Which of these, if any, 2x6s should I use for stand?

[cvrle1]

I am in the planning stages of building a stand for my 120G tank (4x2x2) I will be using popular RocketEngineer's plans for it



It will be built out of 2x6s, but I am not sure which of these should I use, if any:

1) Spruce/Pine/Fir millstead SPF kiln dry 2x6





2) Micro Pro Sienna Treated Wood 2x6




It is much darker than picture makes it out to be, it is pretty much dark brown color

3) Something else that I can find in Home Depot in US (2 above were from Canadian HD)

Thanks for the help

[mcgyvr]

The first regular cheapest 2x6 pine is fine..
(Hurts me to say that its such overkill)

[cvrle1]

Originally Posted by mcgyvr

The first regular cheapest 2x6 pine is fine..
(Hurts me to say that its such overkill)

Thanks mcgyvr. Which part do you think it is overkill? Wood type, 2x6, plan that I want to use, or all of the above haha

if you have any better ideas, please do share. One of the reasons I posted up. Would rather change my mind for good reasons that waste money if not need be.

Forgot to mention, I plan on skinning it with some sort of plywood, and sealing it as well.

[mcgyvr]

A stand built with 2x6 is such overkill.. You can support 20 x 120g tanks on it..
2x4s are fine..

Rockets plans are overkill but fine for those that dont know how to build with plywood alone or other standard cabinetry methods

[cvrle1]

Originally Posted by mcgyvr

A stand built with 2x6 is such overkill.. You can support 20 x 120g tanks on it..
2x4s are fine..

Rockets plans are overkill but fine for those that dont know how to build with plywood alone or other standard cabinetry methods

Thanks again. Your 2nd sentence is me more or less, as I havent really had too much experience with cabinetry. I built some really basic shelves before and few other small things, but am nowhere proficient for sure. Just as a piece of mind I may bite the bullet and use 2x6. It will probably make me sleep better at night if noting else

[billdogg]

I'm with mcgyvr on this. 2x4's are more than enough for a 120. 2x6's just waste very valuable space inside the stand where your sump and all the ancillary equipment will go.

The RE design is great for people starting out with basic carpentry. Take the time to choose the straightest pieces with the fewest knots. Get a couple more than you think you'll need. Then take them home and let them dry out for a couple weeks (or more) by laying them flat with pieces of scrap under them so that air can circulate around them. This is called "sticking" your lumber. At least one of them will probably twist or warp as it dries. That's why it's a very important step. If it twists after you've built the stand you'll have troubles with the stand itself. Use glue and screws (deck screws will work well) to assemble. Screws alone might seem like more than enough but in reality are there only to hold things together until the glue dries. I would suggest using a piece of plywood on the bottom so that you can then seal the inside of the stand to help prevent any inevitable spills from escaping to the floor around the tank.

Good luck and post pictures!

[jambon222]

Originally Posted by cvrle1

I am in the planning stages of building a stand for my 120G tank (4x2x2) I will be using popular RocketEngineer's plans for it



It will be built out of 2x6s, but I am not sure which of these should I use, if any:

1) Spruce/Pine/Fir millstead SPF kiln dry 2x6





2) Micro Pro Sienna Treated Wood 2x6




It is much darker than picture makes it out to be, it is pretty much dark brown color

3) Something else that I can find in Home Depot in US (2 above were from Canadian HD)

Thanks for the help

I would use the plywood for the sides and 2x4s for the inside framework. Reason being... plywood is more stable than 2x4s. The 2x4 material could expand and contract with relative humidity... a plywood top which rests on the side/back skin with a sturdy frame IMHO would be very strong.
The trick is to have it square, level and well fastened together.. screwed and glued.

Sent from my SM-A520W using Tapatalk

[Misled]

Here's mine before skinning. Yes, it's still overkill.

[Misled]

Skinned and painted.

[cvrle1]

Thanks again everyone for all the help. Much appreciated. When i go in, I will do what I can to find straightest ones possible, and then leave then for few weeks to see if they warp. I was working with some nosings for my stairs few months ago, and one of them did precisely that. I was going to ask how to go about that, so glad to see that billdogg mentioned it.

I will take one of their 78" levels and use that to see how straight each 2x6 (2x4) is, along with eye test, and find straightest ones I could. Same with plywood when I get to that point. It will take some time I am sure, but should save me headaches when I start building it.

I am sure I will get a lot of strange looks and few questions from employees, but whatever.

I will start up a build thread once things actually start up, and I am sure I will have many more questions for all of you.

[billdogg]

Just sighting down the two sides will tell you right away if they are acceptable. Plan on looking at 30 to buy 10. No one will even give you a second glance. It happens every day.

After letting them dry for a couple weeks, if you know someone with a jointer you can them mill them down a little and get perfectly flat and square lumber to work with. If you don't happen to know anyone, call your local Woodworks or other woodworking store and they can put you in touch with someone who can do it for you for a nominal fee.

