Wood or metal stands?

I had a metal (stainless steel) stand on a 180 once... never again.

Even stainless rusts.

 

Powder coated Metal with a Wood outer skin.

One of the nicest stands I ever saw was under a friends 300 gallon tank.
It was a powder coated Metal stand that he designed and then covered
using Wooden panels and Magnets.

You could remove the entire covering and have complete access to under
the tank. And when covered it was a thing of absolute beauty, you would
never know that it was removable.

 

metal is nicer for a minimal or industrial look. Wood is nice if you want to hide your sump.

If I didn't have a sump I think I would get a metal stand(custom, i don't like those black steel ones at the store.).

 

I had my 10 gallon on the black wrought iron stand that my stepdad originally bought with it back in the 70s. Ended up trashing that stand when I moved because it was soooo rusted!

 

I think wood is easyer for avrage joes to build and it can be sealed really easily with some kilz and even painted to look like metal W/O ever rusting IMO.

 

Even powder coated steel will rust over time when exposed to salt. All it takes is one scratch or imperfection and it gets in. Then you're done.

 

Having grown up around boats on the ocean, I'd say, no way to metal. Saltwater destroys most metal quickly. I would not trust it unless maybe 316 stainless. For that matter, I don't really trust softwood that much either, hardwood is probably the safest.
Although, I did build the stand for my 93g with a 2x4 frame, but it's extremely overbuilt and sealed very well. On another tank I have a AGA pine stand and the wood is already warping after just 2 years. Complete junk, never again.