Tank Hood & Paint Issues

[silverchild23]

Hi
I am wondering if anybody can help.
I have just constructed a wooden hood for our tank, and painted it with a satin gloss black paint (for outdoor and indoor). But after it dried i realised it still smelt quite heavily of paint fumes.
I am reluctant to put it on the tank for fear of the fish getting poisoned - especially with the light holder (juwel 240 original) underneath heating the lid.
I am wondering what I can do to remedy this, perhaps by sealing in the paint so no toxic fumes can get out...
...or am I being paranoid and will it be ok after a couple of days?
PS. I have a non-flammable, low VOC & Odour, child-room friendly indoor varnish - would this do the trick?
Many thanks for any help
Ben

 

[SkiFletch]

Was the paint you used latex based or oil based?

 

[silverchild23]

Was the paint you used latex based or oil based?

Thanks for the reply
This is terrible I know, but I'm not too sure (!!)
I'm not particularly 'mr DIY' (my girlfiend can vouch for that) - but I'd prob say it was oil-based as it was very tar-like and there was residue on the lid from where it had sloshed about in the can. I'll double check when I go home tonight, but pretty sure it was oil.
What differences would either one make - is one more harmful than the other?
PS. I dont have the lid on the tank yet - not until I know one way or the other.

 

[SkiFletch]

Actually contrary to your assumption typcially oil based paint is very thin and watery while latex based paint is thicker like sludge. Were you able to easily wash off your hands and the paint brush with water or did you require soap and/or paint thinner? Latex comes off with water (when still wet) and oil requires a detergent or solvent of some sort to get off. Once dry, neither is dangerous for your livestock. Latex typically dries tack-free within 4-6 hours and is safe to put on the tank 24 hours after application. Oil base paint can take anywhere from 4-24 hours to dry tack-free depending on how thick you laid it on. Its typically safe to put on a tank 48 hours after drying.

Some questions; is this hood ventilated with fans? What is it constructed out of materials wise?

Hoods merely painted with latex can be vulnerable to swelling, warping, and ultimately failing due to the moisture inside them. You either have to take care of the moisture with fans (and deal with the resulting increase in evaporation) or seal the inside of the hood with something water tight. Your approach towards preventing moisture penetration of the wood will of course be determined by what paint you used

 

[S Herbert]

Actually contrary to your assumption typcially oil based paint is very thin and watery while latex based paint is thicker like sludge. Were you able to easily wash off your hands and the paint brush with water or did you require soap and/or paint thinner? Latex comes off with water (when still wet) and oil requires a detergent or solvent of some sort to get off. Once dry, neither is dangerous for your livestock. Latex typically dries tack-free within 4-6 hours and is safe to put on the tank 24 hours after application. Oil base paint can take anywhere from 4-24 hours to dry tack-free depending on how thick you laid it on. Its typically safe to put on a tank 48 hours after drying.

Some questions; is this hood ventilated with fans? What is it constructed out of materials wise?

Hoods merely painted with latex can be vulnerable to swelling, warping, and ultimately failing due to the moisture inside them. You either have to take care of the moisture with fans (and deal with the resulting increase in evaporation) or seal the inside of the hood with something water tight. Your approach towards preventing moisture penetration of the wood will of course be determined by what paint you used

I think in that case it's probably oil. It took me literally half-an-hour to get all the reminants off my fingers! But that was using fairy liquid and water...lots of it. Thick thick stuff when it got a little drier. I've looked at the tin and there's no signs of what exectly it's made from, apart from it's satin finish and useable on most surfaces, indoor or out.
It's certainly dry now...it just still smells that's all that concerns me...and when it's sitting over the light it gets quite warm and seems to smell even more - and it just worries me that smell=nasty vapours for the fishes oxygen.

It's a Juwel Rio 240 with slight cut-outs at the back of the unit for the pipes to feed through (external Eheim Pro II filter). It initially came with only the light-housing part of the hood. There's no ventilation, and it's otherwise a typical Juwel tank made from glass and plastic.

