[nodim]

I have never had a canopy on any of my tanks, and will be acquiring a second 150 in the next week or so. Thumb This one needs a stand, and as I in the planning portion of a basement renovation which includes 22 linear feet of built in cabinets and shelves along a basement wall, and want to include the tank in this project.

For those who have a canopy on their tanks, how much clearance is necessary when the front piece is folded up for tank access? I have tried to figure this out based on my existing tanks and *think* that 10" vertically, and about half the tank's depth (F2B) is adequate clearance. Does this seem reasonable, or should I go larger?

Is there any advantage to having the top hinge upwards, vs side to side, like cabinet doors might?

If you have made one--and had to redo one, what changes would you make in design, and why?

Thanks

Nodima

 

[essabee]

10 inches is OK. I find 2/3 of the tank and hinged upwards adequate clearance, but then I have planted tanks, I think you can get away with 1/2 in non-planted tanks.

 

[jjp2]

I made my canopy. It's for a 6ft tank and has 3 doors which open upward along with the full top opening up. I put the doors in for convinient quick access. I tried to keep it slim, and made it 5.5 inches tall.

The things I don't like are
- when I open the full top, the lighting is blinding if it is on, and if its on or off, I have no light in the tank to work by.
- with the slimness, there is not enough access to reach an arm fully in through the smaller doors without scrapping on the lights.

If I were to do it again, based on my tank layout, I likely would suspend the lights some how.

In your case, I would build the canopy tall, like 8-12 inches or more to and have a flush look with the cabinets. If there is enough room, you won't need to open the full top.


With flip up doors, you only need 4 - 6 inches of width if you have the verticle height. If you make them wider, you will have problems mounting your lights as you won't have the width.