New diy stand and hood

northstar

northstar

New Member
Here are a few pictures of my diy tank stand and hood project. The tank is a 65g reef ready. The stand is framed with 1x4's and covered with 3/4" Birch plywood. The plywood is what really supports the weight of the tank. The hood was made to house 2 175 watt MH retro fixtures and a 35" blue led light strip. The hood is made from 1/2 Birch plywood and hinges open in the front. The most costly part of the project was all the molding I used. The cost for the stand and hood was around $500 total.


 
acrylic51

acrylic51

Active Member
Looks very Nice!!!! I know what you mean about trim being the costliest part. Your correct the skin gives you the strength....
 
ladyreefseeker

ladyreefseeker

Administrator
Staff member
That is soooo nice looking!
I too, really like the stain color. The moulding is such a nice finish and sets it apart from the standard frame...
 
sapper577

sapper577

New Member
Hey thats really nice !! You did a fine job ! I am working on my setup as well. The only thing I have left on the stand itself are my raised panel doors. I oversized mine for more room underneath. Yep.. Trim is costly and its very aggravating when you go to purchase it and pick thru junk to find good pieces. Fortunatelly I have some wood working tools that have saved me lots of money over time.
Here is a shot of it
 
northstar

northstar

New Member
Thanks for all the compliments. First I used dark walnut stain. Then two coats of Minwax Bombay Mahogany Polyshade and one final coat of satin polyurethane to make sure the plywood was sealed good. I did two different colors because I couldn't find the dark color with a hint of red that I wanted. For the inside I used a gloss white zinsser paint. paint r p
 
northstar

northstar

New Member
Very nice as well. Love the unique design.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sapper577 http:///forum/thread/383568/new-diy-stand-and-hood#post_3355702
Hey thats really nice !! You did a fine job ! I am working on my setup as well. The only thing I have left on the stand itself are my raised panel doors. I oversized mine for more room underneath. Yep.. Trim is costly and its very aggravating when you go to purchase it and pick thru junk to find good pieces. Fortunatelly I have some wood working tools that have saved me lots of money over time.
Here is a shot of it
 
sapper577

sapper577

New Member
Northstar,
How heavy is your hood ? Mine is kinda beefy at about 60 lb. If you noticed mine, I've got some corner supports that are being integrated into mine. I just didn't want the downward pressure on the sides of my tank. I've yet to trim them out and paint them. I will be painting both my sides and back black. It will make it stand out against the white. I also noticed you have an adornment on the hood. Thats really neat looking ! I'm just going to be putting black knobs on my access doors in the hood. There are no hinges as I tried to stay away from any metal due to salt creep and will be caukling all my screw and nailheads. The doors have velcro on them and work pretty good. I just pull them off and set them on the extra room I have on the stand.
And thanks 1Snapple.
 
northstar

northstar

New Member
My hood is around 30 lb and when I add the lights I would guess another 10 lb will be added. I did use a 25" piano hinge on my hood. I used metal hinges on a hood I made a few years back and never had any rust issues, as long it was far enough from the water. My hinge is about 12" from the water, but your velcro idea is a good one also.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sapper577 http:///forum/thread/383568/new-diy-stand-and-hood#post_3355948
Northstar,
How heavy is your hood ? Mine is kinda beefy at about 60 lb. If you noticed mine, I've got some corner supports that are being integrated into mine. I just didn't want the downward pressure on the sides of my tank. I've yet to trim them out and paint them. I will be painting both my sides and back black. It will make it stand out against the white. I also noticed you have an adornment on the hood. Thats really neat looking ! I'm just going to be putting black knobs on my access doors in the hood. There are no hinges as I tried to stay away from any metal due to salt creep and will be caukling all my screw and nailheads. The doors have velcro on them and work pretty good. I just pull them off and set them on the extra room I have on the stand.
And thanks 1Snapple.
 
northstar

northstar

New Member
I'm running behind schedule with my setup because I went to install the durso standpipe kit and discovered the plastic bulkhead nuts didn't even have any threads on them (made in China i'm sure). I just ordered new bulkheads so I hope to have it setup soon. I'm not sure I would buy a Deep Blue Professional RR aquarium if I had to do it again. Besides the included durso kit being messed up the glass isn't as thick as I have seen on other similar size tanks. Also it is almost impossible to contact the company if you have issues, like I did with the bulkhead nuts.
Anyways, how is your build going?
 
sapper577

sapper577

New Member
I have been behind too. With work schedule and my commute to and from work, it has been a time management issue. I really don't mind. It gives me more ideas. I have painted my back glass (black) and I am in the process of wiring the stand, getting my switches lined out and a few spare receptacles for accessories. I have yet to mount my ballast in a small cabinet under the stand with a cooling fan to take the warm air out the back. I also need to put a few small fans in the canopy. When I'm done with electrical, I will move on to plumbing. I have been looking ahead as far as plumbing goes. I'm going to use a 30GAL long for a sump. I found a site that has MD 9.5's for $77.00. I believe I'm going to order two of them and have one as a spare. I also plan to use a Durso style stand pipe. I may just go ahead and order one instead of the DIY. By the time I get all the material, it would save me a few bucks and time too.
 
northstar

northstar

New Member
Well I finally got my 30 gallon tank moved over to my new 65 gallon setup two days ago. So far I haven't lost anything (fingers crossed). I definatly need to add more rock to the new tank to get some height for my corals. So far I only have a Sicce Voyager 3 powerhead and about 350gph from my PanWorld 40px return which are giving me some great water movement. As for stock I have a mated pair of clowns, bengi cardinal and a 12 line wrasse that I moved from my old sytem.


Here is my basement sump. I have running a Bulk Reef GFO reactor from my old system and a brand new Reef Octopus 6" which is already skimming like crazy. Next step is to get some marco algae for in the refuge area.
 
sapper577

sapper577

New Member
WOW ! Thats really nice ! It will be awhile still yet before I even get water in mine ! I'm going for a Reef Octopus as well. Been looking at plans for my sump too ! I will be watching your progress.
 
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