Bow Front Hood?

[Reefatarian]

Hello new here to this board, some great DIY plans here!

My question:

I have a 3 year established reef tank in a bow front aquarium, if I had it over I would have purchased a more suitable tank for a reef instead of turning the "lake tank" into salt.

Anyways, I would like to have a hood for this tank and the only ones I have seen are black hoods for the black bow fronts. This tank is wood color and I have not been able to find a matching hood for this tank so whats left to do? DIY!

So anyone have suggestions on how to get the curve in the hood for the bow shape? I was thinking that I could section the curve but that still may pose some trouble. Thanks in advance...

 

[reefrunner69]

Check this thread out on another forum, it tells you how one guy did it and offers a other suggestions as well...

http://www.reefaquariumguide.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=17609

 

[Pain Devine]

I made my hood square. I took oak veneer 3/4" plywood and cut 2 pieces. The top is solid, on the bottom I traced the top of the tank and then cut a hole with a saber saw. then I vace the sides with Solid oak and made an oak door for the front. If you really look at it, the bow is fairly shallow only goes out a couple of inches... so have a square top actually looks kind of nice.

 

[Reefatarian]

Hmmm do you have a picture of this? It would be great to only have to build a square hood and not have to worry about that bow.

 

[yaksplat]

Here's a link that demonstrates the process of making curved wood. It's really not that hard to do, but it takes the right tools a some free time.

http://www.popularmechanics.com/home_improvement/furniture/1999/4/outdoor_table/index2.phtml

Good luck
Jim

 

[BillyZ]

actually bending wood I think is a bit intimidating for most. There is an easier way to get what you want, IMO. I suggest reading all the options given here and decide which you are most comfortable with. Just about any option for bending wood requires a LOT of clamps lol...


First you need to make a little "tool". Find a small square piece of wood that is about 1-2 inches wide (this is how far outisde the edge of your tank your hood will sit) Securly fasten a pencile one side of the block so that the tip of the pencil is flush against a table when the block is set down.


Take a piece of cardboard that is bigger than the top of your tank. Lay it on the tank and have someone hold it down firmly so it doesn't move. Take another pencil and draw a line around the outside of the front of your tank (include a few inches of the sides). Now take your tool you made and repeat the process again, this time, placing the side of the block withOUT the pencil, against the edge of the tank. This should draw a line exactly parralell to the first one an ich or so apart.

Lift the cardboard off and you now have a template for creating your hood to the right shape.

Cut out the template as close to the outter line as you can. you may want to leave the inner edge of your template square so the hood actually sits on top of the tank. Thats up to you and how you plan on resting the hood on the tank.

Use the template to mark two pieces of solid wood (not plywood) and cut with a jig saw to that exact shape. Use those pieces build the frame.

When the frame is complete, use 1/8" inch plywood and glue it, nail it with finishing nails and clamp it FIRMLY on one end then again a few inches over and let the glue set for at least an hour. Come back, LEAVING the existing clamps in place, add a few more inches of glue (good carpenters wood glue), nail and clamp those inches. wait and repeat until the entire front has been glued, clamped, nailed and dried. If you wish, you may repeat the process again with another piece of 1/8" plywood. Use glue between the two sheets of ply and you will have a VERY sturdy 1/4" thick front panel. then use normal 1/4" ply for the rest of the hood.

or you could find a friendly wood shop at a school and see if they'll be willing to help you out. COuld be a good, "Project" for an aspiring artisan.