Do you think I should put a layer of varnish on to seal it all in and make it more watertight?

Actually contrary to your assumption typcially oil based paint is very thin and watery while latex based paint is thicker like sludge. Were you able to easily wash off your hands and the paint brush with water or did you require soap and/or paint thinner? Latex comes off with water (when still wet) and oil requires a detergent or solvent of some sort to get off. Once dry, neither is dangerous for your livestock. Latex typically dries tack-free within 4-6 hours and is safe to put on the tank 24 hours after application. Oil base paint can take anywhere from 4-24 hours to dry tack-free depending on how thick you laid it on. Its typically safe to put on a tank 48 hours after drying.

Some questions; is this hood ventilated with fans? What is it constructed out of materials wise?

Hoods merely painted with latex can be vulnerable to swelling, warping, and ultimately failing due to the moisture inside them. You either have to take care of the moisture with fans (and deal with the resulting increase in evaporation) or seal the inside of the hood with something water tight. Your approach towards preventing moisture penetration of the wood will of course be determined by what paint you used

I think in that case it's probably oil. It took me literally half-an-hour to get all the reminants off my fingers! But that was using fairy liquid and water...lots of it. Thick thick stuff when it got a little drier. I've looked at the tin and there's no signs of what exectly it's made from, apart from it's satin finish and useable on most surfaces, indoor or out.
It's certainly dry now...it just still smells that's all that concerns me...and when it's sitting over the light it gets quite warm and seems to smell even more - and it just worries me that smell=nasty vapours for the fishes oxygen.

It's a Juwel Rio 240 with slight cut-outs at the back of the unit for the pipes to feed through (external Eheim Pro II filter). It initially came with only the light-housing part of the hood. There's no ventilation, and it's otherwise a typical Juwel tank made from glass and plastic.

Do you think I should put a layer of varnish on to seal it all in and make it more watertight?

sorry - if it's confusing that I've changed user, it's because I'm at home and it automatically switched to my girlfriend's id.

 

[SkiFletch]

Sounds oil based then. Go ahead and coat it with varnish to seal it and then. Wait 2 days, and it should be safe to put over the tank.

 

[silverchild23]

Sounds oil based then. Go ahead and coat it with varnish to seal it and then. Wait 2 days, and it should be safe to put over the tank.

Ok, will get onto it tonight. Thanks for the help
PS. Will the varnish leak any bad toxic fumes with heat from the lighting? Or are they all gone by the time it dries?

 

[SkiFletch]

Typically they're all gone after 48 hours. If you're really concerned, might make sense to run a light inside it for another 24 hours before you put it up on your tank and see if it still emits vapors. It will stop eventually

 

[Tolak]

I built a hood for a 65 gallon nearly 3 years ago & coated it with oil base white. Even though there were fumes after several days of drying it went on the tank. Never lost a fish, actually got a few pairs from this tank. As they pair they get moved to the fishroom & a couple more get added.

Even with oil base paint, spar varnish or whatever you will be redoing it on a regular basis. Mine is overdue, probably will have to replace the lid that hinges. You can get the 2 part epoxy paint that they use to paint the inside of water tanks, many people use tis for the inside of plywood tanks. It runs $50+ per gallon, and only lasts a few years on tanks, you could probably double that time for a hood.

 

[SkiFletch]

Yeah, I'm a big fan of the epoxy method too . I poured marine epoxy on all interior surfaces of mine. Took FOREVER but should last a long time

 

[silverchild23]

Thanks everyone for the help
I have coated the painted hood in a very 'low vapour' varnish, and it's practically odourless. I'll leave it to dry completely for a couple of days and then I'll put it on just to be sure it's safe.
Next time I need to re-do it, I'll probably go for the epoxy method so it'll be longer lasting.
Thanks Again