wood sealant

[esoxlucius]

I've attached a sheet of ply to the base of my aquarium stand. The idea is that my sump will sit on the ply and the surrounding 2x4 base will then act as a tray in case of spillages/overflows from my sump. To ensure this tray area is totally watertight will it be sufficient to run a bead of aquarium sealant where the 2x4s and the ply meet? Then i'll paint it all with waterproof paint. I know that sealant sticks to glass like s**t to a blanket but how about wood?

 

[pdxmonkeyboy]

do you mean silicone? silicone will stick to wood but paint WILL NOT STICK TO SILICONE. waterproof paint is also not really a thing. latex paint will bubble and peel if left with standing water on it. if your really set on having a water tight cab then I would suggest pond shield or red guard. Both are not cheap but are waterproof.

 

[pdxmonkeyboy]

I was thinking.. also because I am currently building a new stand.. you could always just staple some plastic sheeting in the bottom. hydroponic stores sell "panda film" which is heavy plastic sheeting that is black on one side and white in the other. cheap and effective.

The OTHER thing I am trying to decide is how to ventilate the area under the stand. I had a couple of big spills, etc, when putting my new tank together. the water seeped under the cabinet and sat on my sold oak floor. how did I know there was water under there? Because my floor boards were all cupping!!! It eventually went away but on this next cabinet I think I'm going to drill some vent holes in the bottom 2x4.

can't hurt to have them.
Cheers

 

[esoxlucius]

I was thinking.. also because I am currently building a new stand.. you could always just staple some plastic sheeting in the bottom. hydroponic stores sell "panda film" which is heavy plastic sheeting that is black on one side and white in the other. cheap and effective.

The OTHER thing I am trying to decide is how to ventilate the area under the stand. I had a couple of big spills, etc, when putting my new tank together. the water seeped under the cabinet and sat on my sold oak floor. how did I know there was water under there? Because my floor boards were all cupping!!! It eventually went away but on this next cabinet I think I'm going to drill some vent holes in the bottom 2x4.

can't hurt to have them.
Cheers

I looked at the price of that pond armor stuff and for the amount i need i can't justify it. I work in the plastics recycling industry and scrap plastic sheeting is something we get in regularly so that's the way i'm gonna go on this.

As for your ventilation idea, If you turned your stand upside down and fitted batons of 1x1 to your ply, one at each end and two others towards the middle, your stand would then sit 1" proud of your boards to let them "breathe". Or go even bigger than 1x1 and you could even sneak a mop under your stand!