Metal Stand Fabricator in, or around, Orange County, CA

[FinalBoss]

Can anyone recommend a metal stand fabricator in, or around, Orange County, CA that they've had a good experience with? Looking for roughly 6' x 4' x 18" or so with leveling feet. Also, could use recommendations on stand height for a 4' tall tank going into a house with 8' ceilings. I'm thinking 18", but would love to hear input from the more experienced. Thanks!

 

[jsodwi]

I wouldn’t use adjustable feet on a tank that big. Puts too much stress on the small area of the floor. The more surface area great makes contact the better.

 

[FinalBoss]

I'm on a concrete foundation with laminate on top. Would you recommend shimming straight on the laminate between the stand? Or maybe laminate, piece of sheet plywood, shims, sheet plywood, then metal stand?

 

[pacu mom]

In wall tank? Canopy? Where are the filters/sump or whatever going to be? The higher the stand, the less access you will have to the top of the tank. We went with a 2' high stand for our 4' high tank, so we have 2' above the tank for crawling in and out of the tank. Ours is in wall, and we have a platform behind the tank to access the top of the tank.

I agree with jsodwi about no feet. Here's a pic from a very old MFK thread.

We also went with no feet. Here's a pic before it was powder coated.

 

[jsodwi]

I'm on a concrete foundation with laminate on top. Would you recommend shimming straight on the laminate between the stand? Or maybe laminate, piece of sheet plywood, shims, sheet plywood, then metal stand?

Definitely shim between floor and stand. I’m not a fan of wood shims on big tanks. I’m a metal worker so I use scrap metal for shimming. Depending on how bad the floor is out of level hopefully you won’t need much. But the more floor contact the better

 

[FinalBoss]

Pacu Mom, I've seen your posts. Insane tank! The sump is built into the back of the 6' x 4' x 4' acrylic tank so I don't need access below. No canopy so I'm just trying to determine the best stand height for a 48" tall tank. I'll have a sofa next to it so want optimal viewing both sitting and standing. I'm between 18" to 24" for a total height of 5.5' to 6'.

Jsodwi, thanks for the info. I've browsed your previous posts and it looks like you make metal stands! Too bad you're not closer so I could pay for your expertise. No adjustable feet it is.