DIY Stand Build Thread....finally started

[nanoguy]

After some planning and a lot of procrastinating I finally started my DIY stand project yesterday. The stand is constructed out of 3/4" oak plywood. The bottom of the stand measures 30"x22.5"x30". The final height of the with the legs and top tier will be around 40". This is what I have done so far.

By the way, big thanks to everyone that gave me tips and advice for this project especially Donw and cannarella!!!

Rough photoshop sketch of the stand design......2 tier design.


Black Glass Doors with Aluminum Trim


Brushed Metal Legs


Here's a pic of the rabbet joint that will take the top, bottom, and the back piece of the stand. This was done with a standard table saw.


Putting in the bottom piece


Another pic of the bottom installed


Top piece going on


Close up of the rabbet joint


Pic of the back rabbet joint waiting for the piece to be added


Here's a pic with the back already installed. An extra 3/4" ply is being added to the bottom for extra support. The edges will be routered out to make it flush with the piece above it. This process will be repeated for the top.


That's all I have for now.......will update once I get more done.

[samtheman]

Aren't you going to put treated 4 x 4's in the corners?

[woz9683]

Aren't you going to put treated 4 x 4's in the corners?

What in God's name would he want to do that for?

Nanoguy, that looks amazing so far, another great (original) DIY stand to follow. That's going to be a very unique look.

[nanoguy]

Originally posted by samtheman
Aren't you going to put treated 4 x 4's in the corners?

4x4's will not be needed for this project. The 3/4" plywood with the doubled up top and bottom will be more then enough to support a 55 gallon tank with a 30"x22.5" footprint.

[nanoguy]

Originally posted by woz9683


Nanoguy, that looks amazing so far, another great (original) DIY stand to follow. That's going to be a very unique look.

Thanks.......I hope it turns out the way I hoping it will. The tough part will be putting on the finish. More pics to come.

[cannarella]

Originally posted by samtheman
Aren't you going to put treated 4 x 4's in the corners?

You have to be kidding me...

This stand will be totally stout. We have already discussed this thoroughly in another thread. I can't wait to see it complete.

nanoguy, the pics look good. nice fitting joints. How are you holding them together? Glue only or any fasteners? Can't wait to see some progress pics.

[nanoguy]

Originally posted by cannarella

nanoguy, the pics look good. nice fitting joints. How are you holding them together? Glue only or any fasteners? Can't wait to see some progress pics.

It's currently held together with glue, finishing nails, and some screws for the top and bottom pieces. I just picked up a pocket hole jig and will be reinforcing the inside once I figure out how to use this thing correctly. I was thinking of adding a piece of 1x4 on the underside of the top (near the front) just to be safe. I don't think this will be necessary but it can't hurt.


Update:
Just a more pics of what I did today. I still have to add the veneer edge banding to cover up the exposed plywood edges. Once that is done I will start sanding the stand down and apply the stain. I will do this over the next few days and start work on the top tier sometime next weekend.

The last top piece added and routered out for a flush finish


Just a close up pic of the joint with assembled pieces


Doing a test fitting for the glass doors.




Legs installed


That's it for now. So far I am very please with the results. It is turning out exactly how I envisioned it to look. The only thing is that I made the stand a 2/16 of an inch too wide therefor creating a small gap where the glass doors meet when closed. I will have to figure something out to hide the gap. It's not very noticeable but this small gap may be a problem when I have a refugium light on inside the stand.......damn.....more work!

[cannarella]

Does it feel real solid? It looks great.

[Chrisrush]

That looks great. I might have to go out and buy a table saw now. Do you have any websites where I can learn about the rabbit joint?

[cannarella]

A rabbit joint can be made with a table saw or router. It is a recess that runs along any side of the work piece. A dado runs through the field of the work piece. Check out some other joints here. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodworking_joints

[nanoguy]

Originally posted by cannarella
Does it feel real solid? It looks great.

It feels rock solid.

[coseal]

love the look! where did you get the doors?

[cannarella]

How are you going to build the platform above this one? Same way with doubled up plywood on the bottom to distribute the weight like on the top and bottom of the carcase?

For your gap try finding some thin black weather stripping that you could apply to one side of one of the doors or sits towards the back of the door side.

[boboxx]

A gap of 1/8” is not that big, it’s probably the space required to open the door without touching in the center. You could use the adjustments screw on the euro hinge to distribute the space on each side if less is required…

I think that the Blum 107deg require a 3/32 of opening on standard 3/4" door.

