9' stand build progress

[GraphicGr8s]

Drywall screws are extremely brittle. Spax screws are my fastener of choice. Even used them to put up my laundry room cabinet.

[LizStreithorst]

Mine are held together with drywall screws.  It works, but it's still not the strongest way to build.

[Mugwump]

Drywall screws are extremely brittle. Spax screws are my fastener of choice. Even used them to put up my laundry room cabinet.

All mine have the support legs notched....the screws don't hold any weight, they just keep the board on the notch, along with at least two cross braces per shelf....park a car on it...most are 2 X 6's...

[GraphicGr8s]

Drywall screws are extremely brittle. Spax screws are my fastener of choice. Even used them to put up my laundry room cabinet.

All mine have the support legs notched....the screws don't hold any weight, they just keep the board on the notch, along with at least two cross braces per shelf....park a car on it...most are 2 X 6's...

2 x 6? Heck the last rack I built was 2 x 3. And yes dado joints. Just didn't go all the way with them so the horizontal member is 1/2" proud. Was being a little niggardly with funds on that rack. The only reason I used 2 x 4 on the other rack was just to have the horizontals flush. Decided it really wasn't necessary. But all the screws are the Spax. I hate drywall screws and always seen to break a few.

[Mugwump]

All the supports are 2 X 6 legs on any stand 48"+...I have a 36"'er that's 2 X 4(3).....LOL...I have one stand that I got from a guy along with (2) 55's, that is constructed with carriage bolts....and cross braces everywhere you can think of.....

[LizStreithorst]

I wish the guy that built my current stands had built this one.  He took my tank measurements over the phone, built it in place where I was going to move and when I arrived, everything fit perfectly.  I had two long racks of tanks in what was once a one car garage.  Nothing sagged.  It was as solid after 4 years as it was the day he made it.  Unlike my current stand, it wasn't necessary to put an emergency leg in that blocks the view of a 60 on the lower rack. 

I didn't like the look of my current stands when I first saw them.  The way the carpenter told me he was going to build them sounded good, but he screwed up.  He built the stands at his house and brought them here.  It wasn't until he started putting them in place that he realized that he didn't built them too narrow for the correct support system.  I should have rejected them, but he said they would work and I didn't have enough knowledge to disbelieve him. 

[Mugwump]

Adding a sheet of plywood would have done the trick if a little narrow.....

[LizStreithorst]

That and several of 2X6's would have fixed it.  It can still be fixed but it will be costly and a huge PITA.  Not only will I have to move tanks and transfer fish to tubs, I'll have to pay through the nose because of a job poorly done.  I only have myself to blame.  Sometimes I believe when I know I shouldn't believe.  It's one of my faults.  I believed the carpenter when I knew better.