Canopy Wood

[PapaMcEuin]

Question,

When building a wood canopy, How have your successfully built it? What type of wood? Corner Joints? Sealing?

I attempted this before with Oak that I was going to stain, It warpped like crazy. How about the top? How was that constructed for access and lighting? was lighting attached or suspened below? Front access or top?

Future (far future) design considerations for a 90 gallon tank that is sitting in my garage.

[poppin_fresh]

I built the canopy for my tank by making the "box" out of thin cabinet grade plywood that is held together by blocks in the corners and seams. I then trimmed the whole thing with pine trim that is readily available at home improvement places. A little 1/2 round, some flat pieces and some crown moulding made for a nice and very light weight canopy for its size (2' x 6' x 8").

You could do the same, but get oak trim pieces if you wish. I went with Pine because my canopy is painted.

[WILDTANG]

My Wife makes canopies. We built one out of oak. It warped like mad. oak soaks up moisture more than most woods.

[PhotoJohn]

you can kinda see how i built mine here:
http://www.talkingreef.com/forums/member-tank-projects/6809-75g-money-sink.html

[bbl_nk]

Don't use MDF:) Best best is to use a top grade of hardwood ply. You get the structural strength against warping and can easily be stained or painted. For your cornering, either a mitre for clean corner or use some sort of 90 deg "ell" moulding in pine or hardwood. You can also get S4S "square" trim stock to cover the edges.

WIth the hardwood you can get a nice smooth finish but watch out sanding the edge otherwise you'll expose the next layer. If you are staining or painting it, make sure to use a "spar" urethane either oil or latex based, its what's used on boats. WIth the oil finish you may get an amber sheen if you get too many layers and with the latex you'll get a milky sheen. Best bet is to go with a gloss on the inside so its a nice thick finish and will be easy to wipe clean. On the outside use a satin or semi-gloss to give you a nice protection and smooth look. You need to seal the wood or else it will absorb the water and make sure to do a light sanding in between coats to fight against the grains rising and creating big bumps :)

I painted my hood black and then uses a satin poly on it. The inside is a nice thick coat and haven't had any damage and cleans up nice.

[gumby007]

I built mine with a pine frame using 1x2's (it's for a 20-29g tank) and used oak plywood and oak trim to finish it. I sealed the inside with a marine sealant and then stained and sealed the outside for looks.

Here's some pics to show you what I mean... It was in the basement for building and trial runs, sorry for the mess!

http://bis.midco.net/gumby007/images/fullframed.jpg

http://bis.midco.net/gumby007/images/standdone.jpg

[rayme07]

gumby that conopy and stand looks amazing awsome job love how it came out. Thanks :)

[gumby007]

Thanks for the compliments rayme. I built that stand to accompany plumbing behind the tank without sight, and the canopy is hinged onto the stand (all-in-one) if you will, for access.. as well as the access door on front for simple feedings and stuff.

But I will quit and stop hijacking this thread! :)

Soon I will post a thread about my tanks.... and my new system in it's building phases.

[rayme07]

Thats pretty cool. Cant wait for the thread on your new building phases and to see your tanks. Thanks :)

[saltaddict]

You can really use any type of wood (real wood) but if it is going to be painted then you must seal the wood before you paint. There are primers that are made for this purpose and you would need to make sure you coat every nook and cranny. I put the first coat, sand with fine sand paper and steel wool then apply another coat and steel wool lightly then paint with oil based paint.

If you are staining, you would stain the wood to the desired color and let it cure for a couple of days. Then steel wool gently, wipe down and apply your first coat of polyurethane. Follow the same steps until you have at least three coats on the entire pc of furniture.

If wood is sealed correctly you should not have warping from moisture and water.

Also, if you scratch as some point you need to take it down and repair because that is a source of water absorption.

Have fun

[condiman]

I also did oak and I couldnt beleive on how much it warped I couldnt even open my doors I had to remake it after a year

[WILDTANG]

Man. I'm sorry to hear that considering how much my oak cost.

[condiman]

On my 180 I just setup I used cheep pallet pine boards and I havnt had a problem yet.

[WILDTANG]

My wife mad a cool 15" chest out of oak pallets(free). Nothing to do with aquariums but I'm proud of her.
180 gal? I guess I'm not sorry for you. lol

[bbl_nk]

You have to remember no matter what you do, stain, paint or au naturale...YOU NEED TO SEAL IT! Wood is made from trees and remember trees suck water from the ground and delivers it to the far-reaching branches through its fibers! So yes unprotected wood is going to warp...its the nature of wood to absorb water.

I recommend using at least an acrylic polyurethane (cleans up with soap and water) to seal it weather you paint or stain. Also use a marine-grade "spar" varnish on the inside. This is what they use to seal wood hulls and exposed wood on yachts and boats.

With the polyurethane you need to be careful not to shake it since you introduce bubbles that pop on the wood leaving pit marks. After the coat dries, lightly sand it with a fine grade sandpaper (at least a 220 grit, but try looking fr the wet sand paper), and repeat. Three coast should be perfect but you want at least two.

I have build two stands and canopies and have used polyurethane on the outside and spar varnish on the inside and have never had any warpage. The latest is built out of hardwood plywood and is painted black and sealed with a satin poly so it looks really nice. On the inside I have used around 4 coats of hardwood floor poly and have a nice thick waterproof surface.