Aquarium stand

Okay, I have to admit that I am confused by some of the aquarium stands sold at big-box pet companies that are largely made out of thin particleboard.

I have an IKEA expedit shelf that would hold my 55 gal, but would it hold it at full capacity? I have a smaller expedit holding my 29 gal freshwater aquarium, but there is a huge weight difference between a 29 gal fresh and 55 gal salt.

Otherwise I'm looking at a steel stand from Petco. I don't mind buying the steel stand, but if I can use what I've already got, I would rather do that.

 

Bumping this up for you

 

When I was looking at stands I considered IKEA shelves/tables. Most seemed to be rated for 50-lbs. definitely not enough for a 550-lb tank.

That being said your confusion makes sense. The only thing I can say is: with a mathematically optimized design you can make safe structures out of weaker materials. It happens a lot in engineering; you use a better design with cheaper materials.

So the particle board from the pet store is likely safer because the shape of the stand, its joints, and the material dimensions were specifically mathematically designed to hold the weight of its respective aquarium capacity.

While you could get lucky with the IKEA shelf, there's no guarantee.

Good luck shopping! I vote steel shelf

 

I would not trust the shelf for your tank and would also go for the steel shelf.

 

Thanks! I went ahead and ordered the steel shelf.