Arofanatics Fish Talk Forums  

Go Back   Arofanatics Fish Talk Forums > General Aquatic Forums > Planted Tanks & Aquascaping Forum > Aquascapers Equipment, DIY and Hardware

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 28-06-2011, 08:38 PM   #1
braveyr
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Smile Simple Tutorial for ''How to DIY Metal Stand to Fish Tank Cabinet''

Hi everyone,

If you have the thought of transforming your old and dull metal stand into something much more eye-pleasing and a great combination with your fish tank and fishes, then i hope this tutorial can help you to make your dream cabinet come true.

I always find that my metal stand dont match my room or my living room at all. Although the fishes and the greenery inside are a true beauty but when ever i see the metal bars sitting on my living room, it sort of depressing the beauty of my room and my fish tank. Hence i thought of doing a simple DIY transformation to turn my old stand into a cabinet. The inspiration to this DIY came from my friend's mother when i saw her using some sticker plastic type of decoration paper to cover the kitchen drawers, make the old drawer look like newly brought.

Below slides are the materials you need and some simple procedures that can get your creativity start (You do not need to follow exactly, just follow with your own innovation in mind) :

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-z...al%2525201.jpg

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-3...al%2525202.jpg

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-i...al%2525203.jpg

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/--...al%2525204.jpg

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-X...al%2525205.jpg

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-C...al%2525206.jpg

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-h...al%2525207.jpg

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-w...al%2525208.jpg

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-K...al%2525209.jpg

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-F...l%25252010.jpg

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-d...l%25252011.jpg


Below is the DIY cabinet that i did myself:

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-h...0/IMG_0588.jpg

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-f...6/IMG_0594.jpg

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-e...40/Cabinet.jpg

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5...52520paper.jpg

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-z...0/IMG_0617.jpg

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-U...6/IMG_0619.jpg

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-B...252520view.jpg
  Reply With Quote
Old 28-06-2011, 08:49 PM   #2
braveyr
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default Simple Tutorial for ''How to DIY Metal Stand to Fish Tank Cabinet''

( Sorry for double post but just release that i forgot to upload the photos in straight view form. If any mod see the above post please help me delete, thank you very much =)! )

Hi everyone,

If you have the thought of transforming your old and dull metal stand into something much more eye-pleasing and a great combination with your fish tank and fishes, then i hope this tutorial can help you to make your dream cabinet come true.

I always find that my metal stand dont match my room or my living room at all. Although the fishes and the greenery inside are a true beauty but when ever i see the metal bars sitting on my living room, it sort of depressing the beauty of my room and my fish tank. Hence i thought of doing a simple DIY transformation to turn my old stand into a cabinet. The inspiration to this DIY came from my friend's mother when i saw her using some sticker plastic type of decoration paper to cover the kitchen drawers, make the old drawer look like newly brought.

Below slides are the materials you need and some simple procedures that can get your creativity start (You do not need to follow exactly, just follow with your own innovation in mind) :



















  Reply With Quote
Old 29-06-2011, 12:47 AM   #3
braveyr
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Smile Simple Tutorial for ''How to DIY Metal Stand to Fish Tank Cabinet''

Hi everyone,

If you have the thought of transforming your old and dull metal stand into something much more eye-pleasing and a great combination with your fish tank and fishes, then i hope this tutorial can help you to make your dream cabinet come true.

I always find that my metal stand dont match my room or my living room at all. Although the fishes and the greenery inside are a true beauty but when ever i see the metal bars sitting on my living room, it sort of depressing the beauty of my room and my fish tank. Hence i thought of doing a simple DIY transformation to turn my old stand into a cabinet. The inspiration to this DIY came from my friend's mother when i saw her using some sticker plastic type of decoration paper to cover the kitchen drawers, make the old drawer look like newly brought.

Below slides are the materials you need and some simple procedures that can get your creativity start (You do not need to follow exactly, just follow with your own innovation in mind) :



















  Reply With Quote
Old 29-06-2011, 01:19 AM   #4
braveyr
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Smile Simple Tutorial for ''How to DIY Metal Stand to Fish Tank Cabinet''

A completed animation DIY Cabinet:




Below is the DIY cabinet that i did myself:

















Cost

Many of you may be concern about the cost spend on these materials, so i will just list out the price that i spend on to materials and you can roughly gauge is it worth it to DIY a cabinet yourself or buy a real fish tank cabinet.

