Should I use wood on top of wire rack shelves?

[RedSarah]

Hi all,

I'm setting up a couple of new tanks and purchased a wire shelving unit from Uline. It is labeled "industrial" shelving and has a weight capacity of 800 pounds (assuming this is per unit not per shelf, but it isn't very clear). This is the unit!

I'm only putting two 7 gallon cube tanks on the unit, one per shelf. So far I have a plastic liner on each shelf and foam leveling mats under the tanks. But despite the minimal weight of the tanks (probably about 140lb total) compared the 800lb weight limit, I am still worried about the shelves sagging, especially since the footprints of the tanks are much smaller than the shelves.

So, is it recommend that I put hardwood or plywood on top of each shelf to help with weight distribution? If so, what is the minimum thickness I could get away with, and could I use a nice looking hardwood like white oak with a few coats of polyurethane? Trying to keep this looking pretty nice since it is in the dining room of my tiny apartment, but obviously the safety of the tanks comes first

Thank you!!

 

[FishGuest5123]

Hi all,

I'm setting up a couple of new tanks and purchased a wire shelving unit from Uline. It is labeled "industrial" shelving and has a weight capacity of 800 pounds (assuming this is per unit not per shelf, but it isn't very clear). This is the unit!

I'm only putting two 7 gallon cube tanks on the unit, one per shelf. So far I have a plastic liner on each shelf and foam leveling mats under the tanks. But despite the minimal weight of the tanks (probably about 140lb total) compared the 800lb weight limit, I am still worried about the shelves sagging, especially since the footprints of the tanks are much smaller than the shelves.

So, is it recommend that I put hardwood or plywood on top of each shelf to help with weight distribution? If so, what is the minimum thickness I could get away with, and could I use a nice looking hardwood like white oak with a few coats of polyurethane? Trying to keep this looking pretty nice since it is in the dining room of my tiny apartment, but obviously the safety of the tanks comes first

Thank you!!

Hi, I have something like that and yes, I put 1/2” plywood on mine.

 

[RedSarah]

Hi, I have something like that and yes, I put 1/2” plywood on mine.

Awesome, thank you!!