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Wood advice needed for aquarium stand and canopy

txdyna65

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Ok need a little help from you wood working gurus.

Im getting a 180 gallon aquarium, 6' X 2' X 2' and will build the stand and canopy myself.
For the framing of the stand and canopy I plan to use regular framing wood but for actually skinning it out I wanted to use cedar planks. My main reason for this is because I have a bunch of rough cut cedar and I like the look of it. What I dont know is how well this will hold up in an saltwater aquarium environment, mainly the canopy.
Would I need to put some kind of finish on the cedar, inside and out of the canopy itself, or is cedar just a bad choice all together? Id really like to use it to skin the outside of the stand and canopy but if its not going to hold up or warp and such I'll go another route.

I know I could probably ask this on a fish forum but thought Id ask here first since this is where I spend most of my online time at.

On another note, I finished out the inside of a metal building 16 X 32' about 6 years ago in this same cedar and its held up perfectly. I know its not the same as being around an aquarium even though we have really high humidity here.
 

txdyna65

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bump.....no wood working gurus with advice?
 

alshgs

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I'll ask my husband and get back with you. He's built 2 fish tank stands and 3 other pieces of furniture just this summer
 

finchly

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Go to plantedtank.net >specific aspects of a planted tank > DIY
 

Aubrey

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You'll need to seal it several times.

I would check out a salt water forum about the canopy to double check.
 

JLcribber

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Cedar has a natural preservative in it. That's the reason they use them for things like roof shingles/shakes because they don't rot. If you want more protection then as you mentioned you could "seal" it with any number of products because the wood is rather porous.
 

txdyna65

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Thanks for the link finchly I will go check that out.

@JLcribber John, that was another reason for using the cedar was that it was so porous.
I guess I can always go to HD or Lowes and see what they have for extra sealant.
I built a humidor and used spanish cedar for the interior which is different than aromatic cedar, but like I said
I already have a bunch of this cedar and would love to use it for this project.

Aubrey I cant wait to get this tank and get it going. My previous tank was 100g, so a good step up for me :)
 

finchly

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@Jaguar I've had tanks, planted ones even, since I was 11. At my highest I had 13 of them. My 125 gallon was my pride and joy....we moved down to FL with 200 fish....the water here is different and I can't get things under control.

So I am trying to sell my last tank, a 90 gallon. :(
 

mstomcat65

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I used to have a 120 gallon seahorse tank with live rock that was my pride and joy
 

txdyna65

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@JLcribber or any other carpenters I have a place in my house for the new aquarium to go, but I also have a 16 X 32' mancave building on my land I was thinking of maybe putting the tank
in there. What I dont know is if the floor would support it or if it needed more bracing.
The building was built on 4X4's cemented in the ground with double 2X8 runners between each attached with 1/2" X 6" lag bolts, two to a board per side per 4X4 if that makes sense.
They then put a 1 1/4" plywood floor on top of this. The 4X4s on the short side are 36" centers and the 4X4s on the long side are 44" centers. (wasn't easy measuring this stuff lol)
Im attaching a couple of pictures to hopefully give a better idea. The perimeter over the 4X4's are walls so I can put it over those, but I can position the tank like in the picture to be supported
by 4 of the 2X8's. Getting under there and adding bracing would be a major chore so Im hoping it wont need it, but a 180 gallon tank, sump and stand with water is pretty heavy.
I did join a couple of fish forums and asked there, but no replies yet so I thought Id ask here.

floor frame 1.JPG floor fram with stand and tank.JPG
 

JLcribber

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The building was built on 4X4's cemented in the ground

I assume these 4x4's cemented into the ground individually. (each post in its own hole with a little concrete) The structure is solid enough to hold the tank but that's a very big tank. The shear weight of it is going to make that floor sag and go down over time.

When you put weight on top of a leg, the leg creates a point load. A skinny pointed leg will just go down because the weight is not distributed over a wide enough area. Put the same weight on a leg with a flat 1 foot round base and that leg will not go down because the weight is distributed.

That shed was not designed to carry that kind of weight so it will move (over time). Your drawing shows all the weight on basically 6 posts. To help prevent settling the real solution would be to distribute the weight more evenly over more legs.
 

Aubrey

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@Jaguar I've had tanks, planted ones even, since I was 11. At my highest I had 13 of them. My 125 gallon was my pride and joy....we moved down to FL with 200 fish....the water here is different and I can't get things under control.

So I am trying to sell my last tank, a 90 gallon. :(
That stinks. I'm sorry :(
 

txdyna65

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@JLcribber Thanks for responding John
Yes the posts are all cemented individually, the guy who built it wanted it off the ground because its in a lower area that floods a little.
it has insulated walls ac and heat.
When you say "distribute the weight more evenly over more legs" Are you talking about in the rest of the room or the tank itself?
I have other things in the room that are heavy, not 2800 pounds heavy like an aquarium but heavy.
I could move the tank out another 24" and it would be sitting on 3 posts for half of it, but thats not ideal at all.
What about square cement blocks with a 4X4 under the 2X8s where the tank is sitting?
They wouldnt be cemented in the ground like the 4x4 posts but would help with the sagging.
When you walk around the building there is no bounce at all, you can even jump up and down in there with no bounce.
The 1 1/4" plywood with the cemented 4x4's really make it solid. But I get what you are talking about with the shear weight.

Ive actually had my 1k lb motorcycle in there....but thats another story and one my wife doesnt like to hear lol
 

JLcribber

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The structure is probably adequate enough but over time that much weight will have an effect.

The way to distribute the load farther would be to build a platform. Nail two 2x6 together to form a beam on each side that spans from wall to wall so all the supports share the load. Cover that with some 3/4" plywood. Size it so the weight bearing part/legs of the stand sit on top of the 2x6.

You'll have a kind of raised 6" floor/platform on one end.

IMG_3396.JPG
 

txdyna65

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@JLcribber

Ok I understand what you are saying, unfortunately there are walls and the box you showed wouldnt be resting on anything on the ends.
The 3 double 2x8's in the middle would still be getting all the weight.
I could build the stand longer so that it rests on all 6 of the 2X8's and my other idea was to go under the building and add bracing to each 2X8 in the middle area. (see pic)
Maybe use 16"X16" cement blocks with 4x4 posts like in the pic, or use the blocks and use 6 metal jack posts, like the kind people use in basements to jack the floor up for
support or sagging.

floor with braces.JPG
 

txdyna65

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@JLcribber

Here is my other idea using the jack posts.
I could use a 4x4 eight feet long and span it under the middle 3 sections and use jack posts under each section.
I took the end 2x8 off for better viewing.

jack post bracing.JPG

This image is one I found on the net to give me my bright idea lol
CIMG084.jpg

What do you think about these options?
 

JLcribber

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Yup. That works fine. Make the pads as big (wide) as possible. Distribute that weight. If there's room to work under there then that's the best way.
 

JLcribber

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You can't pour those footings on top of black dirt or they will just sink. You have to dig past the black dirt to either clay or whatever is beneath it.
 
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