1x Metal Stand (Buy 2nd hand one from market or use back old one) = $20
7x Styrofoam Board = 7 x $1 = $7
2x Plywood board = 2 x $5 = $10
1x Epoxy / cement glue = $4
1x Drawing paper booklet = $2
6x Decoration paper = 6 x $1 = $6
2 pair x Hinges = 2 x $1.50 = $3
2x cabinet door handlers = 2 x $1 = $2

Total Costs = Below $54
(Some of the items can ever be replace with common accessories that you can find at home like the handlers, drawing paper and etc which can save you even more money)

Compared to a real new brought 2feet by 1feet cabinet, you can save ( $200 - $54 ) = $145


Durability & Functionality

You may also be worried about its durability and it load capability. I have tested this design out and i am sure that it can take on a huge tank filled with few hundred Kg of water without failure. This is because it is made from metal stand that was originally used as the base for weight support. In addition to it, there is Styrofoam and plywood to distribute the load ever further. This design is better than normal metal stand is because the tank will not be in direct contact with the metal bars at the top of the stand which can cause crack in long term. The mechanical spring from the styrofoam and plywood will resist the compression load of the tank and distribute it to other part of the stand not just the middle bars / edges bars, this helps to prevent crack in any bottom part of the tank.

Since the cabinet is all covered with Styrofoam board, if closed secured, the noise from the canister can be minimised due to styrofoam board as a porous soundproof materials. This design guarantee a better noise resistance and lighter weight, ease for moving it.

Decoration paper are made of laminated-like plastic, thus water will not be able to penetrate through so easier if all edges are sealed nicely. Make it waterproof, thus compared to the pure metal stand, it will prevent rusting from occurring so fast.


Thank you for your time!

I hope you all like this tutorial, i have to admit i am not a expert in DIY, but i love to do my own stuff and share it with the common minds here who are seeking for some creative alternative to beautify their aquarium experience.

Feel free to comment, no matter is it good or bad critics, i accept your honest review and hope for more self improvement and insights gain. =)

I will be updating my stand again once i maintained it again.

See you =)
  Reply With Quote
Old 30-06-2011, 03:14 AM   #5
qngwn
Arofanatic
 
qngwn's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2009
Posts: 70
Default

wow a grreat idea! it will be much easier transporting this "cabinet" as it will be much lighter.
but my concern is that, this is assumed that it will be placed in a corner where there will be no kids running around and stuff, as the sides are made of styrofoam and decoration paper, a light bump will send a hole into the side of your cabinet!

maybe you can put a layer of plywood at the side too, hopefully it will make your DIY last longer..

just my opinion..
qngwn is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-07-2011, 01:06 AM   #6
braveyr
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by qngwn View Post
wow a grreat idea! it will be much easier transporting this "cabinet" as it will be much lighter.
but my concern is that, this is assumed that it will be placed in a corner where there will be no kids running around and stuff, as the sides are made of styrofoam and decoration paper, a light bump will send a hole into the side of your cabinet!

maybe you can put a layer of plywood at the side too, hopefully it will make your DIY last longer..

just my opinion..

Hi Bro,

Ya have to agree you are right that a hard bump on it might break the Styrofoam if the house is not kid-free. So i actually mention in the tutorial that either the Styrofoam board or plywood can be used according to your budget and preferences. Plywood will be more expensive of course, so for my tank i intend to make it a budget build so i used Styrofoam for the side, as my house now is all adult and i usually dont recommend people to knock onto the tank. Just imagine knocking on the cabinet alittle can already give the fishes inside a shock, really must make sure kids around dont play near any water tank.

Thank you for your suggestion. Greatly Appreciated =)
  Reply With Quote
Old 26-07-2011, 11:08 AM   #7
TwistedPair
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default

super impressive bro!

the final project really doesnt look like $54! i am really very impressed! wanna work on my own one already!!
  Reply With Quote
Old 23-10-2011, 10:12 PM   #8
TwistedPair
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default

hey there! i have finally done my own DIY cabinet tank! thanks so much for sharing
  Reply With Quote
Reply


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT +9. The time now is 02:02 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Copyright © 2000-2008 Arofanatics.com (Since 30th August 2000)