The Class Act Aquarium Stand

[user 2204]

So here we go with yet another one of these build threads, right? Well I figured it is time for me to start unveiling what I've been working on for about the past 3 months. Otherwise I might never put one of these up here.

Okay so here we go and yes 3 months, I hear ya all out there. Okay a little background on this build.

I got a screaming deal on a 65H AGA aquarium from a friend, only problem was it came with some prefab MDF/Particleboard/black sticker crappy stand. Uck Yuck! Wife was happy with the size of the tank and fit the space perfectly. Only issue is she was not in love with the stand. "I don't want one of those ugly store buoght looking stands. If it is going in the formal living room it needs to look like a piece of furniture." This coming from my significant other. Okay I say, not realizing what I'm getting myself into. That was about 2 years ago. Yes I know, right.

Next phase was to have a glass company drill 2 overflow holes for me. Holes are in both of the upper corners. Basic concept, got the idea from Cy at BR in Renton. Very helpful, that he is.

Next was to do up a nice stand that "Looks like a nice piece of furniture". Got it. Hmmm I've never built a darn thing worthy of being called furniture. Well lets start this stand with a nice frame.

Bam Yes, We have a frame worthy of holding a car. Basic, I know. You'll have to keep watching as we progress.

~ IT'S WORTH IT! ~

 

[user 2204]

I know, doesn't really look like much. But please bare with me while we progress to where I am today in the build. Remember, 3 months is a long time and I've taken quite a few photos.

Cheers,
Alex

Test fitting the 20L AGA that will be used as a sump/fuge. Gonna be tight, but looks like a go!

 

[TheKraken]

And following along...

 

[user 2204]

So at this point I have a basic idea of what I am going to try and achive. Coming up with all these great ideas is one thing. Putting them together and having them all work flawlessly is another, especially when you've never really built anything quite like this.

"It needs to look like a nice piece of furniture." Yes dear.

So I decided to give a little more strength I'd go ahead and add a top to the frame. Also I don't like the idea of my fuge lighting blasting away and lighting the living room up, so I opted to put a back on as well.

And I'll let you wonder about the red stuff on the wood and cardboard until the next post or two.

 

[user 2204]

Here's the red stuff. It is actually part of my Bondo and Glazing that I decided to do. There is a reason behind my madness. Everything must be smooth...

 

[user 2204]

I also decided that I would seal all the wood surfaces with a product called Profin that is made by Daly's Paint here in Seattle. Awesome stuff and it will give the stand a little extra waterproofing. Used it before and it does a good job with waterproofing.

Here's a photo of the top being sealed. And more of that red stuff (Glazing putty). You might also be able to see the white under the top, that is marine primer that is painted over the Profin.

 

[user 2204]

And here is the stand with the back and top on it, and this is what the cardboard was for... getting ideas and making them reality.

So why do I have a wall inside my stand? Simple, I plan on putting most of the electronics and backbone of the system into that area. Away from the water.

 

[user 2204]

And here is a photo showing how I rounded the top of the insdie panel. This will be where all the wiring runs through so I figured I better make it smooth.

And finally got around to making a teardrop baseplate for my router. Figure I will need it soon to trim up the top and back of the stand. And just plain fun to build things.

 

[user 2204]

After trimming up the back and top, I decided to give it a nice finished edge. Had some scrap moulding lying around so what the hey.

 

[user 2204]

Oh and I forgot the most important photo, I'll leave it at this for tonight. Check back tomorrow for more.

Cheers,
Alex

Received this from my wife for this years anniversary gift. Fifth year wedding anniversary and I guess the traditional gift is wood.

 

[DolphinLVR]

Looking Great Alex!

 

[TJL]

Nice Alex, very very nice indeed. Are you going to incorporate a DJ strip or controller into stand as well ? Computer fan for sump area. I'm thinking of getting double usage out of fan for sump area/return pump by pulling air past pump through interior wall then up and out past lighting drivers recessed into the upper half (as long as there is not much humidity to do so) if that all makes sense. Sweet router jig by the way.

Todd

 

[vinny2261]

Nice shop too...

 

[Krish]

Looking good man!!

 

[user 2204]

Thank you all for the kind words.

Todd, I have some very cool plans in store for the stand and canopy. It does make sense of what you're explaining (I think I understand ). Stay tuned for more.

As I mentioned I started this build about 3 months ago and have been slowly progressing. Part of the reason for taking it slow is I have nerve damage to my right hand, wrist and elbow that only allows me to work in short intervals. Such as life and saftey first, as always (hand pain=stop for the day).

Now back to the photos for today.

 

[user 2204]

So what do you get when you add 120 gallons of water with a few clamps, a rubber mallet, and a piece of 2x4? Cooperation.

Okay so I forgot to show all ya all what to do when your 2x materials that you're working with do not cooperate as they should. 2x's cooperate? Yeah right.

Photo is from when I was building the lower section of the structural framing.

 

[user 2204]

While building the framing, I took into consideration of how the doors might mount and the fact that I had really no true idea of how I was going to face-frame the stand yet. So I decided to trim off the round edge portion of the 2x4 so to give me a nice clean flat edge to work with later. I'm glad that I did too, in the end it gives a nice clean professional look to the stand.

 

[user 2204]

Can I get a sixteenth of an inch off that moulding? Yeah sure you betcha, no worries.

What one won't do in the pursuit of perfection, or at least as close to perfection as one can achive. This photo shows what I cut off to get the moulding that I had lying around to fit the stand. This gets glued between the top and backside to give a nice round edge profile.

 

[user 2204]

Nice shop too...

Thanks Vinny.

I redid my garage a couple of years ago to accommodate the work that I would be performing in there. The garage was not very well lit, underpowered and cold.

So I decided to put more power to the garage, instead of one outlet my friend who works for Cochran looked things over and advised me on how to do my electrical. Now I have an outlet every 4 feet on all the walls and added a seperate circuit for the power and a seperate circuit for the lighting. My lighting consits of 10 - 32w T8 bulbs, which really brighten things up a bit. After all that I decided to put in some insulation to keep things warm.

Oh did I mention that I ran a telephone line, internet (Cat 5e), cable and a nice sound system in there too? Yep, gotta have the cable and tunes.

Here's a photo before I did all the work to it and one showing how the garage/workshop looks now.

 

[user 2204]

Okay so after I made the teardrop plate for my router I thought that I might want to start doing some paint samples. Always, Always test your paint, stain, or whatever you use on scrap before putting it on the real thing.

The black is 3 coats of Daly's Profin followed by 6 coats of Benjamin Moore High Gloss Impervo.
The white is 3 coats of Daly's Profin, 3 coats of marine boat primer, and 6 coats of marine top coat boat paint.

Here's a couple of the samples that I did. The second photo shows how much abuse the paint can withstand. Those dimples are from being thrown around in the gravel.