120 Stand and Canopy Questions

[VA Reefdog]

I recently bought a used 120 gallon tank that came with a stand but no canopy.

The stand is wood (plywood?)- not particle board and seems to be one made to go with the tank.  It feels light but seems sturdy.

Here are some pics-

 

 

I will include more pics of stand in followup.

 

So-  would you reinforce or brace it with some extra wood?

 

Second-- does anyone have any plans or drawings or suggestions for making the canopy.  I haven't made one before.   I will probably run LED and T5's so was thinking about 12-14 inch height and probably 1/2 inch plywood?    Any thoughts?

 

Thank you.

Greg 

[VA Reefdog]

More pics-

FIrst is bottom and center brace

Second is bracing at bottom tank frame

Third is inside from back

 

Thanks

Greg

 

 

Edited March 23, 2019 by VA Reefdog
pics in wrong order

[Origami]

The stand is a bit light at 1/2", but it will hold. This is a common, commercial stand design. Most of the weight is borne on the uprights. Is the beam across the front notched into the center upright (or how is it attached)? How is the back panel constructed?

[VA Reefdog]

There is no back panel--it is open in back.

Front is not notched.   Here are some more pics. 

 

First pic is the back of the stand.

Next pic is of the front support between the doors and the center brace (you can see the tank on top).  

 

My plan is to just use 1X2 " pine boards-- reinforce 4 corners, and the middle bracing front and back and also just below the side braces (that you can see in the second picture- small piece of wood that the tank bottom trim sits on along with the main wall of the stand). 

 

I figure I will just add this for piece of mind.  I know the stand was designed to hold the 120 gallon tank but it just feels light.

 

Thanks 

Greg

[Origami]

The upright in picture #1 in your first post looks like it's notched into the horizontal member. The back panel is open, but seems to have a post-and-beam structure. The pictures don't show enough of the features that carry the load, though. The sides can carry a tremendous load. Depending upon the type of wood used in the posts, they too can carry a large load under compression. The main question that I'd have is how the beams are connected to the posts and how the load is transferred out to the posts, how much the beams deflect under the expected load and how much margin the design has. 

 

Is the tank load on that bracing block on the side panel, or is the block supporting another piece of wood that is partially supported by the side panel?

 

Peace of mind is important, though. Reinforcing places that you think need it is easy. Be sure to use a waterproof glue (like a urethane glue) and be sure to treat the wood against moisture. Don't use pressure treated wood inside your cabinet unless you can be sure that water that may get on it won't drip back into your sump. The chemicals in PT wood can cause issues downstream.