Aluminum stand 210 gallon advice
 

I was getting an aluminum stand built for my aqueon 210 gallon tank. I went to a welder with plans of a steel stand but he talked me into an aluminum one. After hours of internet research and trying a bunch of those engineering calulators I am still not confident that the stand will hold the weight. The welder says it won' t be a problem but I like more than one person's opinion. The stand is being made of 2 x 2 x 1/4 aluminum square tube. The front needs to be open for easy access for sump removal due to its a custom 60 in sump.

I'm 99% sure it will be totally fine...

If you post the step file of that 3d model I'll happily throw loads on it in my FEA program and post the results.. (well.. assuming it was modeled correctly)..
I may have some time to model it up though..
But I'm sure its going to be totally fine..
1/4" tube is more than sufficient though..

If the stand is open with no vertical members mid run it won't matter what it is. The metal will deflect more than the glass so the actual supporting member will the the wall of the tank.

I don't have that as a 3d model cause I got the plans from steel stand picture but I appreciate it. I've been rackinf RACER: THERE is one vertical support in the rear of the stand that I drew in. Will also be putting plywood on top and skinning.

Super fast attempt (and I missed your rear vertical support which really isn't needed but will help)
But without front gussets I show a .060" deflection.. With gussest its reduced in half.
Not a problem at all IMO..

Note that these do not show any interaction that will happen between the tank and stand.. So even this result is exaggerated over real life..

and for fun..
gross exaggeration of the displacement..

Thankyou very much mc for running that... is that amount of deflection bad? I rather be safe than sorry.

That's my nightmare come true now I am imagining 210 gallons of water in my newly finished basement....lol

I don't think that deflection is anything to worry about and like I said its not totally real either.. that was a VERY quick evaluation.. and with FEA garbage in = garbage out..

I would add gussets to the front if at all possible just for the extra warm fuzzy feeling....

I would not worry about that stand not being strong enough for your tank at all..

Legal disclaimer: This is the internet.. You can't hold me to squat.. :)

Thanks ... and I love the disclaimer ..will post pictures the. Stand is done

Like he said, that doesn't include the interaction with the tank itself. The side panes are much stronger in that direction than the stand itself. There is no issue here, as long as the top surface is in plane.

I went through trying to determine what "good enough" was for deflection on a stand a few months ago. What I finally decided to do was compare deflection between the Rocket Engineer stand for the same dimensions and my intended stand. In the case of your design you could just compare the stiffness of your beam section compared to the appropriate size dimensional lumber. Equal or greater and you'll probably be fine. Less and it's your judgement call.

Also a handy way to put a hand calculation behind the FEA for validation.

Here it is... It looks good to me...

Looks good :)