DIY Canopy for AhSupply kit (10g)

Bk718

Bk718

No Monkey Business
Nov 29, 2007
7,148
1
60
Brooklyn, NY
Hey guys. Ever since i replaced the regular screw in cfl bulbs in my 29g with an ahsupply kit I fell in love with it. Seeing that the ahsupplys 55w kit gives me better lighting and plant growth than the 70w of screw in cfl's i had up I decided to redo the lighting on my 10g as well.
Currently I am using a regular incandescent fixture over my tank with 2-14w bulbs. It gives me great results but the lighting is no where as bright as an ahsupply one..
I used regular 7-8' board, 3/4" thick pine for the canopy.
Heres what I did..

I- Cutting:
Two - 19" x 3" boards (This will be your front and back)
One - 19" x 7.75" board (This will be your top)
Two - 6" x 3" boards (This will be your sides)

Then sand down all the edges..

II- Putting it together
Heres an image to illustrate what goes where after..
1i2a7c.jpg


I used 1.5" coarse screws to screw it all together.

III- Vent (optional)

Used a 1" flat wood bit to make a hole on each side for the vents. Later will be covered by the caps AHsupply provided.

IV- Filling the gaps/holes
I had used Elmers Wood filler to cover up any imperfections in the wood and close the gaps (minimal) that were between each piece of wood.
Heres a photo of how it looks:
otnew1.jpg


Heres how it looks so far..
mn0ty1.jpg


Im still waiting for it to fully dry so i can sand it down smooth..

V- Painting the inside..
Used regular white indoor/outdoor paint to paint the inside.. Went over it 2 times still have one more to go..
2qapzwi.jpg


Well Thats all for now.. Thus far it took 2hrs to cut/sand/paint..
Will post updates as i progress.

Thanks for looking
 
Good start. Is you hood going to open up top or just lift off?
 
it wont be covering the entire tank.
10g dimensions are 20" long and 10" wide. So i will have those 2.5 inches to work with for feeding. But yes it will have to come off during water changes, but thats not a problem.
Also made it an inch smaller since it will be supported by glass. Plus I placed my filter on the side of the tank, so if i wouldve made it 20" it wouldve been popping out an extra inch on the side.
 
Just making sure. Even geniuses have blonde moments too every once in a while LMAO!
 
I didnt make a hole for the wires yet.. Will do them actually later when i decide how i wish to mount the ballast and what not.
Though 2 things i am missing right now are: Workhorse 2 Ballast and a switch for the lighting..
Hopefully will be done with the installation of the kit today and will paint the outside black tomorrow.
But the final test to see if it all works will only be mid week since thats when the ballast is supposed to come in..
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom