How to fight moisture damage on inside of canopy?

NickRummy

New member
Does anyone have any suggestions as to how to fight moisture damage on the inside of a canopy?

I have a 65g tank with canopy and I'm currently working on the lighting. There is a lot of moisture damage from the inside mainly over the overflow chamber in the rear corner. I can see flakes coming off occasionally and want to keep this from happening.

Can I purchase some material to line the inside of the canopy? Maybe purchase some marine plywood or something that is water proof or resistant to mount inside?

What are your thoughts on this? I don't want to rebuild the canopy because there's no way I could match it up to the stand. It's still structurally stable.
 
I have a wood canopy over my 150 with a retro fit metal halide and leds. I cut a square out of the top center and installed an exhaust fan to remove all the rising heat and moisture. I also coated the inside and edges with Helmsman Spar Urethane to seal the wood. No issues after 3+ years
 
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Good air circulation and I painted mine with a moisture resistant latex based paint. I used white paint because it helps reflect any stray light.
 
Another option would be to use a peal and stick waterproofing membrane like Grace ice and water shield. I use it on the bottom of my stand under my sump and pumps.
 
Thanks guys. Its made of some type of laminated wood that has been stained. Seems like the top layer of laminate is flaking off in places where the moisture is the worst. I was thinking of laying a new sheet of wood over it then maybe painting it with one of the suggestions above? I don't think i could just paint over the surface damage thats done already. Probably scrape off us much as I can first of course.
 
Thanks guys. Its made of some type of laminated wood that has been stained. Seems like the top layer of laminate is flaking off in places where the moisture is the worst. I was thinking of laying a new sheet of wood over it then maybe painting it with one of the suggestions above? I don't think i could just paint over the surface damage thats done already. Probably scrape off us much as I can first of course.

Fans. I don't need mine for cooling at night, so I put them on a timer that runs every 15 minutes just to keep moisture from forming on the surfaces. I have one blowing in and one blowing out.

If your canopy has laminate and is separating, you should check the quality of the wood underneath. It might be time for more serious maintenance, especially if it's particle board.
 
I guess my terminology might have been off a bit. It's basically a plywood that it's made out of and the very top layer of it is flaking off. It's really thin, almost like a veneer or something they put on it to get the color? The wood underneath is in good shape. Doesn't seem to have any rot and is really firm.

I was thinking of scraping off whatever I could that might be loose, then cutting a piece of marine plywood to size and fastening that to the inside top of the canopy. I could then paint this with something protective? Adding fans might be a good idea.

What size fans are you using?
 
Most use computer fans. I wouldn't bother adding more wood if the wood already there is still good enough to use. I'd sand all the old stain off the inside and paint.
 
1) if there's splashing, figure out how to prevent the splashing
2) KILZ! kilz the inside of the canopy.
3) Fans as people have mentioned
 
No splashing happening. I think it was just from moisture build up without the use of air circulation.

Maybe I'll just clean it up nice and get all the loose stuff and check it out. If I can seal it up that way I'll go that route. I read in another thread someone used some white acrylic inside their canopy. That would be great for reflection and moisture protection. Think that might be a good option to put inside after it's sealed with the Kilz? Is Kilz just a primer? It needs painted afterward as well?
 
I made mine, and few others for freinds, with the acrylic linings. If you put the acrylic on with a thin bead of silicone at the edges there is no need to seal the wood with paint or anything. It works very very well. Mine has been on the tank overr 7 years and still, the whole thing looks like new. Silicone and SS screws also sealed with silicone. predrill, squit the goo in the hole, install screw, wipe clean.
 
Good ventilation and a stain and varnish protective coat. Same thing with your stand if you have a sump.

Mike
 
I made mine, and few others for freinds, with the acrylic linings. If you put the acrylic on with a thin bead of silicone at the edges there is no need to seal the wood with paint or anything. It works very very well. Mine has been on the tank overr 7 years and still, the whole thing looks like new. Silicone and SS screws also sealed with silicone. predrill, squit the goo in the hole, install screw, wipe clean.

I really like this idea. I think I'm going to give this a go!

I think I'm going to take the components out of my Nova Extreme and mount them inside the canopy after this is done.
 
I used the KILZ on the inside of mine, then to make it more reflective, gave it 2 coats of Appliance Epoxy paint (Spray)
Nice and shiny white so it is really reflective.
 
Did you guys just use a standard exterior Kilz paint or is there a specific water proof one to use? I think I'm going to paint over it and then line it with acrylic.
 
Save your time and money if you're going to use acrylic. Just put a beead of silicone around the edges of the plastic and call it good. It will seal better to the bare wood rather than the paint anyway. I used enough that it oozes out when pressed onto the wood and then just wipe it with a finger. Then it's sealed.
 
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