enough support

V

vthondaboi

Here is a pic of my work from this evening, including a break to buy a new drill since my 10-15 year old Makita broke. OMFG Makita's are $$$, luckily they had a clearance sale on a nice Rigid at HD.

I'll be adding one more support bar between the two lengthwise pieces. The wood is completely 2x6 as of now. I also plan on adding a piece of birch plywood to the top. On top of that is a pink piece of foam then sits the 115G Marc sump.

Is that enough support? Anything else I could do to improve? I'm guessing the sump shouldn't weigh more than 1000 pounds with water.
 
Are you putting the sump on the top or underneath on what looks like a potential platform?

The sump weighs at least 100lbs empty, right? Water is roughly 8 lbs per gallon, plus any sand, LR, and equipment. If it goes on top, I wouldn't trust it because of the way the uprights barely suppoert the top that overhangs. If you were to wrap the uprights with four 2x6 all the way around to support the top, it would be far stronger.

Plus you can use that new drill more.
 
No, horizontally to wrap around all four sides, screwed into the legs so the new 2x6's fully touch the top overhanging frame.
 
If you do that to the top area you will need to also apply i to the bottom of the stand so the plywood will be flush.
personally I think the 2x6's are way over kill.
 
Yea sump is going on top of this and will sit right next to my 180G.

I do have some acans and zos but not sure if I'm ready to try and prop them yet.
 
It looks much better to me now. The centerpiece isn't all that strong, as its weakest point is the screws that hold it up, but I don't know that I have a pretty solution...

I'd like to see you take out the smaller blocks at each end that holds up the middle cross brace, and put a 2x4 or 2x6 all the way across, mounted on its edge rather than flatwise. Looking from the end(if there wasn't a frame in the way) it would look like a "T" with the flat cross brace and a 2x6 cross piece beneath it. You could screw the top piece into it a few times, and screw through the outer frame (or collar) to make it very very sturdy.
 
:lol: I'll drop everything and go right now. Oops. Too late. Home Depot is closed right now.
 
I don't think the center brace takes much weight, if its a glass tank with trim. Go to a LFS and check out an Oceanic pine stand. Any board on edge there has a chance to be in the way and reduce your working height by 4 or 6 inches.
 
This is all acrylic, and he needs to support the entire unit evenly.
 
While thinking it over I can't go with your suggestion in its entirety because the pieces are also glued on with titebond! Not sure how ugly it'd ge trying to get it off. I'll just add another piece of support underneath the two small pieces....
 
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