My stand build

[Specfishin]

So I've built the rough stand unfinished no oak panels on yet. Its a 33 long. Yup its your old sump Bryan. :thumbsup:What do you paint/seal the basic parts of the stand with? I'm just looking for any experience in what not to use and what to use. I've painted boat wood with some special wood sealing water resistant stuff, the name escapes me at the moment. Spar? I just want to either go all white inside and the frame or just wood seal it since its getting concealed by the oak panels. I'll try to post a pic later. Its going to be stained oak dark in color. Simple lift off front.

 

[crocogator106]

I'm in the process of building a stand to.It's all framed up but no "skin" yet. I'm going to install LED tube lighting under the top edges on the inside and hook up a plunger switch so when the doors open these lights come on so you can see what your doing inside the stand while working on stuff. I'm also going to install 3 power strips near the top on the inside for equipment to plug into. I thought all this would be easier to do with just a frame. I'm going to stain the outside and then seal it and leave the inside bare wood (might paint it white still deciding). I'm also going to put a cheap thick plastic shower curtain on the floor, doubled up and staple about 2-3" high in case of leaks or spills and I figure it will aide in sound dampening of any pump vibration.
I don't think it matters what you do on the outside (paint/stain) but my concern (may or may not be valid) is somehow getting my sump contaminated by paint/stain/sealant falling into the sump.

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[Specfishin]

Yeah contamination was my concern as well, but untreated wood can easily become a mold farm and my son is allergic to a bunch of mold types. It gives him respiratory issues and he seems to get allergy symptoms. So with that being said Im gonna paint or seal the bare wood entirely the basic stand. I like the idea of a led plunger setup. I built the stand with a slight electrical compartment I can house a couple of apex strips. This will be a growout tank or just a lookover softie tank. Not sure yet. And the shower liners if I recall correctly, aren't to costly. I would go with a shower base liner and do the 3" or so like ya said. With a wet sensor. Thanks for the ideas! And I personally wouldn't use those cheap shower curtain liners because salt water might tend to dry them and become brittle. The true liners are a mucher thicker mil. Happy building!

 

[crocogator106]

Your mold concern could be a valid point and you've got me thinking of adding some way to have ventilation inside the stand. I think I will add a few of these vents. They are used for allowing air circulation under a house and you can get them made of all plastic so no rust. Maybe even add a small cheap fan inside the stand for good airflow and keep down any mold.
http://images.lowes.com/product/converted/080192/080192005090.jpg

 

[Specfishin]

Homestly if you want to save electricity, use larger computer fans . There are some quiet ones out there and all you need is a dc power adapter. Easy to mount and could keep air movement going. There are also rpm / fan controllers to find the right volume pf air movement or volume of sound as well. There's even the lighted fans if you really wanted. I build my own desktop gaming / media setups and the fans are very easy to work with if you can custom wire or use adapters for the reef scene.

 

[bwhit1406]

So your using the 33 gallon as a Display? Thats cool i really liked the size of that tank. Good luck with build.

 

[crocogator106]

Homestly if you want to save electricity, use larger computer fans . There are some quiet ones out there and all you need is a dc power adapter. Easy to mount and could keep air movement going. There are also rpm / fan controllers to find the right volume pf air movement or volume of sound as well. There's even the lighted fans if you really wanted. I build my own desktop gaming / media setups and the fans are very easy to work with if you can custom wire or use adapters for the reef scene.

Good idea! My son has built a few computers and can probably show me just what I need.

 

[Specfishin]

So your using the 33 gallon as a Display? Thats cool i really liked the size of that tank. Good luck with build.

Haha yeah I really have to hold off on the bigger tank until I figure things out with work and such. Hopefully I can start on it around fall season. Yeah its perfect size for growing some stuff out in it.