# Easy DIY tank stand ideas/plans



## Maddog (Nov 7, 2008)

ok i foudn some 2x4 and 2x6 in great shape in my basment! (house i bought)
and i dont have a stand for either my 55 or my 30. 
I think i'll start with a simple design on my 30, learn from that then make one for the 55. 
By simple guys I mean REAL simple.

tools will be, wood, skrews, hand saw, sand paper, paint..
you get the idea

Anyone got some plans for a very simple/sturdy design.


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## Mcdaphnia (Dec 16, 2003)

With those tools, I's suggest stacking the lumber onto cinder block "legs". If you want a double shelf, turn one set of blocks sideways so that the 2 by 4's can slide through them. Cutoffs from the wood can be screwed to the ends of the 2 by 4's so that they won't turn or twist. A circular saw or table saw in addition to the handsaw, a power drill and bits for screws, a level, and a square (either speed or carpenter's) are the missing tools you would need, and need to know how to use, to make a more ambitious, prettier, and slightly more compact, but not more dependable or useful, project. Always stabilize the cinder blocks by turning the corner at the back of each leg to form an L-shape as you look down from on top, and staggering the blocks "brick-style". A few of the 16" blocks have a premade place to turn them into 8" blocks, or you can even get blocks already 8" to fill in the spots in each row where you need a half-block.


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## Maddog (Nov 7, 2008)

humm, interesting. 
I can get a square, maybe a circular saw from a friend. 
I'm serching the DIY for other ideas on stands, alot of them have notches cut, so those woudl be out of the question at this point.


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

> stacking the lumber onto cinder block "legs".


+1 on that..with the tools you have available to you, a more complex stand could be done..but not by me..I still measure twice cut once and it`s still wrong


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## Maddog (Nov 7, 2008)

well i was thining i coudl still used the notched approach, by making the legs twice as wide. 
with 2 board, cutting the "notched" ones shorter to create the notches.

anyoen hav eosme diagrams, etc, of some sturdy ideas


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## iceblue (Apr 27, 2004)

Here's a sketch-up of the stand I built for my 350g. It uses the same materials you have available in your basement for the most part. Depending on the type of aquarium your going to put on it Mcdaphnia makes some good points in the thread as to what wouldn't be needed for particular builds.

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/view ... highlight=


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## Maddog (Nov 7, 2008)

iceblue said:


> Here's a sketch-up of the stand I built for my 350g. It uses the same materials you have available in your basement for the most part. Depending on the type of aquarium your going to put on it Mcdaphnia makes some good points in the thread as to what wouldn't be needed for particular builds.
> 
> http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/view ... highlight=


that looks like a **** sturdy stand


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## Nerdy Biker (Feb 24, 2009)

Maddog said:


> ok i foudn some 2x4 and 2x6 in great shape in my basment! (house i bought)
> and i dont have a stand for either my 55 or my 30.
> I think i'll start with a simple design on my 30, learn from that then make one for the 55.
> By simple guys I mean REAL simple.
> ...


I don't know if you built your stands yet, But using 2x4s and 2x6s to build a stand for smaller fish tanks is actually complected, Sure it can be done, but you're looking at 14 to 20 pieces of wood with up to 20+ cuts depending on your design.

If you use plywood, all you need is 4 sides you don't even need a top or bottom assuming your tanks sit on the edges. Cut a square hole in the front piece and add some hinges to use as a door. Also most lumber yards/stores will cut plywood down to size for free, So all you would need to do is bring the pieces home and screw it together.

Anyway, I'm a woodworker and if you want, I can design you some simple stands using googles sketchup with 2x4s and 2x6s or plywood, if you give me the dimensions of your tanks. :thumb:


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

Here ya go...
http://saltaquarium.about.com/od/diystandscabinets/ss/diyaqstand.htm
You did say simple...


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## Mcdaphnia (Dec 16, 2003)

KaiserSousay said:


> Here ya go...
> http://saltaquarium.about.com/od/diystandscabinets/ss/diyaqstand.htm
> You did say simple...


Yes that is simple. I would drape the stand with a plastic table cloth before putting the tank on it, if appearance is a factor.


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## Hoosier Tank (May 8, 2007)

Here is a pic of my 180 stand before I skinned it with plywood. Granted it is way overkill for your tanks but maybe it will give you some ideas. The hardest part would be straight cuts for the plywood top but Home Depot / Lowes sells precut pieces instead of a whole 4' x 8' sheet or if you want a custom size they will cut it for free.


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## iceblue (Apr 27, 2004)

Rather then build individual stands for the tanks you might consider just building a long deep bench along one wall that you could use for more or larger tanks in the future.


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## phishstixx (Jun 19, 2008)

i've been thinking bout the bench idea also but the wife doesn't want to hear that.


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## imusuallyuseless (Dec 28, 2005)

That's why one day she'll just come home to it. Easier to ask for forgiveness than permission lol...That's how I ended up w/most of bigger tanks anyway. The wife came home and they were just there :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:


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## iceblue (Apr 27, 2004)

phishstixx said:


> i've been thinking bout the bench idea also but the wife doesn't want to hear that.


Well see, it starts out as a "work bench" to build all those things she would like to have, but in the mean time you needed someplace to put those pesky aquariums.

I'm with Imususally. My wife would roll her eyeballs and shake her head when I show up with another tank, but she's still with me.


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

> simple design on my 30, learn from that then make one for the 55.


Well....don`t leave us hanging like this... :-? 
Whats it going to look like :-?


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## jmangels (Apr 1, 2005)

I've always liked the build of this stand. It's rock-solid and can easily handle any of your typical size tanks by just adjusting the dimensions slightly. The author provides plenty of step-by-step pictures and tips. To save time and money you can skip the trim work and doors. If you did that you could knock this thing out in an afternoon.

http://www.arbreptiles.com/cages/75g_stand/index.shtml

Good luck! 8)


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