This time around I saw an aquarium stand that I really liked. It inspired me to build one of my own. The idea is to create support columns from 2×4 and connect them on two levels with 2×2. I used carpenter’s glue for each joint and only 1 screw (5 cm long). Note, that some carpenter’s glue can weaken from moisture such as a spill from aquarium. Finish on the outside with a set of very thin tongue and groove wood. You can find cedar or pine for these. I chose to go with pine, because I’ve decided to also stain it. The finish is nailed down with nails that have a really small head (called finishing nails).

The trick here is to make the finishing wood go on a bit higher than the frame, so the aquarium can fit tightly inside of it. I aimed for 2-3 mm all the way around. Next, I took a flat piece of wood that I had laying around and cut out 4 corners. This fit in perfectly as a shelf. The reason I wanted a shelf is because this stand is 75 cm (2.5 feet) and I want to make sure my external pump’s hoses are long enough and the pump does not need to do the extra work of lifting the water higher.

The front needed an extra addition to a frame in order to make a door. I used 2×2 for the support frame and 2×1 for the rectangle door frame. My design was to have the 2×2 support frame be partially covered by the fixed finish and partially by a lip from the door. This way the seam is not all the way through to the inside of the stand. I used two small hinges to attach the doors.

I do not plan to have a knob for the door, because I wanted the door to be hidden. This means that I have to use magnetic latch to keep it closed (push to close, push to open). The reason I chose to stain is because this pine came with parts that are blue. It also has darker imperfections. The walnut stain is fairly dark so it hides the imperfections and makes everything cosmetically fit together. My routine was: 1 coat of wood treatment, 15 min. break, 1 coat stain applied with a sponge, 8 hour break, 3 coats of clear applied with sponge brush with 8 hour breaks and sanding with 220 coarse sand paper in between.

Cost breakdown:
$5 wood for framing (2×4, 2×2, 2×1)
$15 tongue and groove pine finish (2 packages)
$3 door hinges
$1 sandpaper
$1 sponge
$5 wood treatment, stain and clear (polyurethane)

In reality, you will have to buy a lot of wood treatment, stain and clear, because they don’t sell very small quantities. In my case, I re-used it from an old project. You end up using a really small amount. Overall, a total of $30, a day of construction and two days for staining due to long breaks in between.