Daemonfly's DIY Aquarium Hood Design

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The design consists of a frame that sits outside of the top edge of the tank. The top of the hood simply consists of 3 boards hinged together for different levels of access to the inside of the tank. Front most top board is hinged and opens for general access to aquarium for things like feeding. Middle board is used for light mounting, and is also hinged for greater access to aquarium. Third, rear board is fixed in place. Wood can be any type of your choice - ex. oak, pine, different types of plywood.

Frame Design

The frame is simply a rectangular box that sits around the outside of the top of the aquarium, hiding the plastic trim. The four corner joints can be any of your choosing. Hoods for larger tanks should go with some of the stronger joints, reinforced by screws or nails. For the 20g long, I went with 45 degree mitered biscuit joints, glue only, as I own Bicsuit Jointer and the hood wasn't that big nor heavy. (*see end of article for wood joint links)

The frame itself is supported by smaller strips of wood fastened to the inner sides and sits on top of the plastic trim. For smaller tanks, small molding (I used 1/4" x 1") can simply be glued in place on each of the four sides. For heavier hoods on larger aquariums, a thicker strip of wood will probably be needed and held by a few short screws or brad nails. *Note – Many tanks’ top plastic surround is slightly angled, with the lower edge wider than the top. Make sure you take this difference into account when you measure.

For any rear openings for filters and equipment, it is a lot easier to have your measurements ready beforehand so you can make your rear panel cutouts before you construct the frame. The two side boards, as well as the top rear, can be extended rearward to help hide equipment and cables on the back of the aquarium.

If you want an open back, you should still put in some short pieces in back to keep the hood from sliding forward. The fixed top-rear cover board will still provide the support in the rear.

Frames on very long tanks may need a center support between front and rear panels. Most of these longer tanks have their own center brace for the glass, so one in the hood shouldn’t pose a problem. Keep placement of lighting in mind if you end up needing a center brace.

Hinged Cover

The cover consists of three boards hinged together, with the rear board fastened in place to the frame. The front board is hinged to the middle board, and would be used for general access to the aquarium for feeding or simple maintenance. The middle board is perfect for mounting your lighting fixtures to as it should normally be located at or close to the center of your tank depth wise. It is hinged to both the front board and rear board. The rear board is securely fastened to the frame and supports the other two boards when they are in the fully opened position. The rear board also helps reinforce the rear panel of the frame if you have to make large cutouts for equipment.

To dermine what boards to use, just take the depth(front to back) measurement, then it's more or less trial & error to see what boards will work well. Take total depth(front to back) measurement, divide by 3 and it will give you general idea of what width of boards to use. For a 20g long, a combination of a 1x6, 1x8, then a 1x4 fit nicely with a bit of hang-over on all sides. For larger tanks, 4 boards might be needed, and since multiple light fixtures are usually used on larger tanks, they could be mounted in two rows, one on each of the 2 center boards.