Coat Closet Turned Salt Water Aquarium!! What?!

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Years ago we had a large 90 gallon salt water aquarium and Tyler was getting the itch to get back into the hobby. I walked around the house to see if there was a good place to put an aquarium that didn’t get much natural light, which can cause algae growth, and that I would be okay with for decor. There was no where, most our rooms get natural light aside from our closet which obviously we don’t want a fish tank in. But then I spotted our coat closet, which we really don’t use much, we had some things in there, like motorcycle jackets and cat litter trays and the cat box, but nothing we couldn’t relocate somewhere else easier, like the guest bedroom closet. Plus this space has a built-in entryway unit between it and the front door so it’s blocked from direct sunlight. I told Tyler and he said I was crazy, but then after thinking about it decided, why not?!

This was the plan I had in my head.

I got started stripping the closet down to nothing. I removed the things we had stored in there along with the shelf on the wall and the carpet. The idea was to have the aquarium up top and keep the litter box at the bottom because we have no good place to store our litter box in our 1800sf house.

I got everything removed and now I was working with a blank slate.

We agreed that if we put a fish tank in this closet, it would be smart to have a back access to the aquarium on the back side of the wall to the closet is our laundry room. A few years ago I built a wall mounted broom closet, we ended up emptying it and removing it from the wall so we could cut into the drywall. We gave this one to a neighbor for their use.

In the sketch I drew above, I was originally planning on adding a little cat door to the bottom of the front of the cabinet, however, since we were going to be cutting into this wall for the fish tank, I figured why not also add a cat door back here so it wouldn’t be such an eye sore and the cabinet would look more like a piece of furniture. I found where the studs were using my stud finder that also senses electrical, marked the door on the wall with a pen and a level and cut between the studs with a multi-tool and a drywall blade.

I got the drywall cut out on the back and the front. There was a 2×4 as part of the frame on the bottom and I figured I’d just leave that and paint it since Ellie is a cat and can step over it just fine. I’ll make it look like part of the door.

Then, I used some scrap brown board I had on hand and cut it down to size to cover up the ugly 2x4s. I caulked it and planned on painting it all.

Then, I framed out the cat door, I thought it would be cute to frame it the same way the rest of my doors are framed. I just brad nailed primed pine into the studs/drywall.

Here’s what the little cat door looks like compared to our regular doors. The regular doors have 1x3s as the vertical pieces and the cat door has 1x2s instead.

Then I caulked around the doorframe and filled the nail holes and later I will paint it.

Then I came around to the inside of the closet to address the floor. We had leftover faux wood flooring from my husband’s man cave project, so I decided to use that in the closet since it wouldn’t cost us anything and it would be easy! I laid down a moisture barrier first, usually you would use a black thick plastic tarp for this, but I had leftover waterproof schluter kerdie from my master shower project and used that instead. I wouldn’t purchase this stuff for a floor since it is really expensive, but it worked out for me, especially in such a small area.

This flooring is somewhat thin with a thin padding on the back, so I used a right angle and a razor to score and snap it.

Then you just place the flooring on the floor, they snap together with a tongue and groove method. Since they are floating floors there is no need to glue them to the floor or attach them to anything but each other.

Side note: These floors are very affordable if you are looking for some and we’ve had them in the man cave for a few years now and they’ve held up great!

I also got the baseboards put back in and the cat door framed on the inside, but I don’t have that pictured.

Tyler made a steel frame at work and brought it home for the closet to make sure it could hold the weight of the aquarium, which is really heavy! We used 2x6s and screwed them into the studs with lag bolts, then placed the steel frame on top and used screws to hold it in one spot, not through the metal but on the side of it.

Of course he had to test it out once installed. He’s about 200lbs and it held him great with no give!

Once that was done, Tyler got to work cutting a hole in the drywall with a drywall knife through the laundry room since we now knew where this steel frame would be.

We cut out the stud, but don’t worry, it’s not a load bearing wall, we checked in the attic. He used his multi-tool to cut it out.

