Auto water change cabinet for bucket. Input welcome!!

[glb]

I am planning a small cabinet to hide the two buckets I use for auto water changes:

I have some leftover wood from another project that measures 1”x 3/4”. I want to built a lightweight cube with no base or bottom brace in the back so I can easily slide it out. Here’s a rough sketch:

It’s not to scale (obviously)! I have a 15” clearance between the tank stand and the wall. The stand would be 14.5” wide x 19.5” tall x 22” deep. The 5g bucket is 12.5” across at the widest point and the width of the inside of the stand would be 13”. It’s a tight fit but I’m only planning on skinning the front and top. I’ll use headboard for the front and 1/4” wood for the top. With the sides and back open (which won’t show), there’s a little more wiggle room when I slide out the cabinet, and there won’t be any moisture build-up from enclosing it. As far as sliding it in and out, I have a few ideas. One was putting the whole thing on caster wheels. My concern there is damaging the wall and stand over time by bumping into it. Another option would be bottom-mounted cabinet slides on each side of the stand. My concern there would be rust over time. Or I could put furniture sliders under it for a quick fix. I’d appreciate any advice all of you DIY’ers have! I love building stuff but know the planning is the most important part. Thanks in advance for your help!!!

 

[shwareefer]

Combine your caster idea with even a single drawer slide will give you smooth straight movement. Put the slide near the top to avoid rust from spillage.

 

[Michael Lane]

Caster wheels is exactly what I was going to recommend. I would still add a guide rail to mitigate the wall damage. The guide rail could just be a couple strips of wood connected to the stationary section and a strip on the caster cart the rides between them. Put some paste wax on the guides and it should work great!

 

[glb]

Combine your caster idea with even a single drawer slide will give you smooth straight movement. Put the slide near the top to avoid rust from spillage.

Where would you put the slide?

 

[shwareefer]

Where would you put the slide?

Well I mean this type of slide:

I would personally put it at the bottom between the wall and your drawer base and not worry about rust. However, if you are worried, you can put it as high as your design can allow. You can also mount a runner perpendicular to the wall and parallel to the base and sandwich the slider in between so that it lays flat instead of it's usual upright orientation. That way you can keep the side open like you initally wanted. It won't be taking load (your casters are doing that), it's just a guide.

 

[glb]

Well I mean this type of slide:

I would personally put it at the bottom between the wall and your drawer base and not worry about rust. However, if you are worried, you can put it as high as your design can allow. You can also mount a runner perpendicular to the wall and parallel to the base and sandwich the slider in between so that it lays flat instead of it's usual upright orientation. That way you can keep the side open like you initally wanted. It won't be taking load (your casters are doing that), it's just a guide.

Oh I see. So it would be on the outside near the wall. I had thought about putting slides on the floor but I like your idea better. With that placement, rust wouldn’t be a problem. I really appreciate your help!!