DIY Metal Halide canopy pics

[Joshsmit56001]

Here is a diagram of my plans for my canopy. I am using 3/4" plywood with the inside painted with a flat acrylic latex outdoor paint and the outside stained. The entire canopy will be coated with 1-2 layers of varathane to protcet from moisture. If you have any questions or recomendations please let me know

Thanks,
Josh

 

[Joshsmit56001]

here is more

 

[electrikat]

Looks beautiful and even has enough room to add moonlights eventually if you want them. We built ours similar to that but I wish we had done the doors in front like yours. Great work and good luck.

 

[swissfish]

Did you think about making the whole front as a slide out with just the botom trim as a support. It makes it easyer to work inside the tank.
Anyway it looks good.

 

[Joshsmit56001]

I think I am going to start building it this week so I will keep everyone up to date with pictures.

 

[Joshsmit56001]

Here is some in progress pics on the canopy that Gooyferret and I have been working on. We still have to stain, paint the inside white, put the doors on, and varnich the entire thing. Please give us some input.

 

[Joshsmit56001]

bump

 

[greenfish]

Looking good!

 

[revhtree]

Very Nice!!! Could we get a material list??

 

[swissfish]

Verry nice. That's gonna look great!

 

[MT79]

Looking good. I like the trim on the top AND bottom.

 

[Joshsmit56001]

The main material was an 10x6 foot piece of redi panel plywood that I cut to make a box with no bottom. The trim on the top and bottom is 2.25" door molding, and the corner moldiong is .5" corner mulding. I am going to use a flat acrylic latex outdoor white paint on the inside for better reflection and on the outside I am going to stain with ipswitch pine. After this the whole thing will be covered with a varathane water protectant. The halide system is a coralvue retrofit with a 20k bulb. The bulb will be around 7.5 to 8 inches off the surface of the water. For cooling a bought a 6" personal fan from wal-mart for $5, took off the front grate, and used the same wholes to screw into the wood in the back of the canopy. I will post pics of this later.

 

[Joshsmit56001]

More pics of nearly finished canopy

 

[swissfish]

verry nice!!!!!!!!

Like your canopy. Good job.

The only thing I dint like to much is the fan but you can't beat $5

 

[BillyZ]

looks very nice!

 

[greatgman]

for the inside i would
recomend white epoxy paint
when it dries it dries super hard

look at your stove ,washing machine ,dishwasher,etc
it is the same stuff
i used it on mine
takes a long time to dry
but will last pracically forever
and will not flake off

 

[Clown Monarch]

Don't you want the fan blowing out? It looks like it's blowing in.

I only say that because you'd be sucking whatever might be floating around your house into the tank - pet hair, dust etc.

 

[Clown Monarch]

I love that design. I using that on my 125 next time I build a canopy.

 

[JohnS]

Minnesota . . . . Darn, I was hoping you were local! I'd love for you to build that for me!

Looks great.

 

[Joshsmit56001]

Thanks a lot guys for all of your comments. I am going to be changing the fan so it blows out instead of in by changing the wiring around.