metal frame to hold 3 MH pendants for a 180...
 

hey all,

i'm not very good at DIY, but am wantig to build a metal frame to sit on my 180 that i can mount 3 MH pendants to.

anyone seen any designs? anyone able to help me out? or anyone know what i'm talking about? :lol:

basically i just want a frame of a canopy/hood... it just needs to be sturdy... and just being a frame will allow for plenty of access from the top of the tank and allow for maximum airflow... and needs to be able to mount 3 pendants too.

any ideas on what type of material to use? etc.

TIA.

DIY from metal is going to be pretty challenging unless you have some specialized tools. If you don't mind the "rough" look, you could do it out of galvanized pipe. Painted flat black it would probably look OK, and being hollow provides a method of hiding wires. The only drawback is that the fittings are bulky and unattractive.

You could maybe do something with threaded rod as well, although I'm not sure how much load it can carry across a span for a given guage, or of the availability of T and corner fittings. A quick run to the local DIY store of your choice should spark ideas.

Anything that's steel or iron (angle stock or square tube) is going to need grinders, welders and bending/cutting tools that aren't part of the everyman's toolbox.

Don't use copper! On one hand, you won't have ich problems, on the other hand, you won't have any pesky inverts to worry about either.

I would use 1" steel square tube then after you have all your holes drilled and such take it and get it powder coated. If you lived here it wouldn't be hard to do as I have all the tooks for cutting and welding steel.

Steve

What about mounting the pendants on a piece of finished wood and hanging it from the ceiling

If you want maximum access then how about just a steel bar suspended from the ceiling? You can place your lights on the bar nice and easy. If you want the actual frame I suspect it will be a bit more challenging.

Doug

hmmm...
i've gotten a few ideas now... just need to see if its feasable for me...

as for suspending from the ceiling... i'd prefer not to... the tank is still at my parents house, and i dont really want to do anything more to the room than whats already done... water damage to walls, carpet etc.

i suppose as a compromise between the 2 ideas would be to add some sort of wooden frame to the existing stand and mount the pendants from there...

back to the drawing board...

Shao,

I wouldnt use steel at all...even with a paint job itll still rust eventually,not to mention its way too heavy.

Try aluminum, you can get square tubing aswell.
It is easy to cut, drill and rivet too.

I built mine out of it and it wasnt too bad at all, just 3x more expensive than steel, but 3x lighter.

If your ever into a trip out this way again, i would show you how i did mine....Its road trip time anyways isnt it ? :lol:

Marc.

Any pics you could share.

probably... it's been a while since we've hooked up... plus i gotta check out your new set up!

If you are going with aluminum, check out Princess Auto. They have a variety of shapes at better prices then the typ building supply places. But I figure aluminum doesn't make good friends with saltwater either. It would work out just fine if there is no contact like spashing or salt creep.