Wooden cover for a 55 gallon?

They are called canopies. You can get them from any major manufacturers and most retailers.

Make one yourself they are very easy to make. 1/2 a day at most with minimal amount of supplies.

I agree with PlantGate. They are super easy to DIY if you happen to have a rectangular tank.

PlantGate said:

Make one yourself they are very easy to make. 1/2 a day at most with minimal amount of supplies.

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Bunsen Honeydew said:

I agree with PlantGate. They are super easy to DIY if you happen to have a rectangular tank.

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I'm not gonna lie... this is totally not my cup of tee lol. Any advise or tutorials on how to do this? 0

You could go with a canopy, and that would block the light. However, you don't really need a whole supporting structure for the lighting. You may get good results just using black plastic sheet to build a valance to block the light.

It's easy to test this by building a prototype out of cardboard and seeing if you like it and how it works. Once you have that all worked out, you can build the actual one out of other material.

DaveK said:

You could go with a canopy, and that would block the light. However, you don't really need a whole supporting structure for the lighting. You may get good results just using black plastic sheet to build a valance to block the light.

It's easy to test this by building a prototype out of cardboard and seeing if you like it and how it works. Once you have that all worked out, you can build the actual one out of other material.

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I have actually used the box that the light came in to block the light, lol.

That is a good point though. If you were simply able to make a similar cover out of a light weight material, you could just lift the whole thing off when you needed access. Maybe a cheap corrugated plastic sheet material, with furring strips on the inside corners, or something like that. I'll have to think about that more.

Is your light waterproof? I made a homemade lid and need a decent light for it, but I've been looking at waterproof because of condensation. I guess a splash tray would also work.

Check out the link from Drs. Foster and Smith- $59.99 for a canopy that has a powder coat, loss gloss finish. Shipping is free too!

Aquarium Stands & Furniture: Aquatic Fundamentals Aquarium Stands & Canopies

DiegoBedoyaVision said:

How's this for a DIY? Lol

In all seriousness tho I don't think it would look bad if I painted that box all black.

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Lol, that's great. Leave it like that for the NASCAR look.

DiegoBedoyaVision said:

How's this for a DIY? Lol

In all seriousness tho I don't think it would look bad if I painted that box all black.

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Lol love it!!!

Dan

"Nascar look" ahaha love it lol

I can't even see my fish anymore due to all the Skoal and Tide sponsorship decals I have now. The Jim's livingroom 500 is this weekend. I'll probably win it. Shake and Bake!

DiegoBedoyaVision said:

So I painted the box lol... got a dark wood color that was nearly identical as the furniture. It actually came out really nice. Not bad for a $3 project. I think this will do until I buy a real canopy lol.

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That looks fantastic! I wouldn't bother spending anything on a "real" canopy....I'd say what you have is better!

When in doubt, defer the spending! Very good way to stall long enough to get a really good idea of what you want and need. It looks like you have the basics covered and that means you have time to study what would work better or last longer. Cardboard may not last long around water but by then you will have some better ideas of how you might want to build it to operate the way you need.
Looks like a good plan from here!
One way to go for easy and few tools might actually be to go to a home center like Home Depot, where they cut wood to fit. Buy the preferred thin paneling, have it cut and glue/ laminate it to the existing cardboard. For finish on the corners, there are molding made for that. Cheap, easy glue together stuff can work and last a long time. Leave the top open if there is no reason to close it?