Building my 106 gallon tank

[OzyMelb]

Here is my attempt to build a 106 tank stand. The tank dimensions are 180cm x 45cm x 60cm built using 10mm glass. I plan to do a tropical setup with some aqua scaping. I haven't thought of the fish Id like to keep, suggestions are welcome and appreciated.

Tank design

After reading the posts here I believe that the right way of building a stand would be to ensure that the weight of the aquarium is held up by the wood and not on the screws. So I came up with the design where the entire weight is stacked on the vertical pillars.

Constraints
Miss agreed to keep fish tank in the family if it matched the rest of the decor which happens to be white gloss

Materials used

Wood 90cm x 3.5cm
90cm x 90cm

Laminated chip board

Vinyl wrap gloss doors

Screws
8g x 60 mm

Below is the cut pieces that I laid out before the build.

 

[OzyMelb]

Here is the completed sides you can see the stacking. Unfortunately I wasn't able to do a step by step picture upload Feedback is much appreciated, will this be able to hold the weight of the tank?

 

[OzyMelb]

Here is a close up of the stacking structure. I think I need the cross bracing at the back given the structure is all vertical. Ideas thoughts anyone?

 

[rtate]

looks nice and solid fella !! imo like you say some cross bracing would help and maybe a bit more front to back supports at the ends ? as it is i will hold the wight of the tank you want to put on it but i think it will sway a lil bit with out extra bracing .

 

[Oscar Mike]

With 6 2x4 and 4 4x4 supports that stand is definitely strong enough to hold your tank. One thing that concerns me is the way the 2x4s overlap since the vertical supports are facing in, which means each side of the horizontal frame pieces are only sitting on .75'' of wood. I would have used solid boards for the top frame, but those 4x4s will prevent the tank from toppling if one of the 2x4s did split somehow so I wouldn't worry about it. Some additional front to back supports on the ends and in the center (between the bottom frame) would be a good idea tho, and cross bracing wouldn't hurt if u have extra wood

 

[OzyMelb]

Okay Ive added a few cross braces and screwed in the top bits couldn't do much else today. @KingOfKings did not understand what you meant by the vertical supports are facing in, which means each side of the horizontal frame pieces are only sitting on .75'' of wood can you explain as the horizontal frame piece covers the entire pillar, Ive included the picture of that as well previously?


Does the internal structure need to be painted?

 

[OzyMelb]

I made some good progress today, which meant a trip to the hardware store managed to make it just before closing time. I did make a small alteration to the bottom part of the stand which should help support the lateral force. Also after more reading on this forum decided to cover the back with plywood as a means to support the lateral forces. Id rather over build and have a good nights sleep than to under build.

Also added plywood to the top of the stand. I'm quite happy with the structure and sturdiness at this stage given its my first attempt to build a stand. I will see if I can add some brackets to it later on

Do you guys think I will need to double the vertical support in the middle ?

 

[Oscar Mike]

I was talking about this
But after closer inspection I just realized those are pencil marks lol. For some reason I thought the horizontal frame was divided and staggered below the top pieces at first but the way u did it looks perfect. That stand is already way overbuilt tho so doubling up on the vertical supports would just be a waste of wood. On a 5ft tank u could have gone with the four 4x4s and two 2x4s (and still supported a tank twice as tall) so you're more than good with 6 of them

 

[OzyMelb]

I was talking about this View attachment 930178
But after closer inspection I just realized those are pencil marks lol. For some reason I thought the horizontal frame was divided and staggered below the top pieces at first but the way u did it looks perfect. That stand is already way overbuilt tho so doubling up on the vertical supports would just be a waste of wood. On a 5ft tank u could have gone with the four 4x4s and two 2x4s (and still supported a tank twice as tall) so you're more than good with 6 of them

Yup they are pencil marks - haha. Thanks for your input none the less. So I am doing the finishing bits finally.

 

[bigcatfan]

Looks good! That thing will hold a lot more than 106g haha .