# Waterproofing new aquarium stand



## chayos00 (Sep 22, 2013)

Hey guys, I've been trying to figure out how I should water proof my DIY aquarium stand structure. I'm not talking about the exterior finish wood, but the internal structure. My initial thought was some Thompson's water sealer, but I've seen a few few builds using Killz. I do like the idea of painting the stand white on the inside to help see what I'll have inside. Thoughts? Killz and some white paint?? If Killz which variety of it?

Here is the stand at the moment, this is what I'm wanting to waterproof.


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## scapegoat (Jun 3, 2010)

now that is what i call a bomb shelter.

I wouldn't worry about Killz... in fact, anything with a moldicide I'd not put anywhere near my water. Most folks just skin their stand and go; but if you really want to do something plain old paint would probably be enough


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## GraphicGr8s (Apr 4, 2011)

You don't need to waterproof it at all.If you want to paint it white then use a good primer and paint. Although it may get wet it won't stay wet. The white paint isn't a bad idea though.


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## AaronT (Apr 11, 2004)

GraphicGr8s said:


> You don't need to waterproof it at all.If you want to paint it white then use a good primer and paint. Although it may get wet it won't stay wet. The white paint isn't a bad idea though.



That's what I'll be doing.


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## BruceF (Aug 5, 2011)

Killz is a great primer.


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## mistergreen (Dec 9, 2006)

A few coats of water sol polyurethane couldn't hurt.


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## chayos00 (Sep 22, 2013)

Wonder how it would work if I coated the stand in a layer of some sort of paint and the got a bunch of clear silicone and spread it in a thin layer over the bottom of the stand to make it a water sealed pan. Of course I would have to add some 2x4's to finish the pan.


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## Ultimbow (Mar 19, 2009)

unless u have a sump in there you can leave it like this if humidity acumulate in the stand something not normal All my diy stand are bare untreated wood and they never got moldy (my oldest stand is more then 10 years old.) If u have a sump painting it with regular wall paint did the trick for many stand i build for friends that have reefs but you will need more than one coat of paint because the wood will absorb a lot of it. It does look better and it is easier to keep clean when painted.


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## chayos00 (Sep 22, 2013)

Yeah I am running a sump on this setup. It's gonna be a 55g tank, which is my reasoning for wanting waterproof/seal it.


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## GraphicGr8s (Apr 4, 2011)

chayos00 said:


> Yeah I am running a sump on this setup. It's gonna be a 55g tank, which is my reasoning for wanting waterproof/seal it.


Don't. And forget about making a silicone "pan". You don't need it. Leave the back of the stand unskinned for a little circulation.


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## chayos00 (Sep 22, 2013)

The back of the stand will be open, however I am going to close it off with window screen to keep my cats out of the stand as they like to sneak drinks from my 3g desktop tank.


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## deeda (Jun 28, 2005)

I used 1/4" lauan on the inside bottom of my stand, caulked the bottom joints and the corners and then used white latex Kilz to paint the interior of the stand. The white definitely brightened up the interior.

Also, when my tank developed a slight dripping problem, the bottom of the stand filled up with 1.5 inches of water and I avoided a wet floor.

Another choice would be to buy some flexible rubber material that is used for shower pan liner under ceramic tile, it's not cheap but would work.


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## scapegoat (Jun 3, 2010)

chayos00 said:


> It's gonna be a 55g tank, which is my reasoning for wanting waterproof/seal it.


holy crap. I've seen some over built stands, but yours takes the cake, and pie...

at least you know it'll never fail, even if the house falls down on it.


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## chayos00 (Sep 22, 2013)

scapegoat said:


> holy crap. I've seen some over built stands, but yours takes the cake, and pie...
> 
> at least you know it'll never fail, even if the house falls down on it.


Hahaha that was the plan! I also plan to swap this 125g out for a 200+g tank so I built it 24" deep to anticipate a bigger tank.


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## crazymittens (Jun 4, 2012)

chayos00, as mentioned in your other thread, white paint. For those who haven't been in that thread - white paint on the inside is awesome! I saw one or two stands with that done, so glad I took the extra day or two for painting.

Not sure about your areas, but our municipal 'waste management' site (dump) has a paint recycling center. On the way out, you stop in and grab whatever paint you want. I found a 5G pail of white, 1G pail of primer. Free!


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## scapegoat (Jun 3, 2010)

chayos00 said:


> Hahaha that was the plan! I also plan to swap this 125g out for a 200+g tank so I built it 24" deep to anticipate a bigger tank.


Ah jeez haha, I thought the 55 was going on that. 125 makes more sense. 200 even more. Th


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## chayos00 (Sep 22, 2013)

scapegoat said:


> Ah jeez haha, I thought the 55 was going on that. 125 makes more sense. 200 even more. Th


I also went overboard with the joists as so figured the weight was not sitting on the rear header so I was hoping this would help to distribute the weight better. I figure I will give the 125g about 5 years or so before I tried to find a larger tank, unless this turns out to keep me happy. but I figure it's better to plan for the what if's.


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## chayos00 (Sep 22, 2013)

The more so think about the sump overflowing the more I wonder if there is anyone that makes a wet sensor that aquarium people could put in the bottom of their stands to alert them with an audible alarm about the issue.


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## crazymittens (Jun 4, 2012)

You can get aquarium sensors with Apex or similar, there are also similar items for datacenters and whatnot.

If you size the sump properly, overflowing should never be a concern. A 55 is tons of space for a 125 - just design it properly.


