$50 craiglist 225 tank/cabinet/canopy DIY refurbish
- Thread starter CWO4GUNNER
- Start date
I wouldn't worry about it, 'Nobody's Perfect'...:thm: But it doesn't mean we can be objective and share what we have learned from our experience, no failure in that, IMHO.
Thanks. With Sunday activities I wasn't able top get the birch plywood top attached, seen below sitting for trim measurments on top the cabinet with only the 1st dry coat of burn cheery stain. I also had to buy a new 1/4 sheet sander (Dewalt $49) as my 23 year old Craftsman literally smoked a bearing. Tomorrow I hope to attach the birch top and add a 1" X 3" hard wood border trim covering the front and sides to hide the plywood edge making it appear seamless with the original top, and provide the customary perimeter slide in for the aquarium from the back and hides the tank trim and matches the top canopy (yet to be re-finished). Tomorrow if I also get the polyurethane coat on it will all look much much better.
The reason why I didn't wait to stain until after I placed the top and trim on is becasue I wasn't sure how the stain would take to the wood having been so inundated with old removed finishes and pitted here and there. What started out to be a test patch stain on the back side turn out so well I just kept on staining to get the hard part done. Ill just have to be extra careful and put the stain on a little thicker with the border trim to avoid drips. I love a textured look as baby smooth looks too much like bedroom furniture, I like a hardy western look. The top of course is super clear and pre-finished super smooth for the tank bottom.
The reason why I didn't wait to stain until after I placed the top and trim on is becasue I wasn't sure how the stain would take to the wood having been so inundated with old removed finishes and pitted here and there. What started out to be a test patch stain on the back side turn out so well I just kept on staining to get the hard part done. Ill just have to be extra careful and put the stain on a little thicker with the border trim to avoid drips. I love a textured look as baby smooth looks too much like bedroom furniture, I like a hardy western look. The top of course is super clear and pre-finished super smooth for the tank bottom.
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opcorn: :clap:
That's some serious hard work you've done there Gunner. I have to admit that i didn't like the stand when you first got it but now it looks loads better, i really like it.
Have you started work on the tank yet?
Have you started work on the tank yet?
It looks promising right now but once the top and border trim are installed, stained and the entire stand finished in polyurethane, it will really look attractive. What you don't see is the extra 25 feet of stud box framing that went inside to make it super strong and stiff.
Other then strategic planning on how to evenly set an 81 pound glass panel gently and evenly on bead of silicone without getting your fingers in the way, I haven't done a thing to the tank yet. I must get the stand completed first becasue it will be the platform for the tank when finished for water fill testing outside and transport (empty) using trucks underneath the stand to get the whole thing inside the house. I only have 2.5 weeks left to finish the entire project get it inside the house re-filled before my wife will returns from a visit with my daughter in Portland.
Something I read about(will try it next time) for gluing acrylic, might work for this too. Your on a much larger scale, but it could work?
Something like...
Dowel rods.
Maybe 4-6 down each long side and 1 on each end. With just a big enough dia. to prevent squished fingers.
Set the pane on them. Adjust to just right.
Start pulling out dowel rods.
For something this heavy. You could put an screw eye in the end of each dowel rod. With a string or whatever, strong enough to pull them out from under the glass with.
Just an idea I wanted to toss out, incase it'd help.
Something like...
Dowel rods.
Maybe 4-6 down each long side and 1 on each end. With just a big enough dia. to prevent squished fingers.
Set the pane on them. Adjust to just right.
Start pulling out dowel rods.
For something this heavy. You could put an screw eye in the end of each dowel rod. With a string or whatever, strong enough to pull them out from under the glass with.
Just an idea I wanted to toss out, incase it'd help.
Dowel rods are a good one, we thought about using shims and chop stick also. The added problem though is not only getting the fingers squashed but also the finger print oil s compromising the glass sealing surface. Withe the chop sticks which would leave the smallest gaps with no silicone, it would still be a problem. So there is the problem, how do you place such a heavy glass panel who's edges have been treated with denatured alcohol on top of an upside down aquarium bottom that has also been treated with one continuous unbroken bead of silicone without sliding, slipping or dropping? Levitation? So the mind works on the problem while the stand is being finished.
Didn't get as much done today as I expected as I had to go through piles of cheap $3 1"X4"X12' trim board to find 2 that were not warped, twisted or torn. Then I was slowed down buy the birch top aligning, gluing, clamping and nailing. Alignment was critical becasue I needed a flat side surface for the trim boards which where actually easier to attached then I thought. All this was compounded by today's 113 degree heat and low humidity having to take brakes and drink quarts of ice water:crazy:
Tomorrow I still have to make some wood putty from saw dust and Elmer's glue after some sanding to fill the finishing nail holes on the top and trim boards. Then a good clean up of the area and wipe down to finish staining followed by a coat of polyurethane.
You will note the 3 center boxed support studs visible from the back. This area had no support so consequently the 4 sides of the perimeter were creeping apart in 4 directions. When this happens the aquarium full of water cannot slide to avoid creeping as well and stress is placed on the silicone seals starting at the weakest point, the top 4 corners of the aquarium start to pull apart. So keep an eye on the 4 corners of a perimeter stand that you don't see any separation gaps starting which will tug on a large aquariums corners until they tear. This is where a flat full top has a great advantage becasue not only does it prevent 4 corner creep in a perimeter stand, but the supporting surface is always constant and with a polystyrene pad displaces all the weight evenly even with a plastic frame preventing stress points and glass fatigue over time IMHO.
Didn't get as much done today as I expected as I had to go through piles of cheap $3 1"X4"X12' trim board to find 2 that were not warped, twisted or torn. Then I was slowed down buy the birch top aligning, gluing, clamping and nailing. Alignment was critical becasue I needed a flat side surface for the trim boards which where actually easier to attached then I thought. All this was compounded by today's 113 degree heat and low humidity having to take brakes and drink quarts of ice water:crazy:
Tomorrow I still have to make some wood putty from saw dust and Elmer's glue after some sanding to fill the finishing nail holes on the top and trim boards. Then a good clean up of the area and wipe down to finish staining followed by a coat of polyurethane.
You will note the 3 center boxed support studs visible from the back. This area had no support so consequently the 4 sides of the perimeter were creeping apart in 4 directions. When this happens the aquarium full of water cannot slide to avoid creeping as well and stress is placed on the silicone seals starting at the weakest point, the top 4 corners of the aquarium start to pull apart. So keep an eye on the 4 corners of a perimeter stand that you don't see any separation gaps starting which will tug on a large aquariums corners until they tear. This is where a flat full top has a great advantage becasue not only does it prevent 4 corner creep in a perimeter stand, but the supporting surface is always constant and with a polystyrene pad displaces all the weight evenly even with a plastic frame preventing stress points and glass fatigue over time IMHO.
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