to be recessed about 2" so the actual viewing height will be around 38".

They pour the floor next week for my addition. According to the contractor, it will be completly done by December 19th. He said I should be OK to put the tank in around the first of December.

[wrasstaman]

One other consideration is if you make it too tall you may need a step stool or a ladder to move any live rock/corals!
IMO the best viwing height for a tank is the bottom of the tank being near eye level.
Wrassta

[SnowboardKid26]

I DIY my stand, it stands 38 inches tall, and I have a 45T tank. Its a pain in the a$$, make sure you don't build it so tall that you can't reach the bottom of the tank w/o a step ladder.

[z28pwr]

I like 34" tall stands. That's why I got for my 30" tall tank.

[Chin_monster]

Ideally for maintenence purposes the top of the tank should be at armpit level or lower. Anything else is for aesthetics, which may or may not out weigh functionality. Personally I hate having to use a step stool to work in a tank.

[pncstod]

I just built a 38" high oak stand for my 120 cube tank. In fact the polyuerthane is drying as i write this:D

Hopefully tommorow i will put the second coat on and will have the tank in place on sunday!

[isom]

I spent a lot of time trying to figure out the perfect height when I had my stand custom built. For me, I liked a taller tank so that I could view it while standing up (w/o having to bend over). I like being able to walk up to a tank and see things at eye level without having to squat or sit to really enjoy the tank.

With this in mind, I also wanted to make sure that I could reach the bottom of the tank w/o having to use a stepstool or ladder.

I ended up w/ a 40" tall stand and I couldn't be happier. Perfect height for me....

[nekbyter]

I'm currently building my 4th stand (6 tanks going now :D ) and every one is between 34" and 36.5". If you go shorter than that like the crappy oem or lfs versions I am sure you will be sorry.

[Navarone]

My 135 is on a 32 inch stand I built, that way when I sit at my desk, it's eye level.

[BLUESMAN]

My first stand (that's my first set up) was/is 42" tall. It is very nice for viewing, but a PITA to reach into. My second stand is 36" tall. A little short, but a lot easier to work in. I'll be building another stand soon....thinking of 38". My tanks are 24" tall, BTW. I built my stands with tank height and sump height in mind. I hate a sump with little room to work in. I built my stands with 2X4's, 4x4's are an overkill. I was worried about the 4' span, but it's been 4 years since the first stand was built with no problems. Blue

[rbaker]

I made the stand for my 180 gallon 38" tall, plus I added 2" of trim to hide the plastic trim of the tank. I'm very happy with this. It put's the tank at the perfect viewing height.

JMO,

Ryan

[goby]

there are 2 schools of thought on this as far as i am concerned...

your first option is this : measure up to your armpit, then subtract the tank height. this is the height of your stand. This means that you can reach the bottom of the tank. this is important to some people. especially if you have a room behind the tank to store skimmers and sumps and what not.

your second option is to build it as high as you can :D I wish i had built mine higher. I ended up cutting the beautiful plywood floor out of mine to fit the sump and skimmer i wanted. Also, it would have been easier to look in when standing close. I look down into my tank. Its a 125, and i have to stand on my tip toes to get to the bottom of the tank, I think the tank sits at 34" off the ground. I would have gone another 6" easily. This would also have meant i could have built taller doors, and that would allow for easier maneuvering. I have had to crawl under the stand on more than one occasion, and the cut outs for my doors are a tight fit! :) well, not really, but the extra few inches would have been nice.

sitting across the room looking into the tank from a couch, the difference between a 30 and a 40 inch stand are not going to be worth complaining about. You wouldnt be saying "wow, its just way too tall" especially with a big tank. it looks fairy grounded at almost height just due to the massiveness of the tank.

I say, guestimate what you think you might like, then add a few inches just in case... in the long run, you wont be limited in what you can fit under it even if you dont need it really tall right now.

g

[JohnM99]

I am putting in a tank that will mainly be viewed from a seated position - was thinking of 27" vs 30" for a 90 gal 24" tall tank - have ordered the 30" - my sump etc are in the basement, so I don't need room - any comments?

[Dimi-reef]

The taller your stand is, the easier it is to get equipment in and out from underneath. I have a standard 30" for my 150 and will never go under 40" again.

[dave2184]

I am happy with my factory stand allthough i striped the oak finnish and restained it walnut to match my tank the 28" height works for me as i am short and can just reach the bottom of it.

[Fish-o-holic]

I just built the new stand for my 180g and it's 43" tall. I made it that tall to house a big skimmer in the future and to help with viewing. :D The only downside is I have to use a stool to get inside the tank. I'm happy though.

[stereomandan]

It depends on if you will be seated on a couch or chair by the tank. If you are, I wouldn't go any higher than about 32" Any higher than that and you might not be able to see over the bottom of the tank. Mine is 28" and it's perfect great for a seated position. I do have to bend over a little to see the tank better when I'm standing up, but my tank is only 20" high. You have another 8" above that with your tank, so it wouldn't be much of a problem. I would guess 32" would be perfect for you.

Dan

[SteveLC]

I built my stand 40 inches high. I prefer to be able to stand and look into the tank. Interesting thread. I am surprised by how many built stands this tall.

Steve

[teevee]

I have a 30" tall tank, and I made my stand 36" high. I'm 6' tall so it works quite well. Would have gone a bit higher (makes the tank look bigger), but I'd be afraid of heights standing on the stool. ;)

My dad is 5'11", here's a photo of him standing in front of the tank, maybe that will give you an idea of how high you want to go.

http://quinn.rdcpsych.org/fish/canopy%20jun%202%2003/canopy-dad.jpg