got wood?

[MERTZ18]

can you use salt treated wood for your canopy? i need to rebulid the canopy for a 54g coner bowfront. i know how im going to build it, i just want it to last and not kill my tank.

thanks
mike

 

[Virginia Reef]

I wouldn't use it. The wood is treated with some things that may not do well...I'm thinking that there may be copper something in the treatment. I don't believe that salt is actually used in any commercially available product.

In any event, the wood is much too heavy and thick. Try untreated wood or plywood with a good coat (actually three or four) of poly or spar varnish (the spar varnish is my choice and is intended for salt water environments). An enamel paint is also a good choice if that fits your decor.

If you are planning to use screws, make sure that they are stainless.

 

[MERTZ18]

thanks v reef
it was going to be salt treated plywood @ $45 a sheet thick and heavy. i think i'll still use plywood but drop the salt treated part. any ideas on the curve part of the tank?

 

[Virginia Reef]

The curvature is the trick. Two problems right off the bat...how to build the curvature and how to open it. Hinges on a curve don't work. Wood can be curved to SOME extent (easier if it's fixed rather than mobile).

If you want something that sits on top of the tank, perhaps a base and cap piece scrolled out of a wide piece to match the curvature that are routed out to accept a sliding door arrangement. The doors would prolly need to be of something other than wood. Getting the right curvature diameter and material will be a real test.

Or...a series of straight panels joined to form a rough match to the bowfront. Then you could use a wider variety of material (wood and hinges) to provide front access.

Or...how about a hood that lifts up rather than has doors for access? Either hinged at the back or on a ceiling pulley. Or just a fixed, lift-off hood. Be sure to allow lots of ventilation at the top &/or rear. Lots of choices depending on what your specific location and decor parameters are. If you have a wife who gets to vote...you're screwed.

 

[coolfish5]

The way I did my 46gallon bow front canopy:

I built a square frame out of 1x2 pine. The bow on the front was made out of 3/4" BC plywood, I just cut the piece a little large, and traced the curve of the tank onto the ply, and cut two pieces (top and bottom of the door).
The bottom of the door has a curved inside edge so not to block light, the top has a flat edge to mount the hinges to.
All connections were made using decking screws.

I then skinned the whole thing with 1/4" luan (just what was lying around), and more flexable than 1/4" plywood it seemed. The skin is held on by brad nails and glue.

Insides were painted white, though paint alone hasn't held up really well. The outside was done with stain and polyurethane.

 

[Virginia Reef]

Nicely done. I hadn't thought about lifting the entire front on a hinge (since I only spent about 10 minutes doing ANY thinking last night).

 

[Saboral]

Yeah for the curve I would build a rough match to the bow outta ply or scrolled 2x6s and then use a laminate to skin the frame. Otherwise you could get a piece of plywood steamed and bent to the correct curve, but this is probably fairly expensive.