Folks,
I've gone through several designs for my mini-rack. Now it's 4 20L aquariums arranged 2 high, 2 side by side... and then a 2 chamber sump made of 2 20L aquariums on the bottom. 20L tanks are 30" long, 12.25" deep, and 12.25" high. I'm raising dwarf cichlids.. so the volumes and weights that I am dealing with are quite small compared to those when keeping Discus. That permits me to explore alternatives that aren't feasible for many DiscusKeeper's fishrooms / fishracks.
Basically I need structures to house this final configuration:
4 x 20L + Sump.jpg
I heavily researched building it of mesquite. Then it was a combination of mesquite shelves with black iron for legs. Now, with the reality of months of Covid-19 and reduced income, I'm going to curb my expectations one more time. I've already spent good coin on equipment and automation. I intend to spend likewise for flora and fauna. It's the furniture (aka. side by side stands) that's going to have to take the brunt of the latest cost saving measures.
So, I'm considering three of these. Really, two... but the third will allow me to rob pieces to get to the necessary 70" of height that I need. I'll maintain 8" of spacing from top of each tank to the next shelf for servicing, but it will feel closer to 9" as the bottom of the shelves are air. I will use 3/4" marine grade plywood cut (and sealed) to match each shelves footprint to reduce the likelihood of bowing/sagging across the 30" tank spans with a layer of 1/4" cork on top of it to dampen imperfections. I like that they are 36" wide, 14" deep, as that gives me 3" on each end for running my water lines, and 7/8" at front and at the back.. in fact the shelves are built in such a way that they will provide 'channels' of sorts for running the black water lines.
Anyone have experience using these?
black-hdx-freestanding-shelving-units-21436bps-64_1000.jpg
I'm hoping that I can find them in black as it will look a little more stylish than the 'chrome'....
Each shelf would be holding about 170lbs (tank, substrate and water)... so that's 460lbs total. (the sumps won't have as much water, so it's not quite 170X3...). (the shelving unit is rated at 1400lbs so I'm well under that).
I'd have two of these units side by side... with the height increased by 16".... the 16" extension would only hold a top shelf to suspend lightweight LED Stunner Strips.... I'll keep all of the real weight on the original 54" section..
This is the Home Depot link.
Any opinions?
It's a huge comprimise, as this was my original inspiration:
Aquarium-Zen-Seattle-Fish-Store-Aquariums.jpg
I just need to stop sweating the stand build... I believe I can still make the whole thing look very beautiful.... and afterall, it will just occupy the far end of my home/office. My tanks are rimless ( diy de-rimmed 20L ) and are drilled for bulkheads at the ends, so I'm committed to running the lines at each end, rather than behind the tanks...