cabinets for 2ft tank

[silver2578]

hi all,

I've a question regarding Wooden cabinets supporting Marine fish tanks, in particular a 2ft one. Can i buy these cabinets off the shelves from say ikea? whats the pre requisite for such cabinets?

I hope I'm postin in the right forum. Thanks

regards

Silver

[terryansimon]

yes you can. but whether they will be able to tahan the weight, is another thing altogether.

not to mention whether its marine proof.

[ervine]

Ikea shelves are almost always not solid wood... check carefully before you buy.. if it's chipboard or some other compressed wood better be careful... esp since it was not meant to take the weight of the tank..

[sinner]

ikea do sell solid planks downstairs perhaps you wanna diy made to measure

[silver2578]

thanks guys,

i was thinking of buying a cabinet from ikea or doing alittle DIY using some wood planks from a old ikea shelf i bought.

hmm, but then again, i dont trust my own handicraft =)

thanks for the info

regards

Silver

[ah^siao]

use chengtai wood...

can last longer

[Dinosaur]

use chengtai wood...

can last longer

Yah .... yah....

this one for sure will ive longer than you and me

[ah^siao]

hhahaa.. confirm...

[jhansolo]

Just to share my thoughts about Ikea stuff ... It never last ... The only thing that I bought from Ikea that last is a solid high chair for my daughter - 3 years and still good. I do shop in Ikea for things that I don't need to last, as the price is good. Have you seen Ikea V shape bookshelf? I have after 1 year.

I will suggest a proper stand or cabinate. If you are into DIY, I cover my metal stand with wood to make it look good in my living room. So maybe you can use the salvage panels from your old Ikea cupboard for this purpose.

[Fuzz]

Got to watch for those MDF wood type of furnitures from IKEA... They will split open when in contact with water.... Think alternativly is to get marine ply... at least it is water-proof... I got a quote for 2.5ftx1.5ft tank for $400... Still deciding...

[silver2578]

Excerps from an exchange with Tigershark.

think its excellent advise for those out there whom might still wanna use ikea shelves. I know i'm probably gonna get a 2nd hand cabinet.

if you wanna use IKEA Shelf, you must be very sure of how to re-enforce the whole stand.... eg, use 2 pcs of plank instead of 1 for the stand.the standard shelf use only4 plank as stand, you have to use 8, then u must apply a few layer of vanish to ensure the wood to be ater resistant. after every layer of application (vanish) u must wait till it dry and smoothen it with sand paper to make sure that the vanish looks nice.... my IKEA stand cost me more than $00 bucks for all the reinforcement and touch up.... think you migt as well top up a another $100 bucks to get a proper cabinet...

many thanks to tigershark

[jhansolo]

I beg to differ from Tigershark's Method ...

I won't recommend using additional plank, I presume Tigershark is refering to the planks from Ikea as well. Having 2 planks does not mean that it will be stronger, overtime the 2 planks somehow fused together will warp differently. What you need is to increase the structure strength.

If you must use Ikea plank why not the method I describe. Use a metal stand as the structure and secure the planks from Ikea onto the stand.

[joachimsim]

What IS CHENGTAI WOOD?

And btw...how are those wood cabinets used for those 4 FT Ocean Free Tanks ( Curved and Open )

I almost contemplated buying one last time for $500.

[Tanggy]

The so called solid wood available in ikea is pine. Very low density ans soft wood. Not suitable. If you wanna save money, use a WI stand and use the ply wood or pine to cover the stand. I am doing that for my 3ft tank. Click Here This is an old pictue of my Tank when it was about 1 month old. I choose metal cos dont trust wood. Depend on carpenter's skill, if not good, can collapse after a few years.

PS. Get the stand galvanise to protect from rust

[silver2578]

hi all,

Actually i'm probably not gonna use Ikea shelves cuz i've tried once about a year ago and it didn't look very stable. Am using WI stand now but will be movin in a mth and would like to get a cabinet to incorperate a slump. The WI Stand i have has rusted so badly that i fear a catastrophic event impending.

Thanks Jhansolo, tanggy, for ur insights too.

[Tanggy]

Aiyo. moving then got reason to upgrade to bigger tank liaoz.

[Jewel Tang]

The so called solid wood available in ikea is pine. Very low density ans soft wood. Not suitable. If you wanna save money, use a WI stand and use the ply wood or pine to cover the stand. I am doing that for my 3ft tank. Click Here This is an old pictue of my Tank when it was about 1 month old. I choose metal cos dont trust wood. Depend on carpenter's skill, if not good, can collapse after a few years.

PS. Get the stand galvanise to protect from rust

hi Tanggy

nice DIY, where did u get the plywood anyway, anycontact?

[tigershark]

just to clarified.... my IKEA shelf cost me $100+ after adding all the cost.... not $00 that posted, think typo when i send the pm.

the Ikea shelf is quite tought i would say, there was a member in arofanatics even use it to put 2 unit of 3x1.5x1.5 tank and the shelf have last for 2 yrs + already.

what you really need to do is just some reinforcement and touch up... especially the vanishing, it will helps the wood to last longer. As what i know, all wood will eventually weaken by wet condition, no matter what type of wood you use. The best wood that is best to use in wet condition is "bakau" wood. It is use widely in construction of kelong locally.

there are many ways to reinforce the Ikea pine wood shelf, 1 of the easiest way is to get another 3 pcs of marine plywood plank to cover the back and both side of the shelf to make it a cabinet look a like shelf (cheap + lasting option). In this case, the Ikea Shelf main support will become the "joining part" and the marine plywood will become the major support instead. The are many other ways to reinforce and it is up to your budget + time + creativity.... enjoy

As for the RI stand method, is quite good if you could aford to buy epoxy undercoating paint. These paint is use to prevent rust, as long as you dun knock on the painted parts, your stand could last for years without the rusty problem. To use it, ensure all the rusty surface are rust free and the whole stand is dry..... or else the rust will keep coming and your epoxy paint will crack after a few weeks.

hope my idea could helps a little....

[jhansolo]

Tigershark,

I'm not so sure if pine wood is an ideal solution to house a sump, I suppose that is what silver2578 is looking for.

I don't think the anti-rust paint cost a lot money, but certainly to do it yourself, we can ensure that the coat is very well dried before we apply the look nice paint on top.

Cheers