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## chayos00 (Sep 22, 2013)

crazymittens said:


> You can get aquarium sensors with Apex or similar, there are also similar items for datacenters and whatnot.
> 
> If you size the sump properly, overflowing should never be a concern. A 55 is tons of space for a 125 - just design it properly.


That sure will be something so am going to test out while this is still in my garage. I sure would hate to get an overflow in the house! My wife would probably give me an earful if it's my fault too! hahaha


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## limz_777 (Jun 29, 2005)

water proof spray called neverwet?


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## scapegoat (Jun 3, 2010)

chayos00 said:


> I also went overboard with the joists as so figured the weight was not sitting on the rear header so I was hoping this would help to distribute the weight better. I figure I will give the 125g about 5 years or so before I tried to find a larger tank, unless this turns out to keep me happy. but I figure it's better to plan for the what if's.


I have a 125, less than a year old. I regret not immediately going bigger to a 180. I built a room around it to keep maintenance simple. my tank is also predrilled w/ overflows so I lose a lot of space that made placement of some wood more difficult than it needed to be.

Now I'm pretty much stuck with the tank till we get a bigger house... though my father in law, who helped me finish the basement, said making the area larger for a 180 wouldn't be that difficult lol.


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## Mark Allred (May 3, 2013)

Chayos00,

Here is what I do, much better and easier than paint.
This is a wall sheeting material available for about $20 for a 4 X 8 sheet from HD.
It is made out of plastic or teflon. Glued in place with 3M spray contact adhesive.
This doesn't show the 2 1/2" side walls that was glued in, then siliconed, in this 75 gal. stand.
Makes a great containment for a sump! Holds 9.35 gallons of water. Totally waterproof!







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Here is the canopy done in the same fashion. This will help eliminate warpage,

and help reflect more light into the tank. Plus, it looks really nice!







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## creekbottom (Apr 5, 2012)

chayos00 said:


> The more so think about the sump overflowing the more I wonder if there is anyone that makes a wet sensor that aquarium people could put in the bottom of their stands to alert them with an audible alarm about the issue.


Look for a 'watchdog water sensor' I think that's what they are called.


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## crazymittens (Jun 4, 2012)

Mark, that's a great insurance policy! Good tip.

And chayos, follow Mark's lead here - PLAN for under-cabinet lighting. I really wanted to do that on mine, regret not doing so (time/budget constraints).


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## rdmustang1 (Oct 20, 2013)

I read a lot on reefing forums for my stand as I was afraid humidity from my sump would cause wood expansion/damage.

The overwhelming consensus was any white high gloss latex enamel paint. I didn't spend too much time researching this as it was a general consensus. I put 3-4 coats on to get good coverage and be extra sure. My tank has only been up 6 weeks but so far no problems. Of course, the humidity under the stand is much less than I was expecting so maybe it wasn't such a big deal?

Also, probably not necessary but I used a high quality waterproof stain for the outside of my stand. I figured it was going to get wet and I didn't want the wood to warp/bubble/etc.


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## chayos00 (Sep 22, 2013)

Thanks everyone!!

WOW!!! I didn't expect this kind of a response to my question! Especially as I got similar responses on the three forums I posted this to. Basically it seems that from most of the responses to use several layers of which ever stuff I use (Kilz, primer/paint, something oil based, epoxy, polyurethane, a shower liner, or truck bed liner) I should be good to go. So I'm going to head to home depot on my way home to see what they have to use and go from there to paint the stand framing and then build up a "catch pan" and seal it up to contain any possible spills.


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## chayos00 (Sep 22, 2013)

crazymittens said:


> Mark, that's a great insurance policy! Good tip.
> 
> And chayos, follow Mark's lead here - PLAN for under-cabinet lighting. I really wanted to do that on mine, regret not doing so (time/budget constraints).


Yes, I do plan on putting in some lighting inside the stand, not sure if I'm gonna get a rope light or a few florescent bulbs. I recall from my 20g I used to have that lighting would be nice in there!! Plus here in Arizona it helps to see the nasty bugs that we get hiding in spots that like dark area's!

As far as Mark's idea, I'm headed to Home Depot on the way home from work and I'll see if they have any of that stuff.


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## Mark Allred (May 3, 2013)

Chayos,

Here is a link to the HD plastic panel. Very flexible, you can roll it up!

http://www.homedepot.com/b/Lumber-Composites-Paneling/N-5yc1vZbqp3

Scroll down about 4 rows to this:

3/16 in. x 4 ft. x 8 ft. Plastic Panel
Model # 63003 Store SKU # 179646
$22.65 / each


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## Tetryon (Jun 22, 2012)

Similar question: I just built a 55G wood stand from 2x4's and haven't skinned it yet. It will be for freshwater only. Should I bother coating it with anything or leave as is? It is kiln dried premium spruce.


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## chayos00 (Sep 22, 2013)

Tetryon said:


> Similar question: I just built a 55G wood stand from 2x4's and haven't skinned it yet. It will be for freshwater only. Should I bother coating it with anything or leave as is? It is kiln dried premium spruce.


If you are going to run it with a sump I would say it's a must If using HOB's or canisters it's your personal preference. My vote would be yes either way, as I like the idea of the brighter white paint in the dark stand plus throwing some sort of cheap light to see better under there.


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## GraphicGr8s (Apr 4, 2011)

Tetryon said:


> Similar question: I just built a 55G wood stand from 2x4's and haven't skinned it yet. It will be for freshwater only. Should I bother coating it with anything or leave as is? It is kiln dried premium spruce.


At least throw a primer and some white paint on it. Looks nicer than raw wood. Or if you like the raw look put some satin poly on it.


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