Two-Tier Aquarium Stand Build (with storage!)

[eatyourpeas]

On 6/26/2021 at 8:08 PM, Hobbit said:

Question for everyone: I have some leftover Benjamin Moore paint that I’d be planning on using for this project. Is it okay to use wall paint on wood? Do I need primer or anything? And do you think I’ll need to cover it in a poly coat or other sort of finish? Can I even do that over wall paint?

@Hobbit This is looking great! You are doing a fantastic job!

On the paint, is it flat or does it have some gloss in it? The gloss will be easier to clean. I have used it on wood with great results to attain an old finish by steel-wooling the paint down. If it is going to get wet, I suggest a sealant of some sort as @ChemBobrecommends or it will eventually bubble.

Flat BM paint:

[Hobbit]

On 6/26/2021 at 11:59 PM, ChemBob said:

Is probably at least use primer, but I really don't know what would be necessary or if it will work,  but I don't know why it wouldn't. Did the can of paint say anything? 

Oh yeah, read the can. Good idea! 😄 The can says it can be used over previously primed wood. So now I just have to figure out what primer to use.

On 6/27/2021 at 11:19 AM, eatyourpeas said:

On the paint, is it flat or does it have some gloss in it? The gloss will be easier to clean.

It’s actually flat—no gloss. A sealant seems necessary then.

Very cool stand! Did you use a sealant over the whole thing, or just the top? What sealant did you use?

[eatyourpeas]

On 6/27/2021 at 10:04 AM, Hobbit said:

Very cool stand! Did you use a sealant over the whole thing, or just the top? What sealant did you use?

Thank you! I did not use a sealant, the original wood had some treatment and I just painted over it.

[eatyourpeas]

@Hobbit I meant to post this earlier but got sidetracked. Here is a piece of cheap laminate that has water based paint (acrylic) with a wood sealant on top. It makes the surface look "old-farm". The product used was Sikkens Cetol SRD left over from our outside doors.

 

[Hobbit]

Wow! It’s been a while. Sorry for not keeping up with this. Those foster kittens took a lot out of me. But between the two of us, my husband and I finally got the thing done.

First the three trouble makers. They were totally feral when I got them. I managed to bring two of them around by the time they went back to the shelter. The other will probably become a barn cat.

First we had to prime the stand. We took advantage of the nice weather to prime the stand outside. Here it is pre-priming:

We also worked on the top piece. It’s just a piece of maple plywood from Home Depot. We got some wood conditioner and some stain meant for outdoor use.

We used Vermont Natural Coatings because I can be pretty sensitive to chemical smells, and unfortunately the beautiful table my husband made, which he stained with linseed oil, bothered me for about a year. This stain wasn’t totally free of that sort of smell, but it’s a lot better.

We managed to do a beautiful but thin job on the first side (which was supposed to be the bottom) and a terrible yet robust job on the other (which was supposed to be the top)! It was tricky to know how thick to put the stain on, because I didn’t want it tooooo dark, but the more layers you apply, the more waterproof it will be. So on the first side, we stopped after two coats. We also under-sanded the first side, so there were a lot of rough areas that absorbed more stain. You can see the worst spot here after I did a water drop test.

When we stained the second side, it was just too hot of a day to really be staining, but there was no cooler weather in sight. We waited too long after applying the pre-stain, and on top of that the regular stain dried super fast. You can see all our brush strokes. But we went ahead and did three layers. And we did a much better job sanding!

So even though the second side turned out way uglier, it was more waterproof, and that’s what really matters. It will mostly be covered by tanks anyway, so it’s fine! 😄

Once the stand was primed, it came inside for painting. 

I did go ahead and use the Benjamin Moore paint I had on hand. It’s ceiling paint, so it’s totally flat, and the color is “bunny gray.” A very very light, slightly blue gray. I didn’t photograph that part because it really just looks white like the primer. No excitement there. Actually it was really hard to tell what I’d already painted!

After that I put two layers of poly coat on both the middle and the bottom shelf. I figure the middle shelf might end up with wet things on it from time to time. Apparently poly sometimes yellows over paint, so we did a test board before committing. Also apparently poly sticks much better over flat paint rather than semigloss or eggshell, so we lucked out there! Again, no excitement to photograph. It’s clear. 😄 But through all this painting and poly coat-ing I did watch a lot of episodes of Hoarders!

Next the side panels got attached to the cabinet. Hubby drilled a pegboard into the inner panel so I can hang things there!

Then we brought in the top piece, drilled pre-drill holes with counter sinks, and put four screws in to hold the top in place. They’re easily removable whenever we need to move the thing.

And that means….

Yaaaaay!!!

One day I’ll add a door to the cabinet. But for now it’s at least usable! We can basically call it done. 😊

And it’s already a mess. 😆

The one major thing I’d change about the stand if I could is that I wish it were taller. I could have easily added another six or eight inches to the thing and it would have looked fine. It would have given me more head room for the lower tanks and more room on the shelf for taller baskets. I’m not sure why I thought it needed to be this height. Something about it having a ratio like other furniture. Oh well. Live and learn!

All in all, I’m a very happy fish keeper. ☺️

We did it!!

[Hobbit]

The stand has a few upgrades that I thought I’d share.

First is this bar from IKEA that is holding my test strips, fertilizer, nets, tools, rubbing alcohol spray bottle, and most importantly—a towel!

I’ve attached lights to the shelf above the bottom tanks so they aren’t in the way of anything. I spaced out the attachment points so I can slide the light on and off the bars if I need to get the light down for any reason. (Ignore the mistake holes. 😄)

I also have my new handy-dandy brine shrimp hatchery setup which I am LOVING. The glass vases are from etsy, and they each hold about a quarter liter of water.

There’s now one tank running on the bottom shelf, and the top tank is sitting in its eventual home (though it needs some repairs first). We’re still scheming about how to make a roll-out system for the bottom tanks. Heavy duty cabinet sliders would be the perfect thing, but they’re pretty pricey.

It’s so handy to have something designed exactly for your needs!

[Patrick_G]

What are the brine shrimp cones made out of? 

[Hobbit]

@Patrick_G they’re glass.

[Patrick_G]

On 8/1/2021 at 3:23 PM, Hobbit said:

@Patrick_G they’re glass.

Are they vases that would hang on the wall? 
Also, the stand looks great, you guys have come a long way from a pile of 2x4s! 

[Hobbit]

Yep! They hang on the wall. I think I’m allowed to post the link to them:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/749036349/35-x-95-cone-shape-glass-wall-vase-for?ref=yr_purchases

I spent a long time trying to find the biggest version of these that existed (and then trying to find the best price). There are some pretty tiny ones out there.

Rigid airline tubing is an important part of the system as well.

Thanks!! ☺️

[FrozenFins]

Very effecient! Instead of using a bar to hold all my stuff I use the command test strips, I stick it to the side of the stand. I use it primarily to hold my nets and usb air pump. I like the bar idea a little more as it seems you could store more stuff on it.

[Hobbit]

Command strips are very handy! I haven’t used any of their hooks on this stand, but I’ve used the strips to stick a power strip to the back of one leg, and to stick the book light to the wall with the brine shrimp hatcheries.