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Was thinking of putting a 20 gal long on it.

http://www.fishprofiles.com/site/aquarank.aspx

Kitchen counter can hold the weight on things people put on kitchen counters... ^^;
Newish or oldish?
Thick wood/cement/tile/etc.?
Cracked grout etc?

Its going to be about 200 pounds. I dont know if i would want all of that weight on a kitchen counter. A 10 gallon would probably be safe.

Cool , I havent heard that one "I dunno how much weight can a kitchen counter take?"

erm, find someone who weighs 200 lbs and make them jump up and down a bit? Only way to know is to test it. Choose a human you dont like much

I put my 5 gallon on our kitchen counter and to me 5 gallons would make a heck of a mess, so thats as big as I am going to attempt to keep on a counter.

Justin

Colts Fan For Life
30g platy tank: 2 sunburst wag platys, 2 redtailed white calico platys, 2 red wag platys, 1 fry(not sure who it belongs to), 1 Golden CAE.
Bettas:1 VT male

Just make sure that you sit it over a wall in the cupboards.

200 pounds should be no problem for a kitchen counter. I've installed lots of them, and they are pretty solid. I've got 800 pounds of tank sitting on a little stand made of mdf from hagen. Kitchen counters have a supporting strucutre of a fair number of supports via carcass (the base structure of each cabinet) walls which are doubled where each carcass meets the next. Countertops are fairly thick - at the very least 3/4 of an inch, but can be much more. Also, the weight will be distributed over a fairly large area. Thats way more of everything than my hagen stand has - and it's rated to hold up to 1000 pounds! The weak spot on a kitchen counter is the sink area. The sink carcass is fairly wide and it's got a big ol' hole in the center. This is a 'cheapo' home depot or ikea setup I'm talking about here. Higher end ones are extremly strong.

good luck!

It comes back to several most important points.
How old is the bench.
Is it fully stable meaning a correct fixture.
Is it correctly constructed.

If it is a YES to all you could easily sit 2-4 people. It depends how it is made and how far apart and their sizes are all the vertical supports.

I have seen some good looking cupboards BUT when you have a good look inside there is little or no support at all and some have been completely rotted out by water damage.

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info

Look here for my
Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
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Yeah, what Keith said. Mine could well hold it on one part of the bench, but another section, I wouldn't even risk a 10g. The part around my stove is particularly hacked up with very little support, as is the section over the dishwasher.

Still, whoever made the comment about flimsy stands is dead on, I've had stands designed for larger tanks that had no corner braces and were held together with glue and brads, so a counter would be oodles better!

For animals, the entire universe has been neatly divided into things to (a) mate with, (b) eat, (c) run away from, and (d) rocks. - Terry Pratchett

Thanks for the responses.

The cabinets are made from 3/8" birch plywood- no partical board anywhere

The tops are 3/8" laminated birch. A 20 long would span between 2 vertical panels. Over a drawer and 2 storage shelves.
There is no damage and its connected to the wall studs with screws and a tile backsplash. Its held a 10 before- Just running out of room and wouldn't want a seperate stand for anything less than a 20.

let me know if this sounds like an accident not waiting to happen.

http://www.fishprofiles.com/site/aquarank.aspx

Hi,
Most counter tops will easily hold a large microwave,
and other smaller appliances. The thing is... they don't
weigh as much as that 200+ pound aquarium, and they are
generally moved, at least once in a while for cleaning.

That tank is going to sit in one place "forever" and could
eventually warp the counter. Any warping will cause
uneven pressure on the various pressure points of the tank
including the joints, and the panes of glass that make up
the tank.

Personally, I think the 20G tank is "pushing it" if you
are planning on it for long term.

Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

BM

Now we are getting down to the finer points of strength. Every thing depends on the vertical supports. These must be strong not just a simple frame with 3ply. The weight would have to be spread over these vertical supports. What I would do would be get a piece of particle board at least 2-3 ins bigger all over than thr tank, give it a good painting (not a water based paint) then a 1/2-3/4 ins styrene foam sheet the exact size of the tank. The reason for this would be to take up any unevenness and act as a shock preventer. I know some will say BIG OVER KILL well let them its your tank and this will be the best way to go if you decide to place the tank there.

In other words its your decision as I cannot advise you exactly what to do with out seeing the situation myself.

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info

Look here for my
Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
VOTE NOW VOTE NOW

i have a similer question. i just recently got a new dresser.well i know ppl say that dressers are bad 4 fish tanks because they are weak and unstable. this 1 isnt made from particle board. its made from solid cherry. the acutal top is 1 1/2 inches thick. my grandpa (194 lbs), my grandma (123 lbs), me (183 lbs) and my mom (best guess is round 178 lbs) all sat on it. it didnt even creak. it is insanely strong, weighs almost 400 lbs, is bout 1 1/2 a foot from front to back and 5 feet long. yall see ne problems with this?

Hi,
Honestly... If I had a piece of furniture that was made
of solid cherry wood, an aquarium is the very last thing
I'd put on top of it. The water and condensation will
ruin it.
Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

I fully agree with Frank if it a good piece of furniture that would be the last thing I would do put fish tanks on it. One day it will get wet or if a tank leaks a good wash out.

Sorry to say the actual thickness is only part of the construction it must be supported and supported corectly.

I remember seeing an old photo of about 20 fully grown men standing on a huge sheet of plate glass and it did not break but it had a huge bow in it. Also plywood is stronger than steel weight for weight. This has been proven many times in big beam constructions.

There is nothing wrong with particle board construction if it is done correctly it will give you far less problems than any piece of solid timber.

As a piece of furniture my tank stand would easily cost over A$1000 today. It was all hand made teak veneered on quality particle board.

Quality particle board is very expensive and that is the reason for much of the inferior particle board around today. Did you know quality particle board should be made from quality timber and constructed in layers from fine to a courser center.

How do I know this well I am a retired cabinet maker 10 years in the trade and 26 years teaching apprentices and technical (secondary) students.

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info

Look here for my
Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
VOTE NOW VOTE NOW

hmm.. k i didnt know particle board is stronger than steel weight for weight. but about it ruineing a "good" peice of furniture idk bout that... it all scratched up and stuff.
im starteing to think that it isnt cherry because where its scratched it looks like pine or sumthing. im pretty much clueless when it comes to wood. i think its round 12 years old. and from the looks of it it was like a 6 year olds before it was mine.

I did say "Plywood" reason being its construction. Plywood is a construction of alternating thin layers of wood layered at right angles to each other. Particle board should be layers of chipped timber glued and pressed together.

As far as strength many furniture can easily make furniture and it is extremely strong from corrugated cardboard it is how it is constructed not what it is constructed from.

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info

Look here for my
Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
VOTE NOW VOTE NOW