Last week I bought a used 125 gal off of Craigslist. It was a fair deal as it also came with a 20 gal and lights/glass canopies for both tanks. Both also came with stands but I knew I would either have to touch them up or replace them. The second the wife saw the stands I knew I would be replacing them. This past weekend was our 2 year anniversery and what better way to celebrate then to build a tank stand together. HA HA. If your marriage can get through a project like this together then you are set. LOL.
Here are some pics of the tank and stand on the day we brought it into the house.
So off to home depot I go for some 2x4s, MDF, router bit, screws, paint, hinges, and door handles. Get home and realize I forgot plywood for the bottom and the shaker style doors I wanted to make. Ran back to home depot and then up to my friends house to get his compound mitre saw and router.
Saturday comes and it is time to start working. Using the mitre to cut the wood to all of the lengths I needed (72.5 iniches, 15.5 inches, 23 inches, and 30 inches)
My dog liked to help too:
So I build the top and bottom pieces using the 72.5" and 15.5" so that my frame is 72.5x18.5 giving me just a bit of wiggle room on the sides. This will bite me later...as I forgot to factor in the MDF siding width in my plans in my head.
So after I put together the top and bottom it was time for the "legs" with the 23" sitting between the top and bottom and the 30" acting as bracing for the height of the stand.
Time for a creak test. HA HA
At this stage my dogs are spent as it was rough for them building the stand.
Now that the frame is built it is time to paint the inside black and paint the tank:
We then cut the MDF and added the trim to the stand to give it a little pizazz:
Cut out the slots for the doors which will be 24x24 (I like larger doors for easier access) and time to paint the stand.
Built the doors cutting out 23.5x23.5 pieces of plywood and affixing it to pieces of .5x1.5" pieces of pine that I cut to size to make a shaker style door:
Everything is painted:
In this pic and the next one you will notice the rounded trim I inserted to the corners and the 45 degree cuts for the trim. I aded the rounded trim so my god son will not hurt himself as he LOVES to run up to the tank and occassionally falls....
Time for test fit:
CRAP!!!!!! I misjudged by forgetting to add the .5" depth of the MDF when I attached the trim and my slight wiggle room on the stand turned into a solid .5" gap on the sides and the wife was not pleased. So picked up some scrap pine and trimmed it to fill in the hole. Painted it and problem solved.
doors:
Finished with side trim:
My oscars and green terror are HIGHLY interested and eager to get into their new home. Hoping to wash the pool filter sand tomorrow and fill her up. I am still unsure if I will do a fishless cycle or not. I think the oscars are hearty enough to make the move especially since I would move the lava rock and filter with them so as to quickly seed the new tank. Add in some chemical accellerant and I think they will be fine. Thoughts?
Here are some pics of the tank and stand on the day we brought it into the house.
So off to home depot I go for some 2x4s, MDF, router bit, screws, paint, hinges, and door handles. Get home and realize I forgot plywood for the bottom and the shaker style doors I wanted to make. Ran back to home depot and then up to my friends house to get his compound mitre saw and router.
Saturday comes and it is time to start working. Using the mitre to cut the wood to all of the lengths I needed (72.5 iniches, 15.5 inches, 23 inches, and 30 inches)
My dog liked to help too:
So I build the top and bottom pieces using the 72.5" and 15.5" so that my frame is 72.5x18.5 giving me just a bit of wiggle room on the sides. This will bite me later...as I forgot to factor in the MDF siding width in my plans in my head.
So after I put together the top and bottom it was time for the "legs" with the 23" sitting between the top and bottom and the 30" acting as bracing for the height of the stand.
Time for a creak test. HA HA
At this stage my dogs are spent as it was rough for them building the stand.
Now that the frame is built it is time to paint the inside black and paint the tank:
We then cut the MDF and added the trim to the stand to give it a little pizazz:
Cut out the slots for the doors which will be 24x24 (I like larger doors for easier access) and time to paint the stand.
Built the doors cutting out 23.5x23.5 pieces of plywood and affixing it to pieces of .5x1.5" pieces of pine that I cut to size to make a shaker style door:
Everything is painted:
In this pic and the next one you will notice the rounded trim I inserted to the corners and the 45 degree cuts for the trim. I aded the rounded trim so my god son will not hurt himself as he LOVES to run up to the tank and occassionally falls....
Time for test fit:
CRAP!!!!!! I misjudged by forgetting to add the .5" depth of the MDF when I attached the trim and my slight wiggle room on the stand turned into a solid .5" gap on the sides and the wife was not pleased. So picked up some scrap pine and trimmed it to fill in the hole. Painted it and problem solved.
doors:
Finished with side trim:
My oscars and green terror are HIGHLY interested and eager to get into their new home. Hoping to wash the pool filter sand tomorrow and fill her up. I am still unsure if I will do a fishless cycle or not. I think the oscars are hearty enough to make the move especially since I would move the lava rock and filter with them so as to quickly seed the new tank. Add in some chemical accellerant and I think they will be fine. Thoughts?
