DIY 125g tank stand build.

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Ulu said:
It looks like they should be level, by intuition, but that would be incorrect.

One single vertical #3 grade Douglas Fir 2x4, 24" long can carry the entire weight of 1500-2000 lbs.

In fact, if you can keep it dry by painting it so the wood doesn't rot it will bear a load of 4000 pounds.

Let me repeat myself.

One single 2 by 4 can carry twice the weight of your entire tank. You do not need the vertical load capacity of that short 2 by 4. You will already have 10 of them to carry the weight for a capacity of 40,000 lb.

That's a small swimming pool folks.
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I wouldn't say it is incorrect, just unnecessary, total overkill. Like I said, the 2x4's aren't load bearing and it's each to their own. I prefer to have them level, that's me. Instead of one sherman tank I might get two on!!:grinyes:
 
esoxlucius said:
I wouldn't say it is incorrect, just unnecessary, total overkill. Like I said, the 2x4's aren't load bearing and it's each to their own. I prefer to have them level, that's me. Instead of one sherman tank I might get two on!!:grinyes:
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Bc it’s been referenced twice now I have to ask what a Sherman tank is?
 
Babyblue said:
Bc it’s been referenced twice now I have to ask what a Sherman tank is?
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Haha, I bet you're thinking it's some kind of huge fish tank! Think the other type of tank, the ones that go boom, have tracks and are exceedingly heavy. And yes, lumber is that strong that when your stand is built, correctly of course, it may well support a sherman tank!!! Most of us go complete overkill without even knowing it when it comes to stand building and choice of wood to build it.
 
esoxlucius said:
Haha, I bet you're thinking it's some kind of huge fish tank! Think the other type of tank, the ones that go boom, have tracks and are exceedingly heavy. And yes, lumber is that strong that when your stand is built, correctly of course, it may well support a sherman tank!!! Most of us go complete overkill without even knowing it when it comes to stand building and choice of wood to build it.
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I was actually haha but clearly it is not meant for fish...I mean might be cool if you replaced the tank and installed a fish tank inside the tracks where the tank sits haha would we still call it a Sherman tank?

I’m ok with overkill as I’m not very good with craft and ship and need some wiggle room for mistakes haha
 
The phrase "heavy as a sherman tank" is older than I am, and I am old.
I didn't even consider the pun when I wrote that.

D'OH :duh:
 
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esoxlucius said:
I wouldn't say it is incorrect . . .
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Please don't be offended, buddy, but it is fortunate that you do not examine young engineers for a living.

I assure you that it is wrong in several ways. I believe I have described the most important ones already. To understand this you must consider arcane facts about how wood shrinks & splits, plus what tolerances are possible in manufacture and assembly, plus the effects of time.

I hate to be textbook correct at the risk of offending people, but in the spirit of diplomacy, let us simply say that 1" short is better than 1/8" too tall.
 
Ulu said:
Please don't be offended, buddy, but it is fortunate that you do not examine young engineers for a living.

I assure you that it is wrong in several ways. I believe I have described the most important ones already. To understand this you must consider arcane facts about how wood shrinks & splits, plus what tolerances are possible in manufacture and assembly, plus the effects of time.

I hate to be textbook correct at the risk of offending people, but in the spirit of diplomacy, let us simply say that 1" short is better than 1/8" too tall.
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I'm not debating or arguing that 1/8" standing proud is good, because it's not, i agree with you. All I said was that I have mine LEVEL!! with double ply on top and a layer of polystyrene on top of that. If you want to put your engineers hat on and lecture me about how my stand will disintegrate any minute now then feel free, I certainly won't be offended.
 
My point was simply that your situation was not ideal. Not awful.

If I thought your stand was dangerous I would have said so immediately. Structural Engineering is about caring for the safety of other people.

We fall under the state architect's mandate to oversee Life Safety involving structures.

It's very difficult to convey some things, & in spite of my attempts, diplomacy is not my long suit. This is my apology.

I am sorry buddy. You know a lot more about fish than I do and I envy that. We all have our thing you know.
 
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I know where you're coming from pal, like I said before, it's the engineer in you. I can tell how passionate you are about engineering. Engineers don't bodge stuff, perfection is what they strive for, i get that.

If, over the years i'd have had a catalogue of disastrous stand failures through building my stands a tiny bit different to the "ideal" way, then that would be different. But just to show you how accommodating I can be to other options, I promise you that when I build my next stand I will have the vertical corner pieces just shy of level. How's that?

Thanks for your concern, oh and one thing that you are 100% wrong about, hands down, is that I don't know a lot about fish!!! Haha.

PS. And if my new stand fails after a few weeks i'm gonna come looking for you!!! :grinyes:
 
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