DIY aquarium stand

Heya guys,
I am thinking about building a stand for my aquarium and my future upgraded
tank so I was wondering what kind of wood would be best for it? Like for protection against water and evaporation from my sump and what not. Also
what kind of finishing should I use to further protect the wood from water?

 

Check the DIY postings here on the site. Telgar has an awesome thread of a DIY stand.

 

depending on the size of tank , you can start with simple 2x4's. for the corners make them into the shape of an L. if its a big tank , can always seriously beef up and use 4x4's/ but personally not needed as its overkill. for horizontals, use 2x4's on their side ,as theres more strength than on their "flat" edge. simple deck screws , 2 1\2 inch can be used to secure it all together. or use the same length of a lag screw predrilled to do the same. some bracing or center posts might be needed in regards to length again .

guy

 

oh yeah, I already have a design in mind. And I know the dimensions of the wood I will be getting. My only issue is what Type of wood. Like Pine, Oak etc...would be suitable for an aquarium stand do to the amount of water that is being precipitated out.

 

well , personally basic construcrion would be spruce. thats the carcass. skin it with whatever wood is your preference. and just make sure, more so the inside if your is treated with some sort of coating is resistant to salt water. a marine varathane works well. the outside, go nuts to whatever works for you.for mine , i had a metal stand and just skinned it with pine. a little decorative. lol the worlds kinda your oyster if you know what you want to do.

 

common 2x4's are fine, just dont use anything thats been pressure treated. It's meant for outdoor use and will twist and crack as the reletively low humidity indoors dries it out.

skin the outside with plywood, you can get it with one side already sanded in 1/4" to 3/4" widths that are suitable for paint or stain.
Add some decorative trim to the edges and corners for a nice finished look.

good luck

 

is there anyway to tell whether its been pressure treated? I plan on going to homedepot to pick some up.

 

the wood will have a green tint to it, and it will cost more than the non treated wood.
If in doubt just ask any of the guys that work there.

 

Alright, I hope the staff will be knowledgeable there =X. Just one more question. I was actually planning on making a stand similar to telgars but instead of using 4x4 for the center , I was gunna use 2x4. This should be fine right? Oh and since I am using a glass tank, how should the surface of my stand be (where the stand sits) should I put like a flat piece of plywood over it and just stain it, or should I leave a hole and just have the stand hold the edges of the tank?

 

what size tank is this for? If your following my stand build the center brace is not needed at all for anything under 6' in length.

The tank should sit solidly on top of the stand or you risk stress failure of the seams. personnaly I would bring the plywood over the top edge by 2" and then add the trim with a 1" overlap to be even with the bottom trim on the tank so it hides the faux woodgrain finish.... but thats just me