Now that I have built a stand, I am curious on what others have used to waterproof it. I am envisioning some sort of sealant for the wood itself, along with sealed sides similar to our tanks. Is it possible to make the stand waterproof enough to hold water incase of an overflow? Is sanding a tank prior to painting it required? Really interested in what others have done.
Waterproofing a stand?
- Thread starter Be102
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A buddy and I have been working to do just this. Basically we built a normal stand, put a piece of sheet wood on the bottom, then siliconed all the seams, painted flex seal over the bottom half of the inside stand, and then painted over that in an ultra white. If any water spills, its staying down there lol
ReeferMadness80G
Valuable Member
Research aqua defense. I haven't used it for aquariums but I plan to. It's what I've used behind tile showers etc. it's pretty cool colored too. I'm sure it's similar to flex seal.
Hurdle
New Member
Did the same.
Skip the killz. I stopped using it 10 years ago as it was pointless. even high gloss latex is water resistant.
You don't need to sand before painting, but it's a good idea. use 220 grit. if you were staining then you would absolutely need to sand before, and after the first coat.
You don't need to sand before painting, but it's a good idea. use 220 grit. if you were staining then you would absolutely need to sand before, and after the first coat.
jwilliams860
Well-Known Member
I caulked all the joints in mine, then used oil based porch paint from Lowe's, comes in gray or white. Takes forever to dry, but a couple coats and it's glossy and looks great, water beads up on it and salt creep wipes right off.
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Be102
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Would I go about sanding, by hand..? Or just use some sort of sander. Sorry I'm an idiot; I have probabaly all the supplies needed if anything. It's cool how this hobby has you learn new things such as using saws and stuff I've never used. Thanks for the advice too.
It All depends on the quality you want as well. If you don't need 1,000,000 dollar mansion quality. Just caulk the seams. Spray a coat of any kilz spray paint primer. This will give the entire stand an even cost. It's super thick and fills gaps pretty good. Wait 24 hours. Then paint her. Paint and primer will protect the wood
TreyC2010
But baby, the fish need it....
Aqua Defense, Schluter/Kerdi, and Mapei HPG-5 are all water proofing that we use for showers and saunas to hold water. Make sure you pay attention to corners and it's simple.
Jolly Roger
Community Member
I coated my stand in Spar Urethane which is what you would typically use on wood front doors and outside furniture. It's water and UV resistant. Then as a safety measure I caulked the interior as well...
jwilliams860
Well-Known Member
Heres a couple photos of mine, essentially if you want it to hold water in case of an overflow, it needs to have some sort of bottom that you can seal. Once all the joints were caulked and the oil based paint was dry, the bottom of mine could hold 10 gallons probably. The other good thing is, if there is salt creep I just take a wet rag and wipe the walls and floor off and it looks good as new.
