45 Gallon custom tank stand with 1x3 or 2x2

[liquidzorch]

Hello. I have just finished renewing a custom tank I bought second hand. Now I am thinking about the stand. I normally go with 2x4s or 2x3s and make a basic stand for the tanks. But Home Depot where I live no longer carries the 2x4s and 3s I used to buy, now they only have pressure treated, that is 4 times as much. And wood is not cheap here in Mexico to begin with.

I have made a stand out of 1x2s for a 15g tank I have and has been pretty solid. And I have read a lot on this forum how everybody overkills with the wood they use. And how simple 3/4 plywood would be sufficient. Quality plywood is sky high expensive here, so that is out of the picture.

My question is, would 1x3s cut it? It would be really 1 inch by 3 inches. I would hate to spend so much extra money on pressure treated 2x4 for a 45g tank. I feel the 1x3s would be better than 2x2s since 2x2s seem to bend more on any side.

The tank dimensions are 60cm x 70cm x 45cm tall. The stand would sit about 100cm high.

[liquidzorch]

I forgot to mention, the wood would be either pine or ponderosa, which is what I can find easily here.

[mcgyvr]

In general asking just about the size of the wood is useless....its how you use it that matters...one could use 4x4s and it falls apart tomorrow..but in general yes a stand could be built of 1x3s and be more than sufficient....
I have a hard time believing that they dont have regular 2x4s though...

[sde1500]

Originally Posted by mcgyvr

In general asking just about the size of the wood is useless....its how you use it that matters...one could use 4x4s and it falls apart tomorrow..but in general yes a stand could be built of 1x3s and be more than sufficient....
I have a hard time believing that they dont have regular 2x4s though...

Heh

He’s right. You can easily make it out of plywood. It’s more about how correctly and well you make it, as opposed to what you use to make it.

[liquidzorch]

Thanks to both of you. Yes, there are no 2x4s except for the pressure treated ones. And the 2x3s I have always used, are no longer being ordered. Lumber yards here sell really crappy wood at very high prices. SO thats why I stick with home depot, and they have very nice 1x3s.

I normally build the stands Like this first image:


But I would like to upgrade and use pocket holes, like this other one. I feel it is better constructed. Am I right?

[sfsuphysics]

No regular 2x4 framing members? Have you asked someone about this? Maybe they're simply temporarily out of stock because you don't use pressure treated wood for framing except when outside or in direct contact with cement.

But as to your design desires, make sure you have something to deal with racking, I'm not at all convinced of the strength of pocket holes when the wood is being torqued.

[Apotack]

The pocket hole design above looks like it might be prone to racking. Making the back enclosed from a single piece of plywood would solve that. Also pocket holes could be used in place of the face screws top and bottom for a cleaner look and stronger joints

[Lsufan]

The second photo is a better design for the fact that the load will be transferred to the legs themselves because the top frame is sitting on top of the legs. In the first photo the screws that attach the top frame to the legs is what is taking the load because the top frame isn’t sitting on top of the legs.

If u want something similar to the second photo, I would use plywood for the back & sides & use 1X material for the face frame. Similar to a kitchen cabinet. If constructed properly it will more then handle the wait of a 45 gallon

[liquidzorch]

Ok. Thanks to everyone. I will try something new this time with 1x3s or 4s.

[obeck]

Are you talking nominal or actual dimensions? A 2x4 nominal is 1 1/2 x 3 1/2 actual.

[davocean]

That 2nd photo would be a better design only if it were skinned as well to keep it from racking, as is there is a lot demand on the fasteners, and not a lot of meat/wood.

I absolutely refuse to believe any HD does not have 2x4's, that's still industry standard for framing, though I do not think you HAVE to use 2x4.

Most 1x and 2x2 is meant for trim or firing more than structural, so often they contain a lot of knots and often spike knots making them very weak, so I would advise using the premium 1x that is free of knots, which will be a bit more than 2x4's in price.

3/4" Plywood alone is another option.