Casters under a 55gal?

Posledni Czar · 03/25/2021, 01:00 AM

No... I'm not crazy, at least I don't think so...

I'm thinking about putting casters on the wood stand for my 55 gal. I do not intend to move the tank full, but I would like to make it easier to move. I will be moving this tank off its current metal stand this weekend onto a wooden stand, but I also know that I will be moving out of this house in the next couple months, and am thinking of ways to make that move easier.

The tank: this is an old-school 55 gal with the thicker glass (0.25" I think) and a large glass brace across the top. It is a freshwater planted tank that has been set up since 2004 and it is thoroughly grown in. When moving the tank in the past, I have drained the water down to about 1" but left the inhabitants, plants, and substrate in the tank. Man was is heavy to move!

The plan: My thought is to augment the stand with a piece of thicker plywood screwed into the bottom to reinforce it, as well as to provide a floor so to speak. Next I am going to screw a 2x4 frame with two crossbars at 16" and 32" along the long side. This is what I plan to mount the casters to, 300+lb rated casters from Lowes probably. I'm planning to have a caster in each corner, with two locking on opposite corners, as well as a caster where the crossbars meet the outer frame and 1 in the middle of each crossbar for a total of 10 casters. I will also trim the top of the stand to prevent the tank from sliding off of the stand, as well as trim the bottom to cover up the casters. My thought is that with a combined rating of 3000lbs, these casters will be more than sufficient to support the tank when filled at approximately 600-700lbs.

I do still intend to move the tank with an inch or less of water and the substrate, but I feel that this would make it much easier on me. This upcoming move will be about 18hrs driving distance, probably with an overnight stop, so I would at least partially refill the tank while loaded in the trailer and run a battery powered air pump. The current inhabitants are a couple Corydoras and a massive colony of cherry shrimp. I might try to catch the Corys, but that may prove to be a futile endeavor.

Please tell me why I'm wrong in considering casters, and possibly how to make this plan better or propose a different solution before I go dump a bunch of money on materials?

Vinny Kreyling · 03/25/2021, 09:12 AM

I think you could be in for trouble if you hit something by a caster while moving.
Certainly hope you do not plan on using the stand while traveling, that's a recipe for disaster. You will need to keep the water warm so a cooler would be better with heat packs. A furniture dolly would be better IMHO.

Sk8r · 03/25/2021, 12:57 PM

No. 8 lbs per gallon x 55 = 440 lbs. That's a lot of weight for casters, and a big disaster. I manage an 800 lb tank with teflon glides under it. And reduce the water level to 8" in a temporary drain to a barrel when I do that.

badbreath · 03/25/2021, 05:44 PM

I did that with my 90 gallon as empty as I could make it...home depot buckets came in handy

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freakaccident · 03/25/2021, 07:56 PM

Holy crap! 10 casters? If the stand is solid you could sit that on 4 HD casters and never worry. If you are worried about your stand bowing in the middle then use 6. A 55g is not very long. Just brace your stand well.

Those HD casters are no joke in what they can hold up. I store and move around an entire 3800lb car on 16 of them. Moves like butter.

My welding table has 4 of those Lowes ones and I could probably shove a small elephant around on it.

Vinny Kreyling · 03/26/2021, 07:59 AM

True but hit an obstruction with a wheel while moving & you're in trouble, especially with water.

JohnnyVan1963 · 03/28/2021, 10:56 AM

I was able to mount two pairs of refrigerator moving rollers last year. The tank is a IM 40.
I can move the tank while full, away from the wall for cleaning and maintenance. Takes about twenty pounds of pull. Rolls very smoothly on tile.
Regards
JV

