I have had a 55 gallon aquarium in the past and built my own wooden stand from 2x4's and and a panelled look on the exterior. It has been holding strong for four of five years now. I was unsure of buying the store made ones due to my knowledge of woodworking. all the store ones are either compressed boards or simple pine wood construction. when putting alot of weight on that it makes me nervous!!
I am looking into buying a 90 gallon and can't decide if i want to build another one for it or buy a store one.
any advice would be helpful including brands to not get or get!
Yea, i am really considering it with the cost of stands these days lol. It really isnt to hard unless you go into fancy stuff. all it takes is some 2x4s for the framing and the outside can be just simple pannel board or whatever you want it to be. I am going to shoot for a few drawers on one side and the other will be open for my canister filter. probably make it kinda like the sedona stand with a falt top but still have it set into a framing of some kind.
The key thing though is making sure the framing is 100% level
Honestly, built your own...if you're any what like me, you'll shop & shop & shop and just not like any of the stands you see.
I am NOT a carpenter and up till I built had no idea how to use power tools. I can't find my org DYI thread any more here, but attached are pictures what I built for a stand & hood. Stand is made out of simple 1" wood that you generally would buy for shelves with a 3/4" backboard in it painted white. All parts glued & screwed together, edges of the top board are routered, all is stained with a clear coat to prevent water stains and set up & done. Cost for the whole deal (stand, hood, wood, screws, stain etc) were around ~$60, at lest here I definitely can not find a stand and hood like this for the same cost.
Honestly, built your own...if you're any what like me, you'll shop & shop & shop and just not like any of the stands you see.
I am NOT a carpenter and up till I built had no idea how to use power tools. I can't find my org DYI thread any more here, but attached are pictures what I built for a stand & hood. Stand is made out of simple 1" wood that you generally would buy for shelves with a 3/4" backboard in it painted white. All parts glued & screwed together, edges of the top board are routered, all is stained with a clear coat to prevent water stains and set up & done. Cost for the whole deal (stand, hood, wood, screws, stain etc) were around ~$60, at lest here I definitely can not find a stand and hood like this for the same cost.
Hey man what is that material on top of the hood you made? And how did you mount the lights on the inside? I want a hood like that but I dont want to pay 400 dollars for one. Thanks in advance!
If you have the know-how you should build your own. I don't like particle board so I'd use solid oak. So far I've built entertainment centers, kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanities. My next project will be a stand that can hold a 55gal or 75 gal tank. I'm modeling it after a stand I saw in the store. It's not that hard if you have the right tools.
Thats a great design! what size tank is that a 55 gallon?
I also like the substrate color in wisfish 55 gallon planted aquarium! what is it and where can i get that!
I think i will start working on a design. dont have the tank yet so i need to get dimensions lol.
You see the 2nd to last pic there how the hood frame sits over the actual plastic (ugly) frame of the tank? On that very plastic frame is where the lights sit and can slide back & forth however you want it. The lights are NOT attached to the lid of the hood.
The lid of the hood is made of simple back board, pained with white pool color and over top the color on the inside and has vapor barrier glued over top of it (in case of excess moisture). That's all screwed together with piano hinge to the "box" that's made of light colored oak slices and done.
Building a hood like that was TOO easy (and you're talking to a gal that has NEVER done no wood work until this day), Cost for that hood was something like $20.
I pers felt in love with that very set up so much, I wanna go ahead over the winter now and built this type set up for all my tanks cause its just soooo much more practical in the day to day tank work then the standard "kit" hoods.
Don't dismiss plywood thought. It's relatively inexpensive and used properly will be pretty good for most sized stands. I built a stand for my QT tank out of 1/2" plywood in an afternoon and for only about $20.
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