[mikegerard]

Hi all-

I picked up a tank from someone who was getting out of the hobby. I'm three months in and my tank chemistry is good (all bad stuff at 0) and fish and corals are doing well. Some of the mushroom corals have divided and I have about 30 baby snails that seem to be doing pretty well.

Since it looks like the aquarium is going to make it I want to replace the homemade tank stand with something a little more professional looking. It is a 55 gal unit and is aproximately 48" long by 12" deep. I have seen some tank stands at the LFS but I was wondering if a standard wall cabinet would work. They are widely available in dimensions up to 48 by 12 and can be purchased with many different finishes (oak, maple, laminate, etc). They appear to be somewhat nicer looking than the stands I've seen at the LFS.

My question is does anyone have experience using a wall cabinet for a tank stand? Your thoughts would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Mike

[Ratpack]

Haven't used a cabinet but I did use a coffee table one time for a 38 gallon. I think the cabinet would be fine as long as it is sized appropriately for the tank and made well enough to hold the weight of the tank.

[scubadude]

1 gal = 8lbs if memory serves me correctly so 8x55=440lbs of water plust the weight of the tank and any other accesories. So do you think this cabinet will hold 500+ lbs? If so then I would put it to the test....load up 500lbs+ of stuff on it and see if it starts giving might want to do it in increments. I personally wouldnt even attempt something like this its too dangerous...especially if you have any particle board or composite boards in there cuz the first sign of moisture on those boards and then they just turn to mush. If it was a 20g I might say its worth a shot but yer talkin alot of weight and probably $$ ridin on that cabinet that may only save you a couple of bucks. Why not just build one?

[flgoose]

using a cabinet sounds like a good idea but it's not and here is why. Cabinets fronts are usually attached with stapples to the side and the backs are quite flimsy. So even if you use a cabinet made entirelly out of plywood, your tank will be really only supported by the sides of the cabinet. Keep in mind that cabinets are made to hold about 100lbs and your tank is going to be around 500lb. The good news id that you can modify a cabinet to work by removing the front and put it back together with liquid nails in the joints and you would have reinforce the back as well. Of course you don't want to use the particle board cabinets either cause the moisture will eventually get in it and disintegrate it.

[mikegerard]

I was planning to buy only solid wood cabinets...I realized particleboard would be an issue if it got wet. The other idea I had was to look at 2 24" wide cabinets placed next to each other. The idea here was to give extra strong support in the middle.

I'll have to have a closer look at the ones available locally and see how the front and back are assembled. I'm sure they are strong enough on the ends but I'll have to look at the fronts and backs to see how they are put together.

If I decide to build one myself does anyone have sample plans that they would be willing to share?

Thanks,
Mike

[LoneWolf345]

My 125 Gal tank sits on two solid oak cabinets. I did go through and sturdy it up a little just to be safe. I havent seen any indication of a problem. My tank is less than a year old though.