setfree23

Boognish! I'm glad I checked back. You canopy looks great. Thanks for the tips. I am hopeful to get our stand going in the coming month. My husband turns 30 toward the end of February and I want to surprise him. Trying to figure out a canopy system too. My mom is a welder so I am a little curious on the details of your lift system. Those are some HUGE lights! You are going to have a coral forest when things get going in there. I SO wish I had a garage on the other side of my wall. That looks like a great set-up.

Boognish! I just came across your tank build and I am blown away by your cabinetry skills! I just bought my husband a 72 gallon bowfront tank for Christmas. We are newbies to the saltwater world and are just beginning to gather our needed equipment and supplies. After my husband talked me into a saltwater tank (originally we were going to try freshwater, but now he has the "fever"), we realized that we will need a sump; and along with that, a stand that will hold all of that mess. I've been googling images and researching non-stop for over a week and found your beautiful tank stand. It is exactly what I am looking for! I love the design of bowfront tanks/stands, but don't want to mess with the bending/vacuuming process to curve the wood to match (yes, I am the builder in our house). I love how you incorporated the angles, the clean trim work, and your removable panels are genius! I also agree that hinged doors would just get in the way of having to wade around in the sump. My design ideas are a little different style-wise, but, utilizing a design like yours will achieve the look I am going for. I am choosing a white cabinet finish, beadboard panels, and I think I will add a false drawer front to the removable panels as well. I want it to look like a useable piece of furniture and not just a fishtank stand (That way I can use the drawer handle to grab the panels in and out too). Ideally, I would love the cabinet doors to be recessed, but I haven't got that far yet. Maybe a stop block behind the cabinet rails or stiles? I could go on forever, I suppose...That's the nice thing about building the furniture myself- I get to pick the style and finish. I was wondering if you could share a few tips with me regarding your stand build. I am particularly concerned with the angles and exactly how you got them. Are there any simple tricks to your math on the stand front? How much larger is the stand from the tank (not counting the top trim that makes it look inset)? Also, I was noticing that the framework is doubled in the front with the angled frame and the straight frame behind it. Is that necessary? Did you use simple magnetic cabinet closures for the panels or a kind of heavy duty magnet? I've seen a tank canopy designed with removable magnetic access panels here (I love this CustomColor's tank and stand, definitely check out this build!) and thought they were a good solution. I appreciate any help you can give. I also wanted to ask if there is anything you would do differently now that you have lived with this design for some time? Any small things that could make a difference to the functionality that you didn't think of at the time? I'm reading up on overflow designs, and I think I am set on using BeanAnimal's design for a quiet system. Would you recommend expanding the stand depth to incorporate plumbing braces for all of the stand pipes? I've seen canopies attached via 2x4s that run vertically behind the tank. A hinged canopy could anchor to the rear if I attach like this and I could fit the plumbing in the frame space. and that leads to...the canopy! Did you ever complete your canopy? It's on my build list too...After all, that's how my husband negotiated the fish tank in the first place. He had to convince me the whole tank would look like a nice piece of furniture *complete with canopy* instead of a bachelor pad beer stand- little did I know, I would be building the furniture! I've seen several designs and really want to avoid a super top-heavy looking canopy. I guess there is a happy medium between aesthetics and functionality. Sorry for all of the questions, your stand design is the first I've come across that meets my expectations for a bowfront tank. Many DIY plans I've found online consist of a flat front cabinet with a curved top leaving no support for the apex of the bowfront. I'm anxious to hear any feedback you can give before I try to start drafting plans. I'm pretty handy with a miter saw, just trying to wrap my head around the front panel design angles (including the trim). Thanks so much, I look forward to your input!