I just made a 36x49x19 aquarium stand. I was wondering how do people test them to see if they will hold the weight? I ask cuz my XP with woodworkin is nil in IRL. I dont want to just put my tank on it andhave it come crashing down cuz im no carpenter. any ideas?
testing diy stand
- Thread starter Calqless
- Start date
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Wy Renegade
Aquarium Advice Addict
Sit on it, if it will hold you, it will hold most tanks.
lunch
Aquarium Advice Freak
Got any photos? Should be able to tell by looking at it..
Wy Renegade
Aquarium Advice Addict
my 170lbs isnt close to a the approx 750lbs the tank will hold....
LOL, get 4 or 5 people to sit on it!
jrc0528
Aquarium Advice Activist
Stack the equivalent weight on it... bags of sand/gravel, concrete blocks, bricks, heavy books, a few friends... If your target tank will weigh 750lb test it to 1000 lb to be safe.
ImACoolguy
Aquarium Advice Addict
lunch
Aquarium Advice Freak
Maybe throw a brace on the inside of each side between the front and back and another 2 evenly spaced through the center, level the top out then I'm sure she'll carry more than enough, I prop roofs up with less than that
These posts were 120mm x 120mm (or 5x5 as you muricans say) holding up a lot more than 700lbs when completed with people on the balcony plus the weight of the deck and roof, just need to get the top 100% flush..
Ps. I'm a carpenter
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These posts were 120mm x 120mm (or 5x5 as you muricans say) holding up a lot more than 700lbs when completed with people on the balcony plus the weight of the deck and roof, just need to get the top 100% flush..
Ps. I'm a carpenter
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aqua_chem
Aquarium Advice Addict
I agree. Butt check it.
Brookster123
Aquarium Advice Addict
Needs cross bracing and Jack studs. A piece of 1/2" ply glued and screwed to the top wouldn't hurt either. As it stands now?? Not worthy..
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friscuba
Aquarium Advice Regular
By the looks of the picture, all of the weight will be supported by the screws at the corners. If those did not go in well and work out, or they flat out bust, there's trouble. In an ideal world, you would wedge in vertical 2 by 4s between the horizontals at each corner, so the weight would be supported by the 2 by 4s should the screws get stressed.
You said 36 by 49 by 19, and I'm used to reading measurements by length by width by height. I'm assuming from the picture your stand is 36 inches tall rather than 49 or 19. If so, you'd be looking at roughly 4-8 29 inch 2 by 4s cut to fill the vertical gap. You'd want to cut it tight enough you have to work a bit to wedge them in then screw them into the 4 by 4s.
I did a 40 breeder on a stand built like yours years ago, held up fine, but after a couple years I could see it was pretty unstable. That's not fun when the mere thought that a bump could send the whole thing crashing down. I built another stand this winter for a 40 breeder following a youtube video by Joey the DIYfishkeepers guy using the verticals between the top and bottom horizontals and it is rock solid, probably a bit overbuilt but 2 by 4s are cheap.
You said 36 by 49 by 19, and I'm used to reading measurements by length by width by height. I'm assuming from the picture your stand is 36 inches tall rather than 49 or 19. If so, you'd be looking at roughly 4-8 29 inch 2 by 4s cut to fill the vertical gap. You'd want to cut it tight enough you have to work a bit to wedge them in then screw them into the 4 by 4s.
I did a 40 breeder on a stand built like yours years ago, held up fine, but after a couple years I could see it was pretty unstable. That's not fun when the mere thought that a bump could send the whole thing crashing down. I built another stand this winter for a 40 breeder following a youtube video by Joey the DIYfishkeepers guy using the verticals between the top and bottom horizontals and it is rock solid, probably a bit overbuilt but 2 by 4s are cheap.
J.Mcpeak
Aquarium Advice Addict
Take the twist out of the noggin! Ensure top is flat.
You can just fix it back to the wall. That's how mine are. No cross braces just one fixing per side at the rear.
I used 3x2 for the legs and front to back (sides)
I think they were 1 1/2x1 3/4 from left to right.
18mm ply on new stuff and 15mm furniture board on old stuff (in vid)
These have held for years.
New stuff, still standing!
Both shelves in vid and pics are the same basic design. They work.
Holding 18",24" (left) and 30",36" (right)
(Tanks are now full! In progress shots.)
Right side holds around 510lb water weight.
Shelf from video, modified after move. Add one central leg and span for additional support (T shape) and double shelf thickness.
Held until I built fish house.
5ft x18" x18"
(VERY HEAVY! Approx 270lb slate, 440lb water, plus glass and gravel)
jrc0528
Aquarium Advice Activist
Calqless,
Looking closely at Mcpeak's shelves reveals a very important design characteristic often overlooked when building fish tank stands (or any other heavy static load). All the joints should be designed so that they are under compression rather than tension or shear (for example, the weight bearing joints of your stand are in shear). Shear or tension joints will fail if the fastener should loosen or fail, compression joints do not rely on fasteners to bear the weight.
Adding 2x4's to the sides of each of your 4x4's, wedged in between the upper and lower rails, will change the load bearing path to a compressive nature, the weight would then travel straight down from the tank to the top rail, top rail to the vertical 2x4, 2x4 to the bottom rail.
A compressive jointed stand will still be able to hold the weight of a tank with no fasteners at all (granted it would be as stable as a Janga tower!!). The screws should be used to create stability, not capacity; cross-braces and the like are screwed in to give stability, etc.
If you looks closely in a couple of Mcpeak's pictures, you can see the rails under the tanks are notched into the side rails. The side rails in turn are notched into the upright legs. All the notches create compression joints and the entire stand could theoretically hold the tanks without need for a single fastener!
Looking closely at Mcpeak's shelves reveals a very important design characteristic often overlooked when building fish tank stands (or any other heavy static load). All the joints should be designed so that they are under compression rather than tension or shear (for example, the weight bearing joints of your stand are in shear). Shear or tension joints will fail if the fastener should loosen or fail, compression joints do not rely on fasteners to bear the weight.
Adding 2x4's to the sides of each of your 4x4's, wedged in between the upper and lower rails, will change the load bearing path to a compressive nature, the weight would then travel straight down from the tank to the top rail, top rail to the vertical 2x4, 2x4 to the bottom rail.
A compressive jointed stand will still be able to hold the weight of a tank with no fasteners at all (granted it would be as stable as a Janga tower!!). The screws should be used to create stability, not capacity; cross-braces and the like are screwed in to give stability, etc.
If you looks closely in a couple of Mcpeak's pictures, you can see the rails under the tanks are notched into the side rails. The side rails in turn are notched into the upright legs. All the notches create compression joints and the entire stand could theoretically hold the tanks without need for a single fastener!
I think your better option would be to put another 2x4 infront of each 4x4 on the outside. I personally dont like how the 2x4 is just nailed to the side of the 4x4 with nothing but nails supporting it. Making sense? Probably not I speak in irratic mindless tongue sometimes.
I am planning on helping my buddy build a stand while I do mine so we can split materials.
I am going to use 4x4 as well but propbably do a sort of tongue and groove notch with the 2x4 so it rests INSIDE and not ont eh side of the 4x4s.
update:
guy above me says basically the same thing..... derp
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