fishboytoo
Fish Fanatic
HI
I had a close call with tragedy last night. I am setting up a 90 gallon mbuna rock tank. I bought it second hand with a stand and all the accesories. The tank was set up for a couple of years and the stand was the original that came with it. I didn't like the stand that much as the top and bottom were sheets of particle board and the finish had come off and they were looking warped. I bought a sheet of 3/4" plywood and replaced the particle board with it. I also added some extra support to the back of the two columns which hold all the weight and a piece across the middle between the two columns. It all seemed quite sturdy.
So I had my sand and rocks put in, about 1/3 filled with water then I checked that everything is level-ok.
I began filling the rest of the tank. As I'm carrying water I can hear some creaks as the stand takes up the weight. Just as I'm putting the last bucket of water, I notice a crack on the top sheet of plywood. I began to sweat. I mean really sweat. I thought a ton of water, glass, and rock was about to come crashing down in my living room and on top of me. And that would definately wake up my girlfriend who was sleeping in the next room, which would probably piss her off. So, I frantically start draining the water as fast as the stupid little siphon tube will let me. Fortuneately, it's the next day and it's all still standing. It only has the sand and rock in it and i've proped it up with a 2x2 near the crack portion.
I've tried to draw a picture of the stand, I apologize for the poor quality.
Let me describe the stand. The top and bottom are rectangular sheets of 3/4" plywood as is the piece running lengthwise between the two columns. The columns are u-shaped when looking from above, the sides of the columns are particle board and the backs are 3/4" plywood(i added them). The front of the columns are doors which support no weight. I have indicated where the crack is. I cannot tell how far along the width of the top that it runs as the tank covers it. The crack runs from the edge and goes under the tank. The crack is only on the top, and is not visible from the underside of the plywood ie. it doesn't run all the way through the board.
Any engineers around who can advise me on how I can fix this? I have a plan which I'm going to run by a friend who works at an architecture firm. Basically I was thinking of adding a strip of 3/8" plywood about 4" wide to run along the front length of top piece(under the crack) and support it with four columns. Also I would put two columns under the back corners. I have drawn them in purple and pink on my diagram.
Any advice would be welcome. Thanks
*I can't figure out how to add my picture which I drew in Microsoft paint. Can anyone tell me how to do this?
I had a close call with tragedy last night. I am setting up a 90 gallon mbuna rock tank. I bought it second hand with a stand and all the accesories. The tank was set up for a couple of years and the stand was the original that came with it. I didn't like the stand that much as the top and bottom were sheets of particle board and the finish had come off and they were looking warped. I bought a sheet of 3/4" plywood and replaced the particle board with it. I also added some extra support to the back of the two columns which hold all the weight and a piece across the middle between the two columns. It all seemed quite sturdy.
So I had my sand and rocks put in, about 1/3 filled with water then I checked that everything is level-ok.
I began filling the rest of the tank. As I'm carrying water I can hear some creaks as the stand takes up the weight. Just as I'm putting the last bucket of water, I notice a crack on the top sheet of plywood. I began to sweat. I mean really sweat. I thought a ton of water, glass, and rock was about to come crashing down in my living room and on top of me. And that would definately wake up my girlfriend who was sleeping in the next room, which would probably piss her off. So, I frantically start draining the water as fast as the stupid little siphon tube will let me. Fortuneately, it's the next day and it's all still standing. It only has the sand and rock in it and i've proped it up with a 2x2 near the crack portion.
I've tried to draw a picture of the stand, I apologize for the poor quality.
Let me describe the stand. The top and bottom are rectangular sheets of 3/4" plywood as is the piece running lengthwise between the two columns. The columns are u-shaped when looking from above, the sides of the columns are particle board and the backs are 3/4" plywood(i added them). The front of the columns are doors which support no weight. I have indicated where the crack is. I cannot tell how far along the width of the top that it runs as the tank covers it. The crack runs from the edge and goes under the tank. The crack is only on the top, and is not visible from the underside of the plywood ie. it doesn't run all the way through the board.
Any engineers around who can advise me on how I can fix this? I have a plan which I'm going to run by a friend who works at an architecture firm. Basically I was thinking of adding a strip of 3/8" plywood about 4" wide to run along the front length of top piece(under the crack) and support it with four columns. Also I would put two columns under the back corners. I have drawn them in purple and pink on my diagram.
Any advice would be welcome. Thanks
*I can't figure out how to add my picture which I drew in Microsoft paint. Can anyone tell me how to do this?
