Colin_BC
Fishaholic
I recently picked up a new 75 gallon aquarium, so it was time to build a new heavy duty stand. This is based off plans for a 55g stand I made 19 years ago (Click here to see the original stand and plans), but with a few revisions on the fly.
One mistake I made on the original plans I drew up 19 years ago was o made the assumption that dimensional lumber such as 2x6’s were actually 2 inches x 6 inches, but in reality they’re 1.5 inches x 5.5 inches. I corrected that on the new plans. As well, the original plans were left with an open face on the bottom to allow for more tanks. On the new stand, I plan for cupboards on the bottom, so when I put my reinforcing 2x4’s at each cross section, I this time rotated the 2x4s so they reinforced the joints on the upper frame.
For the bottom panels, I screwed in a couple pieces per each of the 3 sections a half inch from the top so I could then drop a piece of 1/2 plywood into each section for a flush shelf. I deliberately made these easy to remove for the purpose of checking for leaking water without having to move the whole stand.
I measured and cut some 1/2” plywood panels to seal up the back and sides. For the front and the upcoming cupboard doors, I’m using 1/2” MDF for a smoother look. It was originally just going to be the cupboard doors that were MDF, but I ended up getting a deal on a bigger sheet and had enough leftover to make the front face frame.
I gave all the paintable surfaces a good sanding to smooth it out, then put 2 coats of primer on (1 day apart with a light sanding with 220 grit after each coat had dried). I’ve now been puttting light coats of a black high-gloss acrylic/latex/water base paint. Again, a very light sanding between coats, but now with 320 grit. I’ll probably do a couple more very light coats of paint on everything but the top of the stand, and then apply some sort of clear coat.
It still has a bit of work left, such as installing cupboard doors, plus a couple more light coats of paint. I have to wait at least a couple more days for the paint on the top to cure before I put the new 75 gallon on it, so that should give me time to finish up the doors and some basic trim work.
One mistake I made on the original plans I drew up 19 years ago was o made the assumption that dimensional lumber such as 2x6’s were actually 2 inches x 6 inches, but in reality they’re 1.5 inches x 5.5 inches. I corrected that on the new plans. As well, the original plans were left with an open face on the bottom to allow for more tanks. On the new stand, I plan for cupboards on the bottom, so when I put my reinforcing 2x4’s at each cross section, I this time rotated the 2x4s so they reinforced the joints on the upper frame.
For the bottom panels, I screwed in a couple pieces per each of the 3 sections a half inch from the top so I could then drop a piece of 1/2 plywood into each section for a flush shelf. I deliberately made these easy to remove for the purpose of checking for leaking water without having to move the whole stand.
I measured and cut some 1/2” plywood panels to seal up the back and sides. For the front and the upcoming cupboard doors, I’m using 1/2” MDF for a smoother look. It was originally just going to be the cupboard doors that were MDF, but I ended up getting a deal on a bigger sheet and had enough leftover to make the front face frame.
I gave all the paintable surfaces a good sanding to smooth it out, then put 2 coats of primer on (1 day apart with a light sanding with 220 grit after each coat had dried). I’ve now been puttting light coats of a black high-gloss acrylic/latex/water base paint. Again, a very light sanding between coats, but now with 320 grit. I’ll probably do a couple more very light coats of paint on everything but the top of the stand, and then apply some sort of clear coat.
It still has a bit of work left, such as installing cupboard doors, plus a couple more light coats of paint. I have to wait at least a couple more days for the paint on the top to cure before I put the new 75 gallon on it, so that should give me time to finish up the doors and some basic trim work.