Also could attach a small strip of plexy or aluminum on the inside of one of door to act as a barrier.

Christian

[nanoguy]

Originally posted by cannarella
How are you going to build the platform above this one? Same way with doubled up plywood on the bottom to distribute the weight like on the top and bottom of the carcase?

I'm going to construct the top tier with a 2x4 frame and use 3/4" ply for the top and bottom then I'll wrap it in oak. To seperate the tiers, another piece of 3/4" ply will be cut about 3/4" smaller then the stand's top to give the top tier a recessed look.

Christian.........I was thinking of glueing on a piece of black acrylic strip to one of the doors but a piece of aluminum wood be idea. Not sure where I can buy it though.

Coseal......I purchased the doors at Ikea. They are kitchen cabinet doors and cdome in several diffent colors.

[cannarella]

Is the tank gong to be glass or acrylic? If acrylic, I would add some cross supports to help hold up the bottom. With all of those layers of plywood that top is going to be bullet proof. I just wanted to make sure the side supports were going to be properly suported below an it sounds like they are with the 2x4s. You are going to have a work of art.

[hawaiianwargod]

That's so awesome NanoGuy! So, is your light fixture will be hanging on to those steel frame? That is clever btw...

[nanoguy]

cannarella.......cross supports will be a good idea. It's better to be safe then sorry. I will add that when I get the chance. The tank is glass........an Elos 70.

hawaiianwargod......I'm not sure exactly how the lighting support will be built yet, but yes, it will hang from some type of support attached to the back of the stand....similar to the one in the design pic. What I really want to do is have some 2"x2" square steel bars, cut and welded together (like and upside down "L"), and have it sent out to get it powder coated black. I would have 2 of these attached to the back of the stand to hold up the lighting fixture. The only down side to this is that I would have hunt someone down to do the work and it may not be very cost effective. The other option is to just make it out of wood with the same design, but the idea of powder coating the steel bars sounds way cool !

[Donw]

They are fairly expensive but zeroedge sells a decent light hanger stand.

Don

[boboxx]

Originally posted by nanoguy


Christian.........I was thinking of glueing on a piece of black acrylic strip to one of the doors but a piece of aluminum wood be idea. Not sure where I can buy it though.

All the big stores around here carry small peices of aluminium, steel and brass... (HomeDepot, Kent) Closs to the bolt and screws.

Christian

[nanoguy]

Originally posted by boboxx
All the big stores around here carry small peices of aluminium, steel and brass... (HomeDepot, Kent) Closs to the bolt and screws.

Christian

I'm going to have to go check it out. Home Depot and Lowes is not too far from me.


Don......I went to zeroedge's site and saw the light hanger stand......not too bad looking. I will keep them in mind if I want to just purchase one. By the way, remember I asked you about the sanding sealer in one of your threads? I have a quick question about it. Do I stain first then apply the sealer or the sealer before I stain? If it seals the wood I'm guessing I would have to stain it first. I have already sanded down the entire stand with 150, 220, and 400 grit sand paper and was thinking about starting the staining process until you recommended the use of a sanding sealer.

[ianiwane]

You may want to take a look at Aquaforest Aquarium since you are in SF for hanging options. They use a stainless steel bar stock to hang their lights. Another option is using aluminum conduit. I've used bent auminum conduit bars to hang all my lights.

[cannarella]

Sanding sealer first.

[Donw]

Originally posted by nanoguy
I'm going to have to go check it out. Home Depot and Lowes is not too far from me.


Don......I went to zeroedge's site and saw the light hanger stand......not too bad looking. I will keep them in mind if I want to just purchase one. By the way, remember I asked you about the sanding sealer in one of your threads? I have a quick question about it. Do I stain first then apply the sealer or the sealer before I stain? If it seals the wood I'm guessing I would have to stain it first. I have already sanded down the entire stand with 150, 220, and 400 grit sand paper and was thinking about starting the staining process until you recommended the use of a sanding sealer.

Dont rush into staining wait untill the whole stand is done. You dont want a blotchy finish. Sanding sealer first, its just a very fast drying finish that will raise the grain and hold up the fibers so they can be sanded off. If you got your ply at HD or Lowes the veneer is to thin for 150 be careful it will get to thin and the finish will be blotchy.

Don

[mikeandjenn99]

Listen to Donw...the man knows all things wood.