DIY Cabinet Aquarium stand - door design

[wickette]

Stand diagram bellow, I have a large hole in the center to get the sump in. it looks elegant so far with the trim and corner moulding. I have a plywood sheet cut to size bigger than the hole but not sure how to make the door so that it doessnt looks weird. A floating rectangle door in the front center looks weird.
should i make it so it reaches the top and bottom, how should I trim it, shold i make it look like 2 doors? Any better ideas.

Ive brrn making this thing since April. It came out better than I hopped but Im clueless how to make the door or how to trim it. I eather have the one door,getting 2 to line up and not rub is too hard for me.

 

[Dierks]

Use the piece you cut out as your Door, You will want to wrap the entire door in a frame, I usually overlap by around .5-.75". (Really is your preference.) The frame will be the stopper as well to make sure the door doesn't go to far into the hole. Hinges will actually mount to the door frame so it opens correctly... For whatever reason took me a long time to figure out how to make it look flush but not so flush there are no details.

I snapped a few photos to help:

Top closed Door View:

Open Door View:

Hinges Mounted View:

Take a look at my build Thread starting around Here and you can get more pictures:

Build Thread - Dierks 75G Office Build

The more I am doing renders of the Dark with the off white the more I am liking it... What do you think? Don't worry, much more details will go on the small side cabinets (and main cabinet) before we can call this complete, but would love to pick out my base/highlight and "pop" colors and get...

www.reef2reef.com

HOPE THIS HELPS!!! Good Luck!!

 

[pdxmonkeyboy]

Ok, as an experienced woodworker i can lend some assistance.

Any option you are going to have to build a frame for the plywood to sit in. One door, 2 doors, 20 doors, you need a frame so you dont aee the plywood edges. But joints and pocket screws if you dont have nice tools. Mitered casings if you do.

Anyways.. two options
Option 1. Single panel
This could look cool, you just have to get the dimensions right. I would do a single panel with no hinges. Build the panel, and then with scrap wood blocks, make a little "lip" or "hook" if you will, to hold the door from falling out. Then glue some magnets in the stand and top of the door. Set the panel in, push it back... click. Done.

Option 2. Double doors.
Not as hard as you might think. Build two doors. On the back of one door, put a strip of plywood or whatever on the edge..that door always closes first. That way you dont see light under the tank when the doors are closed.

The onlu way you can pull off decent doors are with european cup hinges. Also known as just cup hinges. Not that you can't screw them up but frankly, if you do, you are quite the loser. You drill a shallow circle and the hinge mounts in it. Once mounted you can adjust it forwards, backwards, outwards, they are really great and make installing doors fun...and not a complete nightmare

 

[wickette]

Use the piece you cut out as your Door, You will want to wrap the entire door in a frame, I usually overlap by around .5-.75". (Really is your preference.) The frame will be the stopper as well to make sure the door doesn't go to far into the hole. Hinges will actually mount to the door frame so it opens correctly... For whatever reason took me a long time to figure out how to make it look flush but not so flush there are no details.

I snapped a few photos to help:

Top closed Door View:


Open Door View:
0
Hinges Mounted View:


Take a look at my build Thread starting around Here and you can get more pictures:

Build Thread - Dierks 75G Office Build

The more I am doing renders of the Dark with the off white the more I am liking it... What do you think? Don't worry, much more details will go on the small side cabinets (and main cabinet) before we can call this complete, but would love to pick out my base/highlight and "pop" colors and get...

www.reef2reef.com

HOPE THIS HELPS!!! Good Luck!!

Your doors work because theyre spaced out on a stand that sold sharp angles (really nice bty) my stand has roman looking decorative baseboard, and I need a 32" opening to get to the 29g sump. One floating door looks like a mistake. .

 

[wickette]

Ok, as an experienced woodworker i can lend some assistance.

Any option you are going to have to build a frame for the plywood to sit in. One door, 2 doors, 20 doors, you need a frame so you dont aee the plywood edges. But joints and pocket screws if you dont have nice tools. Mitered casings if you do.

Anyways.. two options
Option 1. Single panel
This could look cool, you just have to get the dimensions right. I would do a single panel with no hinges. Build the panel, and then with scrap wood blocks, make a little "lip" or "hook" if you will, to hold the door from falling out. Then glue some magnets in the stand and top of the door. Set the panel in, push it back... click. Done.

I already have a recessed block in the center with brackets for the (double towel hooks) on the back of the door to drop into.
SBut do I want to make it the size of the front, or atleast reaching the vertical top/bottom.

32" wide version of this? or amake it so it looks like 3 of these conjoined?

 

[pdxmonkeyboy]

post a picture, I can't follow what you are asking.

 

[wickette]

post a picture, I can't follow what you are asking.

Turns out question is moot. Putting it all together, (for the picture) it looks weird unless I make it looks like 2 doors, full height of the stand.

 

[stanleo]

I have never made a stand but I did build our outdoor kitchen. My solution was to take one board that was as wider than the opening was tall, and as longer than the opening. I cut that in half and shaved about an inch off of each side. I then glued and screwed the framing for the doors. I had a center on the frame so didn't need to worry about how that looked. But you could glue a thin piece of wood to the inside of one of the doors so the other door closes on that piece of wood creating a divide.

 

[wickette]

I have never made a stand but I did build our outdoor kitchen. My solution was to take one board that was as wider than the opening was tall, and as longer than the opening. I cut that in half and shaved about an inch off of each side. I then glued and screwed the framing for the doors. I had a center on the frame so didn't need to worry about how that looked. But you could glue a thin piece of wood to the inside of one of the doors so the other door closes on that piece of wood creating a divide.

I dont think can make 2 even doors. much less hang them evenly (my door can't be recessed). Im going to stick 2 frames on one large board so it looks like two doors, but isnt