Built-In Aquarium Advice

[TrueTricia]

Hey All

 

So I bought a house!  Yay!  So now it's time to plan the aquarium.  We'll be putting the aquarium in the front room, which is directly over a basement storage area.  This way I can reinforce the support beams and easily run plumbing, etc.  There's a bathroom right there too, so I'll have access to plumbing for RODI, drain, etc.  I'll get to have a fish room again!  

 

We're planning on doing a built-in surrounding the aquarium with bookshelves.  I'm still wavering between a 150g and a 110g.  Obviously, I want the 150g, but... 

 

We're planning on using unfinished cabinets as the base for the bookshelves.  What do you all think about using the same for the tank stand?  If I went this route, I would reinforce the cabinet extensively.  Basically, the cabinet would just become the "skin" of a durable stand, not the stand itself.  On top of the cabinets, we'd use wide planks of wood to help distribute the weight across the entire surface.  Going this route helps to make sure that the entire face of the base is consistent.  

 

The other option is build a stand, and put the kitchen cabinets on either side, and order separate matching doors for the front of the stand.  But it maybe harder to get it exact.  

 

We get the keys at the end of January, and need to be out of our places at the end of February...so reinforcing the cabinets vice building and then trying to match the skin would be more time effective.  This way I can have the tank set up (even if the bookshelves aren't finished) and move the livestock directly in.