custom stand material??

joeyv

Reefing newb
hey everyone its joe again with some more questions.

i am going to be building my own stand but i dont know what to make the frame out of. i will need almost all the space under the tank and the front will have to be pretty much all open(no framing can be in the way).

i have a couple of friends that work for for a metal fabricating shop. they said they could make a frame that would hold a lot of weight. the only thing i am scared of is rusting?? has anyone ever made a stand with a metal or steel frame? could i still do it with wood and have the whole front be open? if anyone has any suggestions let me know. thanks
 
What size tank?

I would think you could probably make it out of metal but I would paint it with some sort of strong durable sealant to prevent corrosion and rusting.
 
Just paint the crap out of it. If you want it to be matal then put 5 or 6 coats that should water proof it good enough, or you can do even more if your that worried but I dont think you'll have to worrie about it. What size tank is the stand going to be for?
 
Just get some krylon rustolum paint.Make sure to use a grinder with a wire brush to take any rust thats already on the metal off.After you get it wire brushed,use some mineral spirits to wipe it down good.Then add 2 to 3 good coats of primer.Once the primer drys,just add 3 to 4 good coats of paint and let dry.
I work in a metal fab shop myself.We have to build alot of metal stands for A/C units,and thats how we go about weather proofing them.
 
yea i talked to my guys and they said the same thing. thanks everyone i just thought the metal would be the best for strengh.

NewbReefer, i am looking at a 150g tank(72x24x20).
 
just make sure it can carry the weight of a 150g and you should be fine. I would defenetly want some sort of center bracer for such a long tank to keep the stand from sagging in the middle other than that it could be pretty much open in the front.
 
I know this would be very expensive, but you could go with a high quality stainless steel. Then you could polish it up real nice and it would be very shiney. You might also want to look at an epoxy paint that would cure to a hard coating

Brian
 
yeah my friend that works in a metal fab. shop said they do a lot of work out of stainless steel and he mite be able to hook me up. i havent got a for sure yet but i am trying. if i did do it out of stainless what benefits do i get out of it?
 
Stainless steel won't rust and definantly has a look that wouldnt need painting if you like that look. Other than that I am not sure about any other benefits. Not sure on the strength of it over regular steel.

Brian
 
Stainless has a little over double the tensial strength of regular steel.Its also harder,and cost about 4 times as much.Plus if you use stainless to build the stand,be prepared to buy the best drill bits you can find,unless of course you decide to weld it together.
 
I was debating if I was going to respond to this thread...but here's my :twocents:


The only time I would consider a metal stand is for an in wall unit or a mega size tank,say 300 gallon plus or more.I'm going to assume that you're only using metal for the frame and wood on the outside.Joe I know you wanting as much of an opening as possible.Is it to fit a very large sump?If thats the case why not a two piece sump.Its your system,do it the way that makes you happy but metal isn't necessary for a 150gal.To me,it sounds expensive,better to spend the money elsewhere.Good luck on the project any ways.
 
I agree with Freak on this one, but, as already said do it the way you want. I do not recommend metal around saltwater, as for stainless there are different grades and to get the one that wont rust will be very pricy. I do not believe I would be trust welding for long term use especially if the metal is comming from one of the Asian countries, Japan or China etc. The grade of metal from these countries are inferior to what was once manufactured in the US. Good luck keep us posted which ever way you go. Just think through your project, draw it out, calculate the loads and follow the vertical load path down to the floor and foundation to make sure what ever you do is adequate to support the weight long term considering minor spashes and spills form time to time and salt creep. pics as you can when your project gets going. thanks for the questions. hope something we have provided helps you decide.
 
yes i wanted it open as possible for the sump. i talked to guy the i am going through for the filter and he said he can custom build to fit my space under my aquarium. you guys have been a lot of help and yeah i would rather spend my money on more important things then to have some crazy expensive stand. i just wanted some opinions on how i should build my stand because i have never done anything like that before. thanks for all the suggestions and i will keep you posted.
 
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