Got any canopy pics?

[arminkropp]

Alright, I've got everything I need to build a canopy for my tank in the next week or so. wondering If you have any pics if you dont mind sharing your canopy/ideas with me.

Also any pointers I might need to know would also be great!

canopy is going to be made of wood (red birch) and is to be used on my 50gal with VHO's

Thanx

 

[zacdl]

Man Oak sure is nice though.

I did mine in Oak

Here are the pics I have, Whenever I get my moonlights in in a couple of weeks Ill try to take better ones.

I was initally going to go with a spin on this idea: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Hills/2637/canopy.html

But you loose alot of the stability that way.

My lights were a tad long so I drilled a hole for the caps to stick out at in the back.

Now... I dont have a hinge on here or anything, so it would be pretty suitable for keeping eels and stuff in this one (But I wont)

To feed the fish I just lift the canopy up a little and throw the food in (not a big deal)

For water changes I take it off and set it aside, again, not a big deal.

For a 50 gallon aquarium I think you could do the same as me and just lift it, but you may want to have hinges for water changes and stuff so you wont have to move as big of a thing.

 

[zacdl]

Excuse the mess of cords and stuff around the tank... That was my first failed attempt at DIY LEDs

I shipped my LEDs off to a TV repairman that is going to do it for me.

 

[arminkropp]

The link in your first post is almost what I have in mind. that one does look rather unstable. I plan on making mine a sit about 8-10" high also. I went out an bought a router and bit so I do some decorative edging. did you paint the inside of yours? Whats a non-toxic paint for fish?

TIA

 

[zacdl]

Maybe just put a little trap door in the top to do water changes, float bags, etc with.

Mine canopy has everything crammed in there so I really couldnt do it once it was said and done.



You need to get an oil based paint. Exterior use. The kind that has mineral spirits in it.

You wont find a non-toxic paint. The key here is just to make sure it drys really well before going over the tank (obviously if you put it on while its a little wet you will have fumes inside the canopy that would take a while to get out, not to mention maybe paint dripping)

Once it is dry its as safe as you can get.

I thinned about 50% paint thinnner 50% paint in a cup and painted about 3 coats of "primer" (The wood soaks up alot of paint) then did about 3 coats of the regular paint. Its water proofed now!

Be sure to get high-gloss. It acts as a reflector and will bounce more light back into the paint (You wont see it so color wont matter)

For the outside I did about 3 coats of the clear protector after staining it.

Hope this helps you a bit!

I recessed my top peice of plywood and made a little "groove" all around inside the top edge, and dropped the peice of wood in the top. Made it look pretty nice.

 

[SpikeAZ]

I was initally going to go with a spin on this idea: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Hills/2637/canopy.html

I've built a variation of this canopy twice (once for a 125 and once for a 75), and both times it worked out quite well.

Part B I ran perpendicular instead of parallel (mine was a small 3 inch board) and for part C I used two on each side (and the front) for more stability.

I also cut out 4" boxes on parts A for fans.

Part E I made a tiny bit larger so that it is easier to lift.

 

[arminkropp]

Well I'll post pics as I go and keep you posted.

AK