hood for the 300litre

hi guys i want to make a hood or somthing to close the tank as it is open
what i was thinking:i make a glass or pespex sliding top under my light unit or i make a hood over my light unit.which one would work better and would the sliding top decrease the lighting that gets into my tank.Would the hood make the evapourated water get into the light would that effect it at all. My light is a Hagen Glo T5 HO unit.

 

The Glo T5 HO is waterproof so i don't think it will be effected by water evapouration.

 

ok so would you build a hood or a glass sliding top??

 

For me a hood will work better because i hide all my accessories there,like the airpump etc.
I always leave airvents on both sides of the hood to prevent moisture buildup.

 

I think the hood would be better,you can do a lot of extra DIY with a hood in the future,but the final decision is up to you.

 

Do you guys have an idea of how i would make it.
what i would use to make it waterproof.
thanks for all the help

 

If it is one of those aluminum units that rests on top of the tank or can be suspended it would be a really sad to hide it in a wooden hood. You have any surface growth above the waterline that you want to show?

If the light is not part of the tanks feature then build & varnish - keep it light or add flaps for water changes / maintenance and feeding access.

 

what kind of wood must i use

 

Supawood or marine ply. Getting the Supawood water resistant might be the biggest problem ... it will swell allot when it sniffs moisture, much more than say marine ply with teak sides and a good varnish.

 

could i get it at a place like builders warehouse

 

yeah ... if you can not get teak they will have meranty - draw what you want on a plan and they will cut if for you from sheets ... but you need to buy all of the sheet :-(

 

thanks for all the advise so far
will that wood be expensive??