What wood to use for a DIY hood ?

[Bloo]

I'm thinking of making a DIY hood for my 19US gallon tank.
With a total of 54 watts (of light) in a fairly small space, I don't want to risk overheating and the wood catching fire

So what't the best material / wood to use to make a DIY hood ?

 

[soggysandwich]

birch works pretty good

 

[The-Wolf]

Pine would be the best
what ever you chose don't make it from MDF,
believe me it just don't work.

Bloo
have you seen this on ebay?
http/cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...ADME:L:RTQ:UK:1

It may be ok for your needs, although I'm sure CFC would make one cheaper than that.

 

[Bloo]

Cool thanks Paul !
I'm not sure yet if I will actually need to make the lid - I'm getting some new light fittings and there's a small change that they won't fit my existing set-up - hence thinking about a DIY lid. I'll know later in the week when I have the lights and fittings and have some time to fiddle with them

 

[Discomafia]

Pine was what I was recommended to use when I built my hood some time ago.

 

[soggysandwich]

there a forum thread about a DIY hood, im think of making one myself http/www.saltwaterfish.com/vb/showthread.php?t=171247

 

[Bloo]

There is this one by Daza too - extremely good !

 

[daza]

thanks bloozoo!

I can second The-Wolf's comment on MDF!

Something I chose not to mention in my hood thread was that I firstly tried to use MDF. It soon became a prototype...deliberately of course

 

[Bloo]

Something I chose not to mention in my hood thread was that I firstly tried to use MDF. It soon became a prototype...deliberately of course

Of course

Could you possibly make some amendment or note in your original post stating that ? Or recommending what wood to use ?
It's just that I'd like to ask to get it pinned - there's a definitely need to have a DIY hood pin and I can't find any better (on our forum) than yours

 

[daza]

ok. I shall add a bit more info on the wood I used to my thread.

I'm sure that the pine suggested above would look nicer, but I made my choice due to ease of use and it is the same as the stand.

 

[track_star_400_meters]

hello. did you use anykind of sealent on the wood to protect it from the water.

 

[Bloo]

Well it turns out there's no need at the moment to make a DIY hood - phew !
My new lights will fit the existing hood - with slight modification.

But I have another tank that needs a hood (it has a rubbish plastic one at the mo) so when I have some spare time I'll pop down to B&Q to get some wood and have it cut at the same time.

 

[simonbrown403]

I'm a cabinet maker by trade and i've made countless tank stands and hoods for people out of the veneered and plain mdf, my local fish shop build and sells tanks stands and hoods out of mdf, without a problem.

As long as you do the job right its a fantastic material to work with, the trick is to sand all edges with sand paper going down in grades until its as smooth as glass, then seal the hole thing with a undercoat.
Once you have done this use a decorators cox (flexible filler the type you get in a tube to use with a silicon gun) and run a bead along all the joints to seal them and then paint with two to three coats of your paint, the same method will work with stain and varnish.

Another thing that is worth doing is putting a dad of silicon on all screws before screwing them in, this seals the wood, and a dab on the head will stop rust there to.

Its true that mdf cabinets don't last as long but this tend to be more because people don't look after them, water will damage solid timbers if not cleaned up.

 

[Stew]

The simple lid I made for my goldfish tank is made from Teak.
B)

 

[RYO]

I used marine ply.
heres a link to my build
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showto...&st=0&p=864483&