OMG what a find!

A gentleman in Phoenix called me yesterday to say he had a 100 plus gallon fish tank I could have for fifty dollars. I went and picked it up today and was pleasantly surprised to see it was dirty,but in decent shape. It appears to be a 110 high. It lacks a top, but came with a ton of blue gravel, some driftwood, what I think is lace rock, a filter, and some other odds and ends. I am disappointed that it is too wide to fit on my really nice 55 gallon tank stand. The length is right though. I need to find out if it holds water(kinda old). I really want it for my discus since my 55 gallon is barely cutting it. I want to build a stand and top my self. Does anyone know of a good site I can find a plan for both a top and bottom? Thanks, I really appreciate it.

When I put in the dimensions of the inside of the tank it appears to hold an actual volume of 80. According to outside dimensions it holds 95. Of course the 80 is the accurate one. Still, I am very pleased with it. I was wondering if I might be able to modify my current stand to hold it. I am worried about the weight being unevenly distributed due to an overhang of about an inch on each side. Could I possibly put a piece of strong oak plywood on top and add legs to the rear to support the overhang...or is that a bad idea?

Congratulations! Great find! You could always buy a glass hood and suspend a light over the tank. I would not try to fit the aquarium onto a smaller stand, because it could put extra stress on the glass. One of the 2 by 4 stands would work with two extra pairs of legs about a foot in from each side. You could put doors and trim over the common lumber and take some extra time with the finish. You're good at building things, so the stand would look good. Then you could build a matching, hinged canopy to go over the glass canopy. Just mount a couple of fluorescent light fixtures inside the canopy, hook the wires to a light switch mounted on the back of the canopy, and install a plug. Of course, most affordable lumber is not straight and square. I guess that's why so many stands are manufactured from MDF with a veneer.

I've seen some flimsy looking stands under 100 gallon tanks in aquarium shops, flimsy enough that I would feel insecure sitting on one. Probably an all plywood stand would hold up, but the 2 by 4 framing would make it more secure and solid.

Let me know if I can help.

PS: In the tips and tricks section there is a post about building your own aquarium. It refers to Ask.com.something else. The website also has details about stands and, I believe, hoods.

A while back, one of our members posted about aquarium capacity versus size. It must be that aquariums are sold by water displacement calculations rather than water capacity, i.e., outside dimensions versus inside dimensions. I think they do the same thing with common lumber; they give the rough dimensions rather than the finished dimensions. It makes me wonder what else is being overstated.

You can build it!

Your other stand looked great!

I agree with John on modifying your original stand. I just wouldn't take the chance. Especially if you're going to put Discus in it.

Stress on the glass could cause quite a mess, and it's not like you'll have some 2 dollar guppies in there... LOL!

Good Luck and keep us posted, and CONGRATS on your awesome find!