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03/25/2021, 01:00 AM	#1
Posledni Czar Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: SoCO Posts: 38	Casters under a 55gal? No... I'm not crazy, at least I don't think so... I'm thinking about putting casters on the wood stand for my 55 gal. I do not intend to move the tank full, but I would like to make it easier to move. I will be moving this tank off its current metal stand this weekend onto a wooden stand, but I also know that I will be moving out of this house in the next couple months, and am thinking of ways to make that move easier. The tank: this is an old-school 55 gal with the thicker glass (0.25" I think) and a large glass brace across the top. It is a freshwater planted tank that has been set up since 2004 and it is thoroughly grown in. When moving the tank in the past, I have drained the water down to about 1" but left the inhabitants, plants, and substrate in the tank. Man was is heavy to move! The plan: My thought is to augment the stand with a piece of thicker plywood screwed into the bottom to reinforce it, as well as to provide a floor so to speak. Next I am going to screw a 2x4 frame with two crossbars at 16" and 32" along the long side. This is what I plan to mount the casters to, 300+lb rated casters from Lowes probably. I'm planning to have a caster in each corner, with two locking on opposite corners, as well as a caster where the crossbars meet the outer frame and 1 in the middle of each crossbar for a total of 10 casters. I will also trim the top of the stand to prevent the tank from sliding off of the stand, as well as trim the bottom to cover up the casters. My thought is that with a combined rating of 3000lbs, these casters will be more than sufficient to support the tank when filled at approximately 600-700lbs. I do still intend to move the tank with an inch or less of water and the substrate, but I feel that this would make it much easier on me. This upcoming move will be about 18hrs driving distance, probably with an overnight stop, so I would at least partially refill the tank while loaded in the trailer and run a battery powered air pump. The current inhabitants are a couple Corydoras and a massive colony of cherry shrimp. I might try to catch the Corys, but that may prove to be a futile endeavor. Please tell me why I'm wrong in considering casters, and possibly how to make this plan better or propose a different solution before I go dump a bunch of money on materials?

03/25/2021, 09:12 AM	#2
Vinny Kreyling Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Miller Place, NY Posts: 7,206	I think you could be in for trouble if you hit something by a caster while moving. Certainly hope you do not plan on using the stand while traveling, that's a recipe for disaster. You will need to keep the water warm so a cooler would be better with heat packs. A furniture dolly would be better IMHO. __________________ 250 gallon mixed reef, 2 Reefbreeder's Photon V 2, Deepwater BLDC 12, DAS EX-3 Skimmer, MTC mini cal, 2-3/4" Sea Swirls, Aquacontroller & 6 Tunze pumps.

03/25/2021, 12:57 PM	#3
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	No. 8 lbs per gallon x 55 = 440 lbs. That's a lot of weight for casters, and a big disaster. I manage an 800 lb tank with teflon glides under it. And reduce the water level to 8" in a temporary drain to a barrel when I do that. __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

03/26/2021, 07:59 AM	#6
Vinny Kreyling Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Miller Place, NY Posts: 7,206	True but hit an obstruction with a wheel while moving & you're in trouble, especially with water. __________________ 250 gallon mixed reef, 2 Reefbreeder's Photon V 2, Deepwater BLDC 12, DAS EX-3 Skimmer, MTC mini cal, 2-3/4" Sea Swirls, Aquacontroller & 6 Tunze pumps.

03/25/2021, 05:44 PM	#4
badbreath Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Garden Grove 92845 Posts: 536	I did that with my 90 gallon as empty as I could make it...home depot buckets came in handy Sent from my Pixel 4 using Tapatalk

03/25/2021, 07:56 PM	#5
freakaccident Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2002 Posts: 56	Holy crap! 10 casters? If the stand is solid you could sit that on 4 HD casters and never worry. If you are worried about your stand bowing in the middle then use 6. A 55g is not very long. Just brace your stand well. Those HD casters are no joke in what they can hold up. I store and move around an entire 3800lb car on 16 of them. Moves like butter. My welding table has 4 of those Lowes ones and I could probably shove a small elephant around on it.

03/28/2021, 10:56 AM	#7
JohnnyVan1963 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2015 Posts: 5	I was able to mount two pairs of refrigerator moving rollers last year. The tank is a IM 40. I can move the tank while full, away from the wall for cleaning and maintenance. Takes about twenty pounds of pull. Rolls very smoothly on tile. Regards JV Sent from my Pixel 3 using Tapatalk