kwc1974

Ajax nice stand
I see that you laminated it looks good

I was thinking about painting mine when it is finished, inside and out. Nothing special just store bought spray paint applied in multiple thin coats.

after reading Ajax's Thread I am a little concerned about properly sealing it.

What paint would be recomended for MDF.

Ajax

I think it will look a lot better if you laminate it bro. Believe me it is real easy. That was my first time working with laminate, and it turned out real nice. The laminate for a 4x8 sheet was $67 from Loews, Ryobi router was $70 (nice small router that worked great, or you may be able to borrow), 1/4" flush bit was $9 & glue was like $12 for 2 quarts. I cut it out with a real sharp pair of tin snips, and as long as you leave about 1/2" overhang you won't have any probs with chips showing on the edges. I have enough left that I can laminate the underside of the top, the bottom & part of the back. I may get another small sheet to finish it off right. I mean we are talking about an ADA set-up where appearance is everything

kwc1974

Yeah I know for an ADA appearance is everything
The thing is I was over at ADG to pick up my tank and I looked at a ADA stand and it looked like it had a painted finish. No laminate seams at all, looked very clean without the seams.

Could be wrong, would not be the first time.

Ajax

You're talking about the iwagumi tank in the conference room? I believe that the ADA stands are a melamine wood product, but I could be wrong also You might be able to achieve something close with paint though.

hoppycalif

I suspect that stand had a sprayed laquer finish. That is hard to do well without a good spray gun and a spray booth, plus some experience. Laminate is far easier. Be carefull handling laminate - it can be very sharp and do some serious cutting. The edges left where it breaks are almost like knives. And speaking of breaking, it is possible to score the surface well and break it at the scored line. In any case, Ajax gave you some good advice about cutting it oversize and using a small router to trim it.

thinkfaster

Does anyone recommend having a "cushion" between the tank and the stand? I have plywood on the top and currently there is 1/2" styro serving as a cushion. I am a bit concerned that it might give out resulting in a big puddle (it's a 125g tank). Any feedback is greatly appreciated.

freydo

you will find that a lot of people have styro, of various thicknesses, between tank and stand to help distribute the weight. the styro helps level off tank and prevent stress points on the bottom that could result in the glass cracking.

this is typically required for all glass tanks.

*** i'd like to clarify that people tend to use rigid foam insulation that you would get at Home Depot, or something similar.

timlawyer

I have about as much experience in woodworking as I do with aquascaping - which is to say - I'm just experienced enough to share all the mistakes I have made.
I would avoid MDF for several reasons: 1) weight to strength ratio is not as good as others (birch plywood); 2) can withstand compression very well, but not torsion or shear forces nearly as well; 3) if it gets wet (particularly on the unfinished edges) it will soak up the water and expand then contract - eventually this may lead to relative structural weakness; 4) hard to work with - very dusty, cannot be tooled well, cannot hold screws very well.
I would recommend (based upon your sketch and tank) using 3/4 Birch plywood. For additional rigidity, you could double up the plywood (glue two pieces together) for some of the load bearing beams. This would make a rock solid bench.

hoppycalif

You are mixing MDF with particle board. Particle board does all of the things you mentioned, but MDF is used for exterior siding on houses, so it is water resistant. I have tested pieces by soaking them, by making plant stakes out of them, by just leaving some outdoors in the rain. No swelling. MDF is used by some kitchen cabinet makers for doors, where a profile is routed on the corners. (I used to do that) So, it does machine very well. It holds screws well if the screws have coarse threads. It's only real weakness is in bending or tension. If you lay a piece between two sawhorses and leave it for an hour it will bend and the bend will stay forever. But, with vertical pieces, with edges supported on horizontal pieces, it is very good. Having said all of that, Birch or Maple plywood is better in strength, lighter, less dust when cutting, but leaves edges that need covering with veneer or strips to hide them. MDF edges finish very well.

dennis

Not all MDF is exterior grade. Exterior grade MDF is actually called Medex and is not water proof, just water resistant. Regular MDF will expand and contract when wet just like particleboard.

MDF is quite suitable as long as it is finished. The edges do finish well but finish even better if it is filled with spackle or bondo proir to finishing. This applies more to spraying lacquer than to brushing. If your brushing or rolling paint, filling is definately not necessary.