New(to me) tank, questions!

So i picked up an old 120 gallon tank on craigslist for about $100. it was covered in hard water/algae, and was starting to leak.
But, i need to upgrade my Cichlids from their 30 gallon tank and i'm on a budget so...

I cleaned the tank with vinegar and rubbing alcohol, stripped out all the old silicone, and got some GE 1 at lowes, i will be resealing it tonight/tomorrow. (first time, this should be interesting)

Questions!
1. The stand that came with it is too tall for my girls (they love the fish) so i need to build a new one, around 2 feet tall. Is there a site, or does anyone have, some decent stand plans? It needs room underneath to store some cannisters, preferably closed off from children, as my oldest is only 30 months old.

2. I would like to build a hood that will pass wife inspection. As far as functionality, i would like it to house some strips of LED lights that I plan to buy and install when the hood is finished. However i have never built a hood for a fish tank and I'm not sure if there is a specific way it needs to be done, or if there are some materials or stains/paints i should avoid? Any help would be appreciated!

Pics tonight of progress

Basic stand idea. Should support the 120 gallons or put another set of center 4x4's in for added support. 3/4" plywood added on the top for the tank to rest on will as well help distribute the weight around. You can get vaneer to overlay on top of plywood for the doors or maybe even kitchen cabinet doors if the measurements work out correctly. Install hardware for door handles and baby locks. Or you can as well just add a 1/2" plywood across the face and sides and access the filters from the back (may be difficult though.) Also, friction latches could be used to make an end access with the plywood. Little fingers probably couldn't pull it open but adult strength fingers could. Hope this may give you some ideas!!

Click on image to make it bigger. Sorry it ended up to small to see other wise.
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Talk to Shua, he builds some nice stuff. Stuff that would pass wife inspection.

You should check the type of silicone you bought and make sure its going to work for fish. I was going to use a similar silicone to repair a cross member on a tank and ended up talking to Cory from Conway tropical fish and he advised me to not use a generic type silicone because it will leech harmful chemicals into the water even if the silicone isnt sumerged in the water the fumes could kill the fish.

I had already used that type of silicone and thought I had it all scraped off before I used aquarium silicone but I must not of gotten all removed because I ended up loosing about 30 fish before I ended up ditching the tank.

Get GE Type II clear windows and door. Been using that stuff for yrs and no problem . I found out the secret what aquarium manufacturers use thru research online.

Type II? Everything i read said type II had anti mildew in it and can kill fish? Thats why i purchased the type I, no additives, pure silicone.

What is the difference between type 1 and 2?

type 2 has mildew resist in it, type one doesn't, just make sure you give it 48 hrs to cure

whats the measurements on your tank i will send you a build for it

I'm at work right now, ill be working on it when i get home though and post some measurements. It is 6' long, just don't remember exact height/depth.

The build up top will work, i would cut 2x4s to fit in between the 4x4s (take the weight of the screws) i would run some center braces across the top and bottom. i know prob over build but better then it folding and either killing someone or tank breaks and have a mess to clean up

DO NOT USE type II silicone. The chemical that retards mildew growth will kill the fish as it slowly leeches out. Type I is aquarium safe. Not to mention Type I is cheaper.

As for the stand, if the 120gal is standard size, you can probably buy a stand and canopy for it. It would look way nicer that some 2x4 screw together.

oh i am sure it would look nicer, but if i could afford to buy a stand and canopy i could afford to buy a new tank too

Like dollars said, you want wood resting on wood, not wood hanging from screws. Thats a rule that I learned building platforms in theatre. That plan looks a little flawed. It probably would hold up okay, but it would make me nervous. I would do this:

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Also, everything I have heard before says type 1 is the one you want.

The stand that you got with the tank, could you just hack it down to make it shorter and make new doors? Or at least take it apart and salvage the wood so you reduce some cost?