Need help building a stand. First time

[mopar9012]

Okay so I have a 40 gallon breeder. I built up a stand, using a plain circular saw to cut the 2x4s. Well the cuts were not straight. At all.

I bought a miter saw. Went and cut more pieces to length. Using the miter saw, the cuts were straight.
I started to build the frame, the part that the tank sits on. I tried to make sure the angles were as even as possible. Screwed them together.

I went to my 40 gallon tank and just placed the frame on the top of the tank to see how it fit before I built the whole stand. The thing sits up off the tanks rim a quarter inch on the back left corner.

I'm losing my mind. I thought with the help of a miter saw, I would be making an okay stand. With this frame, I feel like I'm going to come home to a cracked tank. What am I doing wrong?

 

[bkostuch]

What are the bottom dimension of the tank, including the plastic rim? I come from a long line of woodworkers and would be glad to lend some insight.

 

[mopar9012]

I'm not home to tell you exactly what I measure. I think it was 36 1/4 by 18 1/2. I can probably get it to you in about 45 mins.

 

[ghbrewer]

Are you sure that the boards are not warped? Are you sure that the table that you are assembling on is flat and true? If either of these items are out of wak, then you will run into problems regardless of how straight your cuts are...

 

[mopar9012]

Boards looked pretty good when I bought them. I'll take it apart and put a level up to them.

I assembled it on carpet floor with a blanket down under them. Maybe I'll try to redo it on the garage floor. I live in an apartment so my garage is packed fool with my landscaping gear. That's why I didn't do it there.

 

[nickh06]

mopar9012;1042071 wrote: Boards looked pretty good when I bought them. I'll take it apart and put a level up to them.

I assembled it on carpet floor with a blanket down under them. Maybe I'll try to redo it on the garage floor. I live in an apartment so my garage is packed fool with my landscaping gear. That's why I didn't do it there.

When I put my stands together I made sure to level everything on the floor that the tank will be sitting on before I skinned and trimmed them. I had to make a few adjustments to get it perfectly level. Hard to find perfectly level surfaces (that you can build on without destroying your house). Garage floors are usually sloped.

 

[grouper therapy]

First I don't recommend using framing lumber for a finished cabinet for just such reasons as you are experiencing now. A 3/4" plywood box would yield a much nicer and actually stronger product. That said building any stand needs to be done with straight materials cut accurately and with a square, The level should only be used after the stand is completed and set into place. During the construction the floor is irrelevant.

 

[dball711]

grouper therapy;1042152 wrote: First I don't recommend using framing lumber for a finished cabinet for just such reasons as you are experiencing now. A 3/4" plywood box would yield a much nicer and actually stronger product. That said building any stand needs to be done with straight materials cut accurately and with a square, The level should only be used after the stand is completed and set into place. During the construction the floor is irrelevant.

Agree, uneven floors are what shims are for.

 

[ghbrewer]

grouper therapy;1042152 wrote: first i don't recommend using framing lumber for a finished cabinet for just such reasons as you are experiencing now. A 3/4" plywood box would yield a much nicer and actually stronger product. That said building any stand needs to be done with straight materials cut accurately and with a square, the level should only be used after the stand is completed and set into place. During the construction the floor is irrelevant.

+1

 

[swfk44]

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I used these on my 65 gal build and they are working great now 2-3 yrs in, they are rated 600lbs per 4 Made leveling the tank a breeze, of most importance make sure stand is square, I agree leveling is after the stand is done, i also have put a layer of foam under my tanks to take up any small discrepancies


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[jbdreefs]

Pictures would help.

 

[sewer urchin]

Hey Guys....

looks like a necro post. The OP hasn't been on since the day after he first posted

 

[hobanwashburne]

Check out RocketEngineer's template here:

 

[grouper therapy]

HobanWashburne;1055988 wrote: Check out RocketEngineer's template here: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1169964">http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1169964</a>[/QUOTE]
Based on using framing lumber which equates to sub standard IMO.

 

[hobanwashburne]

grouper therapy;1055994 wrote: Based on using framing lumber which equates to sub standard IMO.

Can you expand on this a bit? I'd love to hear proper techniques from experts!

 

[grouper therapy]

Let me clarify something first my opinion applys to a standard stand alone aquarium cabinet. even in built in scenarios I believe that laminated engineered products are superior for that application as well.Most framing lumber is just that framing lumber . While straight , flat piece can be found it is not typically milled to the specs that a finished furniture grade piece calls for. It takes up valuable space in an under aquarium sump stand. Lastly it is absolutely not needed. No need to use it then wrap it with plywood. Why not just use the plywood for the structure as well?

 

[hobanwashburne]

grouper therapy;1056013 wrote: Let me clarify something first my opinion applys to a standard stand alone aquarium cabinet. even in built in scenarios I believe that laminated engineered products are superior for that application as well.Most framing lumber is just that framing lumber . While straight , flat piece can be found it is not typically milled to the specs that a finished furniture grade piece calls for. It takes up valuable space in an under aquarium sump stand. Lastly it is absolutely not needed. No need to use it then wrap it with plywood. Why not just use the plywood for the structure as well?

So long as it holds the weight, doesn't matter to me.

 

[grouper therapy]

HobanWashburne;1056022 wrote: So long as it holds the weight, doesn't matter to me.

Not sure I understand. What doesn't matter?

 

[bkostuch]

grouper therapy;1056013 wrote: Let me clarify something first my opinion applys to a standard stand alone aquarium cabinet. even in built in scenarios I believe that laminated engineered products are superior for that application as well.Most framing lumber is just that framing lumber . While straight , flat piece can be found it is not typically milled to the specs that a finished furniture grade piece calls for. It takes up valuable space in an under aquarium sump stand. Lastly it is absolutely not needed. No need to use it then wrap it with plywood. Why not just use the plywood for the structure as well?

I completely agree here, while building an oversized stand for my 29 cube I used framing lumber, it was an utter pain to find quality pieces. Wrapping the stand with thick enough plywood will offer a lot more support than most think.


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[hobanwashburne]

grouper therapy;1056026 wrote: Not sure I understand. What doesn't matter?

Sorry, I mean I don't mind using framing lumber or cabinet quality wood from a space or overbuild standpoint. I have done essentially 0 wood working and am drawn to how straight forward and "easy" the one I linked to is.

That being said, I'd love to try a more sophisticated design, but I would need to work off some plans that are safe for that amount of weight.