Some questions about a idea i have

[BigLinc]

been planning on making a 400+ gallon plywood tank for my oscars and red tail cat but with some health issues lately i wont have the funds for everything to construct the tank so ive decided to make a "pool" of sorts with either 4x4s or 6x6s with pond liner, which i get for free so that saves a cost there

my question is if i make this say 8x4x4 would 4x4s be strong enough? i know the 6x6s would be plenty but i would like to save where i can so i can focus more on filtration

appreciate any feed back

thanks, Paul

 

[koop171]

I would do 2x6 You'll need more but they will be a lot straighter then any 4x4 (notoriously wavy) and 6x6 is overkill. I'll try to find the thread of ......... that has done what I think you're talking about doing.

Edit: found the link.....

http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=204988 Very simple very soild idea.

 

[hybridtheoryd16]

Most people use 2x4's because for the price 2 2x4's are cheaper than 1 4x4.


oops i guess I should have opened the link KOOP posted. But yes that is the ticket.

 

[rnocera]

That link he posted would work for you, but it really seems to be overkill to me.

If you're going to build stud walls instead of stacking 2x4s on top of each other, 2x4s themselves should be fine in 18" intervals, but I'd bump them up to 12" intervals. Also, if you're thinking about a 4x4, sandwiching two 2x4s together & screwing & gluing them is stronger than a single 4x4. You get a final product that is the same size, but the 2x4s are stronger & straighter, as well as cheaper. We use these in stage productions all the time because of this.