I'd happily do it for a couple 6packs of good beer. None of that mass produced pee water!

[boojumsnark25]

I just got done building a stand and canopy for a new 125 setup and used 2x6s for the upper frame (thread here)

It is absolutely overkill, but when that much weight is involved what does 5-10 extra dollars for a couple 2x6s rather than 2x4s hurt? Only drawback I could see is if you're trying to wedge a sump in there and those couple inches made a difference, but I'm plumbing down to the basement for my sump so I wasn't too concerned.

Agreed about having to dig through a whole pile of lumber to find a couple good pieces, and no one will look twice. I just eyeballed each piece - if you hold it away from you you can usually see if it is badly warped. My front piece ended up with a decent twist that I didn't see when I bought it, but I was able to bring it flush with a couple squeeze clamps

I'm not sure how important sticking the lumber will be if you go with the first picture - that's kiln dried and I've never found kiln dried wood to need any time to dry out

Good luck!

[cvrle1]

Originally Posted by billdogg

Just sighting down the two sides will tell you right away if they are acceptable. Plan on looking at 30 to buy 10. No one will even give you a second glance. It happens every day.

After letting them dry for a couple weeks, if you know someone with a jointer you can them mill them down a little and get perfectly flat and square lumber to work with. If you don't happen to know anyone, call your local Woodworks or other woodworking store and they can put you in touch with someone who can do it for you for a nominal fee.

I'd happily do it for a couple 6packs of good beer. None of that mass produced pee water!

I dont know anyone with jointer, but I may know a person that does. Will check with him when time comes. And I would gladly take you up on your offer, however west coast of Canada is a bit too far away from you I'm afraid. As for beer, I know exactly what you mean. I dont remember last time I had north american made "beer", for a good reason haha

[billdogg]

Originally Posted by cvrle1

I dont know anyone with jointer, but I may know a person that does. Will check with him when time comes. And I would gladly take you up on your offer, however west coast of Canada is a bit too far away from you I'm afraid. As for beer, I know exactly what you mean. I dont remember last time I had north american made "beer", for a good reason haha

The last really good beer I had was in Moncton, NB. The pumphouse brewery if you're ever over that way. Excellent stout!

This is one of my "souvenirs" from our trip

[callsign4223]

Originally Posted by boojumsnark25

I just got done building a stand and canopy for a new 125 setup and used 2x6s for the upper frame (thread here)

It is absolutely overkill, but when that much weight is involved what does 5-10 extra dollars for a couple 2x6s rather than 2x4s hurt? Only drawback I could see is if you're trying to wedge a sump in there and those couple inches made a difference, but I'm plumbing down to the basement for my sump so I wasn't too concerned.

Good luck!

It's really not about the price at all. It's all about the space consideration. I built my original stand with 2x6 and almost couldn't get the skimmer collection cup out between the stand and the edge of the sump. Depending on whether the sump will be located in the stand and the preferred stand height a 2x6 can cause alot of problems.

I read a post once that basically stated for every horizontal unsupported foot you wanted a one inch thickness of board. So for a 4 foot tank use a 2x4, for a 6 foot tank use a 2x6, etc. I have a 6 foot tank with no middle brace and used 2x6 and everything is working fabulously. If I were to go longer than 6 feet I would probably incorporate a center brace, but that is obviously far afield from the original question.


One thing I would say for the OP, stay away from pressure treated lumber in your stand. It's basically got chemicals forced into the wood to prevent decay when used outdoors. It's not something I would want anywhere near a fish tank.

[boojumsnark25]

Originally Posted by callsign4223

It's really not about the price at all. It's all about the space consideration. I built my original stand with 2x6 and almost couldn't get the skimmer collection cup out between the stand and the edge of the sump. Depending on whether the sump will be located in the stand and the preferred stand height a 2x6 can cause alot of problems.

I read a post once that basically stated for every horizontal unsupported foot you wanted a one inch thickness of board. So for a 4 foot tank use a 2x4, for a 6 foot tank use a 2x6, etc. I have a 6 foot tank with no middle brace and used 2x6 and everything is working fabulously. If I were to go longer than 6 feet I would probably incorporate a center brace, but that is obviously far afield from the original question.


One thing I would say for the OP, stay away from pressure treated lumber in your stand. It's basically got chemicals forced into the wood to prevent decay when used outdoors. It's not something I would want anywhere near a fish tank.

Agreed - that's why I made it a point to mention in my post that I built the stand with a basement sump in mind. Since i don't need a ton of space inside, I felt the 5-10 extra dollars for 2x6's was well worth the reinforcement. If I was planning to throw the sump inside the stand, my approach would have been to plan out my equipment first and see how much clearance I needed for that equipment. As long as I still had room, I'd probably still go with 2x6's. Just my take, everyone has a difference preference!