# using my Ikea Kaxas media cabinet as an aquarium stand?



## Ozymandias (Jan 17, 2008)

if you really want to use it i would say ad an interior bracing frame to it. Ikea uses relatively cheap materials for some of there stuff so i would beware of water spillage as it can coase the boards to louse there strength and eventually brake. no sure about matting to prevent this. reall i would say if you don't have to use it as a stand don't just find something more suitable or build a new one you're self (it will save you some haste in the long run i think)


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## kana (Oct 23, 2007)

> Ikea uses relatively cheap materials for some of there stuff


I personally wouldn't trust anything other then maybe a glass of water on anything IKEA made. It just isn't sturdy stuff like Ozy said. A 5 gallon might be ok, but keep a close eye on it.


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## Ozymandias (Jan 17, 2008)

i was actually at there store last weekend and they do have some nice wooden dinning room tables that i am interested but nothing really appropriate as stands


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## ingg (Jan 18, 2007)

If you have 1" clearance behind the shelves, hope I'm reading that right, then you could:

Get a piece of plywood cut to fit the inertrior in the back section - so it fits inside the "flimsy piece", and in back of the shelves.

Use angle brackets to attach it to the sides and to the top, say every 8" or so. This'll force any movement to break the screw connections, and if the plywood is fit tightly, to warp/fail the plywood as well. Remember that MDF doesn't hold screws quite like real wood, so lots of connections is key here.

This doesn't address front to back movement, is my concern, only side to side racking. 

I suppose you could then follow up with smaller pieces of plywood, under bottom shelf and above top shelf running on the sides, bracketed to the new back panel of plywood and to the bottom/top respectively for front to back....


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## ingg (Jan 18, 2007)

Oh, as far as sealing MDF, it is commonly the base of laminate countertops - just get it good and sealed much as you would do for wood.... then do it twice.


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## volatile (Feb 13, 2007)

Thank you for your detailed input ingg! I have considered your suggestions and will probably wait until I get a larger fish tank and get a custom stand built instead.


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