300 Gallon Stand No Center Brace

[dovii187]

Hello,

I am looking to set up a new fish room and planning on double stacking aquariums to maximize space. My dilemma is centered around my 300 (96 x 30 x 24) and 125 ( 72 x 18 x 21). I am planning on stacking them with the 300 on top since it is larger I thought it would look better. I have been looking at a few different DIY stand designs and was unsure as to what size lumber to build the stand with since I do not want a center brace obstructing the view of the 125. I have seen a few 240 stands without the center brace use a single 2x6. However, I was unsure if the extra 60-gallons (~700 pounds) made that much of a difference.

Would double 2x6 support the weight of a 300-gallon tank with no center brace?

For the base and side supports, I was planning on using 2x4 to lower the total height of the stand to around 39", so that I will have around 8" of working space above the 125.

 

[SuperNinja]

Curious on this as well

 

[Matteus]

I have an 8x3x2 that the previous owner had it set up with almost no centre bracing.

I personally did not trust it so I added way more bracing when I was setting it up on my uneven floors.



the front side has some (bracing) but hardly structural for holding up the cabinet doors. But the back only had a lonely 2x4” and I’m pretty sure it wasn’t really attached or anything.

like I said, I didn’t trust it. But he had it running for 3 years and no issues. This was on double 2x6’s

 

[ADawson23]

Here is the stand I built for my 385
2x6 and 3/4 Burch

 

[ADawson23]

Now as for your question of not having a center brace. If the tank does not have a frame (most glass tanks do) around the bottom you will need the center brace. I personally would not be able to sleep at night, I would constantly be worried of sagging in the middle and a tank failure.

 

[esoxlucius]

I agree that having an open front is the way to go on this build, you don't want a post hindering the view of your 6ft tank.

I'm a complete overkill type of guy when it comes to building stuff where weight is involved. There's absolutely nothing wrong with that mentality because you need complete peace of mind.

Don't underestimate the strength of lumber though. I'd say your 2x6 idea is pretty good, and Matteus post backs that up....but, like I said, I'm an overkill DIY'er and if I was taking on your project I'd use 2x8 or 2x10 lumber and take away the risk factor completely.

And if you are concerned that the wood stand is just going to be too bulky and thick for your liking, you could always go the steel frame route. Though this will depend whether you know any local fabricators to build you one.

Be sure to post pics of the finished build, it should look awesome.