Dave A44

I find it's easy enough to drop a lot of cash in fish keeping, so I keep looking for quick and easy ways to save money by getting creative.
Say you are setting up yet another tank. (Can't have too many tanks eh, fellow a-fish-ionados?) Sorry, couldn't resist that one Anyway, maybe you need a quick 10 gallon setup for a sick fish, or some fry, or just for the halibut.
Here's a quick top cover that might not cost you anything - at least it didn't me. I had my house vinyl sided a few years back and I saved a bunch of the cut-off pieces of siding, soffit and trim. If you don't have any, perhaps a friend does, or a Home Depot type store. I used perforated soffit vinyl. Probably under $10. for a 10 foot section. That way you could do a bunch of tanks
It's pretty simple - just cut to size with a large pair of heavy duty scissors. It looks better the other side up - but, surprisingly, when I had it that way it actually warped a bit from condensation, go figure. So, I just turned it over. Keep in mind if you do turn it over because of warpage - the cutouts for heater and or pump, air lines etc. will be flipped. No lights available of course - but this is just a 'quick and simple' - not for a display tank. If for nothing else, it keeps the fish from jumping out

Attached Images

10 gal tank hood.jpg (205.9 KB, 117 views)

Lucy

Cool idea!

agabr123

lol, that looks much better than my creation, cardboard cut to fit wrapped in saran wrap to keep the water out oh the life of a college student...

griffin

cool idea! a similar idea would be to use eggcrates like they do for some office lights. pretty cheap, easy, and would allow for lights to be used.

Dave A44

Yea! I like that. It would look better too. I'm wondering if it will cut and trim easy with a saber saw? I would need to make cutouts. Guess I'd have to try it to find out.

griffin

i just used a regular kitchen knife and scissors. if you're just trying to cut one segment at a time, it's really easy. you could also just cut down the middle of the square where you want to section it off, and then use fingers to bend the remaining tab so there's a straight edge, or you could just leave it on.