Building A Cabinet

[pinkdolphin_113]

hi everyone,
im planning on building a cabinet for a 5x2x2 foot aquarium (maybe planning on writing a journal about it for here...is it worth it?) and would appreciate any safety points or advice for it.

construction will begin after new years...around january 15th time.


Pink.

 

[OldMan47]

I have a link in my signature area to a stand that I built. It was not a cabinet as such but a stand for holding multiple tanks. Many of the principles would probably apply to your endeavor too.

 

[pinkdolphin_113]

thanks a lot! i had a good look through the pinned topics that got moved after i posted the thread too lol

im wondering if there are any joiners on the forum?
if so, what type of joints do i use on the door??

the wood work is fairly easy, its just choosing with joints to use!!
i was hoping for the front face of the cabinet to be completely flat so the doors would have to come out a little before/while opening...if that makes sense.



Pink.

 

[Truck]

Use proper joints, the old tongue and groove joint and diagonal struts all add strength.

Accuracy is key, forget accuracy and you can forget mechanical strength.

 

[pinkdolphin_113]

yes yes definately, i know accuracy is the key lol ive tried getting measurements for the tank in mm.
i know what joints to use, how stupid of me...i mean hinges for the doors...what hinges should i use considering my previous post?? i dont have any idea about hinges.


Pink.

 

[OldMan47]

The hinges that you want are the ones they call European hinges around here. They are articulated and are placed in a recess in the cabinet and in the door. They are also very easy to adjust to make the two front doors fit nice and square to each other, which is often the hardest part to get right on any cabinet. You are not looking for a joiner, you really want advice from a cabinet maker, which is not me.

 

[drtim]

Hi
On my tank i used kitchen cabinet hinges, fully adjustable and easy to get straight. The other option is to use pre made kitchen doors with holes for the hinges already inplace?
Tim.

 

[dgwebster]

B&Q seel cabinet hinges and a drill bit for the recess hole. my grandfather was a carpenter and would have killed anyone calling him a joiner lol. For ultimate strength I always favour a good dovetail joint where the width is suitable to have more than 1 tail, though I have done this on a hood before as it didn't need to hold the weight of the tank.

Good simple corner bracing to prevent flexing are always good in addition to the vertical support. It doesn't take much to make an extremely strong unit.