But don’t panic! We did reframe the area and re-support the stud. Lot’s of people online freak out about me removing studs, but we always do our due diligence and make sure the wall isn’t load bearing and re-support the area. We added more 2x4s horizontally first, we just screwed them directly into the rest of the existing stud.

Then we added vertical supports back in. I added pocket holes in these to attach them to the horizontal pieces. I made sure when I cut these pieces they were a very tight fit.

Once the inside framing was done, it was time to worry about making it pretty with outside framing! I used 1×6 primed pine and trimmed it down to the exact depth needed for the inside of the frame. It needed to be the exact width of the 2×4 plus the thickness of the drywall on the inside and outside of the closet. It was roughly 4.5in. I put it together with corner clamps and I always use wood glue! I have my glue in a glubot which is awesome because when your glue get’s empty you don’t have to wait on it to drop to the head when you hold it upside down, you just squeeze with this one! Another trick I’ve learned is to shoot a few brad nails in once it’s clamped and glued to make sure it doesn’t shift when you screw it together with pocket holes.

Test fit!

Once I knew the fit was perfect, I took it back out to the garage to add a divider in the middle. I don’t have it in me to waste any space, so I planned to section off the top for an additional storage location since the fish tank area doesn’t need to go all the way up to our ceiling. This will make more sense in a bit. But I used the same method of using glue, brad nails and then screwing it into place with pocket hole screws. I did this process twice to create a double layer.

Then it was time to create the outer frame. I used 1×3 primed pine, cut it down to size, added pocket holes and then put it all together before installing it on the piece I just built.

Once it was all put together, I installed it on the other part of the frame using glue and brad nails.

Side note: You can see the pocket holes on the smaller area here, that will be the top and you won’t be able to see it unless you climb up a ladder to see inside the upper storage area. I’m very strategic with where I put my pocket holes.

Then we got it installed using my brad nailer! This part was super exciting! Adding trim really propels a project to looking way closer to finished!

Once that was installed, it was time to figure out how to divide the top and middle part of this closet. I made sure the divided part of the frame above was high enough to allow plenty of space for the fish tank and to be able to service it. I ended up adding 1x2s into the studs inside and then cut a piece of plywood down to size and installed it inside as a “ceiling” to the fish tank and a “floor” to the upper storage area. I had Tyler shoot some brad nails down into the 1x2s since I am way too short to reach. Also, not shown here, I added a plywood “floor” on top of the steel frame for the fish tank area.

Of course if we have a fish tank in here we are going to need electrical, we will also need it for the litter box since it is a self scooping auto litter box. So Tyler did the electrical work running it off the light switch that’s on this wall. We ended up tearing out the wall next to this closet, more on that in the next post.

Funny story about the wiring though! Even though he tried his best, we ended up having to get an electrician out to fix it. The light switch is on a 3 way switch and this is the 2nd light switch on the same wiring instead of the 1st like he assumed. So when you turned off that light, the power to the closet also went off. But our electrician got it all figured out and fixed!

I got it all caulked so that way the fish tank area would be sealed off from the top storage area and the cat litter box area underneath. Then I used Block&Wall, which is a liquid rubber type substance, and coated everything inside the fish tank area with it. This is like RedGuard, you can use it to waterproof a shower area.

Once that was dry I went over it with this pretty blue paint. I wanted it to be dark in here so you can’t see the white walls through the sides of the fish tank. I felt like this would make it more ocean like.

Tyler could hardly wait until the paint was dry before he added the fish tank to the space and filled it! He’s not known to be very patient with things he’s excited about! And for anyone curious about the sump and pump, it’s all in the back of the tank built in. This is a compact tank and it’s pretty awesome!

He even put a couple clown fish in to help with cycling the tank. The fish store said they are pretty tough fish and can handle the cycle. It’s been months now and they are still doing great!

Then it was time to make some doors. I created a door out of 1x3s, then used brown board for the center of it and used Liquid Nails to attach some bulletin board material I found on amazon.

I flipped it over and then installed the door hinges using 1.5in overlay soft close hinges. I created this door 3in larger than the opening so it would overlay the frame by 1.5in on all sides.

Tyler helped me get it installed by screwing it into the frame.

