2.5g custom canopy & stand finished

[Sicklid]

This was inspired by MSU fan (I think it was) who made a custom canopy and stand for his tank. I tried a different base, using 2" wooden balls from a craft store. Made from 3/8" poplar. Light is a compact fluorescent 13 watt ballast kit w/ an ott-lite plant bulb from Home Depot.

 

[tropicalfish]

very cool mini stand!

 

[boxxmann]

looks really good Sicklid!!

 

[JustOneMore20]

Very nice! What kind of lighting do you have? Do you have a picture of underneath the canopy? I'm planning a 2.5g and would love to make a canopy for it, but I'm not very handy.

 

[roka64]

Pretty cool!

 

[Sicklid]

Will post pictures later tonight of inside of canopy with lights. It is a 13w compact fluorescent from hellolights.com with an "ott-lite" 5500k plant bulb from home depot.

Justonemore20, you don't have to be "handy" at all to build a box! Admittedly, I have a few more tools than the average joe. I used an air-driven nail-gun shooting wire brads, a miter saw with a really good blade, a cordless drill, and a power sander on this project, but it can easily be done with a hand saw, glue, clamps (even DIY clamps from string and wood scraps!) and a hand sanding block, and a screwdriver. If you want plans, I can give em to you, but really, you can do this in an afternoon, from start to finish painted and everything by yourself with careful planning. Don't be intimidated, it really looks nicer than your average $25 black plastic lighted lid with incandescent lights.

All told my materials came out to:
$15 for wood and poly-stain
$20 for ballast kit and bulb
white spray enamel for about $2 a can (for the inside of canopy)

And thats it!

 

[JustOneMore20]

Yeah, it doesn't seem that hard really. I actually think I could build something, but just don't have good tools to do it. I'm sure we have a hand saw around here somewhere, but power tools would be more fun! If only I could convince my dad that he needs some power tools....

 

[onah]

so is there a middle ball? or is there no mid support? i understand it is a small tank, but u could acctually use this fora larger tank to if u wanted, i was thinking of designing a corner one for my 10g plant tank.....

 

[Sicklid]

Nope, just four balls as feet. The balls are solid wood, and the base they are screwed onto is actually 3/4" thick. It would hold a 10 gallon I am sure. I put trim around the front and sides that is about 3/8" x 1 1/4" to hide the black plastic trim of the tank.

I would just be careful that the balls are sanded till they are the same height, no teeter/totter. Otherwise you may get a lopsided tank, and you could run into problems w/ leaks. Or, use a piece of styro under the tanks edge, to help distribute the weight.

 

[plecoperson]

What a beautiful little thing-well done. It looks substantial without being too bulky. Very nice.

 

[redswi]

Impressive

Turned a simple tank into a good looking piece of furniture

what did that light run you, I might actually have to buy something for my project. LOL

 

[Sicklid]

$15 bucks for the ballast kit, here is the link. I got it from hellolights.com... Just be sure to pick your bulb option in the dropdown menu (I overlooked that little part and had to get a lamp locally for twice their price...)

http://hellolights.com/13watbalkit.html

 

[tropicalfish]

hey redswi for your 40 gallon plan, you could get some shoplights from Home Depot.

 

[O ALX O]

That is way cool!
Sicklid what is the possibility of you sending me a copy of those plans. I would love to try something like that