Treatments for wood stand

[RICKY81]

i am currently having my stand and canopy for my tank done at local carpentry shop. i am going to stain the wood for my color and the questions that i have are

?? do they need to coat/treat the wood for preventing salt damage??

??do they treat only the inside of the stand or both in and out and with what?? ---or bottom line what do you guys recommend they do with the paint and or treatment??

any information is greatly appreciated... thanks rick.

[hobogato]

many people will paint the inside of the stand/canopy with marine paint or killz white paint. the oustide can be stained and sealed by you. i would have the cabinet makers leave it totally naked and do that stuff yourself.

[RICKY81]

the oustide can be stained and sealed by you. i would have the cabinet makers leave it totally naked and do that stuff yourself.

with what do you seal the paint? i have never done any carpentry work before so its french for me.

[hobogato]

if you go to lowe's or home depot, they have several things that will work to seal the stained wood. i use spray on urithane sometimes, and sometimes i use tung oil.

[alton]

Lacquer sanding sealer and then several coats of lacquer

[Marlin]

I use Glidden porch and deck polyurethane paint. I also fiberglassed the inside bottom of the stand on my 180 gal tank. I did 6" up from the bottom that way if there was a leak I could hold up to 6" of water before it started spilling onto the floor.

Rick

[opium89]

You absolutely want to finish it inside and out if you want it to last and not look terrible in a short amount of time. The type of wood and what you want it to look like will help determine how you approach finishing it. If you can tell me what kind of wood the stand is made from, and what you are wanting it to look like, I'll be happy to offer some suggestions. Maybe you can share some pictures of a finish you want and I can most likely tell you how to do it.

[jpond83]

polyurithane is the sealent you would want to put over your stain, it keeps moisture out and it is what i use on wood floors, spray can is ok but i recomend brushing it on.

[jroescher]

I used Minwax Polyshades One Step Stain & Polyurethane on the outside of mine and it works and looks good. Really easy to use.

I don't remember what kind of white paint I used inside, but it didn't work well. Mold? growing where the salt spray hits hit. Black stuff.

[chark]

I also think polyurethane would help the would last better.

[RICKY81]

the kind of wood is suppose to be made out of Oak wood. I should be getting the stand in tomorrow so i can definitely take and post some pictures... i plan on using the killz paint for the inside and i think i will be going for the polyurethane..... only cause it was the one that has been mentioned of more times...LOL..

[opium89]

Poly is just a clear coat finish, it will darken the color slightly and will provide a "natural" look. Now, oak is a VERY porous wood with lots of nooks and crannys in the grain. If a natural look is what you want, you can simply apply a few coats of poly and be done with it, sanding with a very fine sandpaper between coats, or you can darken it with something like Tung Oil (as was previously mentioned) beforehand.

If you want to add some color by staining it, you are going to want to fill the grain first with something called sanding sealer or grain filler. It's a personal preference really, but if you intend to stain, it will look far better if you seal the grain first, then stain, then finish with poly. I can recommend some products and send you some instructions on how to apply them if this is the route you want to go. It's not as hard as you might think with the right direction and a little elbow grease. I would suggest Googling "aqaurium stands" or "aqaurium furniture" and send us some links with photos of what you think you might want your finished stand to look like.

[RICKY81]

this is a website that i ran in to. and the finish of the wood (i mean the pattern of the wood you know the lines and stuff) is something like that what i like but the color more like an autumn cherry stain, but not too red. something in between the autum cherry and dark walnut...

http://aquariumhoodsandstands.com/product/tabid/62/p-22-210-gallon-aquarium-package-special.aspx

[opium89]

I think I know what you're after and this might be a simple solution.

http://www.deftfinishes.com/trade/OurProducts/details.cfm?ProductID=8

or

http://www.rustoleum.com/CBGProduct.asp?pid=46

Both of these products contain a varnish as well as colorant so this is the only thing you will need to apply. There's different colors available, sounds like Black Walnut or the Mahogony might be what you're after. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND you do a sample on a piece of oak first to make sure the color is what you want. Go buy a small piece of oak plywood at HD or Lowes if you need to. They may even have some scraps sitting around you can take. Ask the folks in lumber and they will tell you. Lastly, you'll also need some latex gloves, mineral spirits for cleanup, possibly some brushes and plenty of clean rags.

1. Sand stand to 180 grit, remove all dust. The more time you spend sanding, the better the overall result will be. Read up on sanding and prepping for wood finishes if you need some direction

2. Wipe or brush on your first coat - Keep wet for at least five minutes by applying more finish to spots on the oak that soak up the oil.

3. Wipe off all excess finish before it becomes tacky. Let dry overnight in a warm room.

4. Apply second coat and sand lightly with 600 grit wet/dry sandpaper while surface is still wet with oil. Wipe off excess.

5. Repeat step three. (Dry overnight)

6. If the surface does not have a nice even sheen apply a third coat in same manner as Step 4. Wipe off excess and let dry.


There are lots of other ways to finish oak, but this is one of the simplest and only involves using one product. It should fill the pores adequetly while giving good color and still accenting the grain. I think you'll be very happy with it based on what you're telling us. Please post some pics when you're done with it!