hood considerations

[noop]

bearing in mind i don't yet have fish and in fact i've never yet had fish, can you advise me what factors i should consider before designing a hood to go over a tropical fish tank

like for example, how much room should i have for lighting? does a heater live entirely in the water or does it need hood-space too? and i'm guessing different filters will have different requirements. also do i need a condensation tray? what does that look like??

i'm thinking of having a hinged flap at the front, at least half the tank width

cheers
noop

 

[pmoyniha]

I'm pretty new at this stuff too, but here is what I have figured out along the way.

As far as the hood goes it really depends on what you want to do with your fish. If you intend to have plants you will need more space for lights as you will need 2-3 Watts/Gallon of water. With regards to your filter it really depends on what model you buy. Every model will take up a different amount of room so you need to make that decision first. The hearter typically doesn't require much if any space so it again depends on the model. Try takeing a look at a prefabricated one and then make modifications as you desire. If you are going to make it out of wood I would seal it though as the wood may warp over time.

 

[noop]

thanks. i'm thinking of having some silver dollars so will probably go for plastic plants, meaning i should be able to get away with just having one fluro tube in there

what do you seal wood with to stop it warping? is simple varnish enough?

 

[Great Lakes]

Paint it with a nice white acrylic enamel. Several coats. It will seal out moisture, and add reflectivity to your hood for lighting. The inside that is... )

 

[noop]

white eh? i think i might paint it bright yellow, possibly with purple stripes, see if it makes the fish behave any differently