Adding removable door panels to a steel frame stand

[57buick]

yea I used a forester bit the exact size of the magnet so they would be flush with the panel. with JB weld the magnets are gonna add 1\2" of depth. flush is the way to go

 

[mtfish]

I did not want magnets to fully support my doors. So what I did was to make a channel brace on the bottom out of wood and and magnet with contersunk hole at the top. Door slides down on the bottom and then snaps in place on top. Has been working great for 3 years now. If this idea is anything you would like I can post pictures.

 

[boudster]

I did not want magnets to fully support my doors. So what I did was to make a channel brace on the bottom out of wood and and magnet with contersunk hole at the top. Door slides down on the bottom and then snaps in place on top. Has been working great for 3 years now. If this idea is anything you would like I can post pictures.

That sounds really intriguing! I would really appreciate if you could post pics as I'm not very savvy when it comes to DIY so I'm having trouble picturing exactly how it would work.

 

[mtfish]

Wow. working with Windows 10 is challenging for an old salt! Hope the pictures work.
First picture is front of tank with three panels under the tank.
Second picture is the bottom groove.
Third picture is inside of panel.
Fourth picture is the countersunk magnet.
Last picture is skin on frame without panel.

Hope this helps.

 

[boudster]

Wow. working with Windows 10 is challenging for an old salt! Hope the pictures work.
First picture is front of tank with three panels under the tank.
Second picture is the bottom groove.
Third picture is inside of panel.
Fourth picture is the countersunk magnet.
Last picture is skin on frame without panel.

Hope this helps.

Thank you very much! I think with some slight modification this could work for my flush panels.

 

[ThePapa]

Just get some regular clear silicone and silicone the holes so the salt creep doesn't get in to the holes and start eating away the steel.

Not all silicone is compatible with steel, some are corrosive.

 

[Balz3352]

Im literally at the same exact point in my build. The only difference is I believe your problem is easier than mine seeing you wanna do 3/4 in solid wood pannels (at least it looks this way) I want to do it this way but the wife doesn't like the modern solid smooth panel look. And wants essentially cabinet doors.

Anyway if I were in your situation I would router a few 1/4 in holes/slits in the wood amd use these. http://www.magnet4sale.com/45-lb-holding-power-neodymium-channel-magnet-mcln-200/
They also have stronger ones but are out of stock but I don't think the stronger ones are necessary. If you use a good amount of magnets.

For cord management this is what I did/doing.

As you can see its an osb board. It has 4 of thost magnets I linked. 2 o the upright and one on top towards the middle of the stand and same on bottom if that makes sense.

With the magnets the only problem is it slides up or down. To pull the panel off it takes some good pressure to take the panel off. To solve the problem with sliding I just designed it to rest on the floor. You could just design and install a few bars to hold the door up that rest on inside of the stand.

Hope this makes sense.

 

[boudster]

Im literally at the same exact point in my build. The only difference is I believe your problem is easier than mine seeing you wanna do 3/4 in solid wood pannels (at least it looks this way) I want to do it this way but the wife doesn't like the modern solid smooth panel look. And wants essentially cabinet doors.

Anyway if I were in your situation I would router a few 1/4 in holes/slits in the wood amd use these. http://www.magnet4sale.com/45-lb-holding-power-neodymium-channel-magnet-mcln-200/
They also have stronger ones but are out of stock but I don't think the stronger ones are necessary. If you use a good amount of magnets.

For cord management this is what I did/doing.

As you can see its an osb board. It has 4 of thost magnets I linked. 2 o the upright and one on top towards the middle of the stand and same on bottom if that makes sense.

With the magnets the only problem is it slides up or down. To pull the panel off it takes some good pressure to take the panel off. To solve the problem with sliding I just designed it to rest on the floor. You could just design and install a few bars to hold the door up that rest on inside of the stand.

Hope this makes sense.

Thanks! Yes, that actually makes a lot of sense and I was wondering if that might be a possibility. Since my door panels will essentially be sized to fit snugly inside the frame openings, sliding shouldn't be an issue, so if I were to just install some of those magnets in the top and bottom ends of the panels that might do the trick

 

[richnbowl]

Following

 

[jsker]

Go here, magnets find the size you need, forstner drill in the ply on the corners and you are done. As far and not having handles, find a stronger magnet and insert it on the back side of the panel and have a pull that you can use to open the panel with out drilling, do you under stand what I am thinking?

 

[R_C]

You can get some of these to make gussets out of and then add the panels with magnets.
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Everbilt-2-in-Zinc-Plated-Heavy-Duty-Corner-Brace-2-Pack-15442/202034088

 

[jsker]

you will also have to be careful around the controller with the magnets

 

[boudster]

Go here, magnets find the size you need, forstner drill in the ply on the corners and you are done. As far and not having handles, find a stronger magnet and insert it on the back side of the panel and have a pull that you can use to open the panel with out drilling, do you under stand what I am thinking?

I think I get it. So you're suggesting pulling the panels of using a magnetic "handle" that would not be permanently attached to the door?

 

[underwaterdan]

Following, I'm just starting my planning process for a steel stand.

 

[jsker]

I think I get it. So you're suggesting pulling the panels of using a magnetic "handle" that would not be permanently attached to the door?

Yes. The more I think about it, you could attach a piece of metal on the back side of the panel and use a horse shoe magnet and dip in the plastic coating stuff they sell at the big box home supply stores to coat the horse shoe magnet, so that you would not scratch the wood panels.

 

[boudster]

Yes. The more I think about it, you could attach a piece of metal on the back side of the panel and use a horse shoe magnet and dip in the plastic coating stuff they sell at the big box home supply stores the coat handles, so that you would not scratch the wood panels.

Very smart idea. That would be really cool to not have handles as I really want the whole look to be very clean. I'm hoping the tank and stand arrive tomorrow, so once I've got everything done plumbing wise I'll install the door panels. I will keep my build thread updated so that anyone interested can see the final results of the panels.

Tank build: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/boudsters-4x6x18-dream-peninsula.253635/

Another question...i will be painting the panels, so do you all suggest I just use plywood or MDF? Or would you go with "real wood"? Some have even suggested using something other than wood such as ABS. Definitely open to suggestions.

 

[Balz3352]

I think that's totally depending on style. I personally love the look of wood and grains. High quality stain it will last forever. But $$$. You could get a skinned veneer plywood and save some money in the same boat. If you want solid painted color mdf may be a way to go although laminate might be an option.

 

[boudster]

I think that's totally depending on style. I personally love the look of wood and grains. High quality stain it will last forever. But $$$. You could get a skinned veneer plywood and save some money in the same boat. If you want solid painted color mdf may be a way to go although laminate might be an option.

It will definitely be painted a solid color, light grey (i wanted orange!), as my wife insists it match the decor of the house [emoji6]

 

[jsker]

Thank you
You can also edge band the ply for a finished edge with a home iron and a cutter, here is a video on how to edge band without buying a bunch of equipment. Seal the plywood with a coat of urethane and then paint it.

 

[Balz3352]

I think laminate would be the way to go but you could do pvc or abs.