We have this being used as a vision board now. So any goals we have we print out and stick to the bulletin board. Visualization can be powerful! And yes, that is a stack of cash Tyler printed out!

Then I got the inside of the door painted the same blue as inside the aquarium area. I taped off the edges so that way you won’t be able to see the blue from the outside or the white from the inside when the door is closed and there will be a nice clean line around it. It took 3 coats over that Block&Wall.

Then for the top door, I built this one the same way but I didn’t add the bulletin board to this one. It’s just plain white (I’m using Alabaster by SW since that’s the white that is in the rest of my house). I did install different hinges on it though, some that would pop up instead of opening sideways like a regular door. Tyler was in charge of this installation, because again, I’m short!

And this is what it’s looking like so far!

Now that this side is pretty much done, it’s time to head to the front of this closet and work on it some more so it’s not just an open closet with a fish tank and a litter box sitting in it.

But before we finish it out, I wanted to be able to see into the sides when a fish was hiding. I cut down some scrap brown board and added these square mirrors I found on amazon and stuck them on with double sided foam stickers.

I made 2 and put them on both sides of the aquarium at an angle so we could see in. The clown fish weren’t happy seeing 2 more clowns at first, but they quickly got over it lol! They are territorial.

Now, I don’t have video or images of me building the top front of this, it was super custom and we got a little frustrated building it so I didn’t film it. But I do have it built here and ready to stain! I’m using the stain color I’ve been obsessed with lately and I couldn’t be happier with it! It’s Spice Brown by DuraSeal and it’s such a pretty, rich color! I got the back stained, then flipped it over and stained the front.

But sometimes mistakes happen! I had this built and sitting under the fish tank and I think some saltwater got dripped on it because it had this dark area. I thought maybe it was the wood grain, but it looked more like a drip mark and not wood grain.

I knew it would drive me crazy if I didn’t at least try to fix it! So I sanded the dark spot down really well and the re applied stain….AND IT WORKED! Also, this red oak I’m using is pretty dang expensive, so I was super happy to be able to salvage this piece!

Then I added a spar urethane in satin to the front and back to protect it, especially from the moisture of the aquarium! I added 3 thick coats of the top coat.

I built a box for above the fish tank for storage for smaller things for the fish tank. I couldn’t waste the space.

Then I built a door out of 1×3 oak for that space and put it together with pocket holes. Then I routed the inside for the plywood underlayment middle to sit inside. I had to change the bit to get the corners where the larger bit wouldn’t reach.

Then I routed the outside of the door for decorative purposes.

I got the middle put in and the door stained. Then I installed the same pop up hinges as I did on the laundry room storage area.

Once my piano hinges came in I installed them on the door. This is also how I installed the really heavy mirror door in my closet. Piano hinges are really strong! This door is also pretty heavy since it’s made of oak, which is a heavy/dense wood.

I left the door trim that was on there and just reenforced the right side with longer screws. I added a trim piece to the top and painted the sides dark brown so they blend in with the dark stain. Then I added oak edge banding and stained it. I did this to save money, since leaving the original trim would be a lot cheaper than buying new 1×3 oak. This is a “trust the process” moment!

My neighbor came over and him and Tyler helped me get it installed! But then it wouldn’t close because the box I built for storage, so we had to remove it.

But once we took it off it worked PERFECTLY!!! I was a little nervous!

I ordered some red oak crown moulding on amazon and when it came in I cut it down to size and then installed it on the top of the trim above the fish tank to make it look more like a built-in piece of furniture. I think this alone really elevated the look! This crown moulding is way easier to work with than traditional crown moulding because it’s flat on the back, which makes it way easier to cut.

I installed the front piece of moulding before staining, mostly because it wasn’t touching the wall so it wasn’t hard to stain and I didn’t feel like staining it and then waiting on it to dry before installing. Then I cut the side pieces and stained them before I put them up. I just shot a few brad nails into the moulding on the thinner area. I did stain the inside of the angle cut so that light wood wouldn’t show through the crack if it wasn’t super tight.

I think it turned out pretty great! If you are working with red oak (or other specialty woods, they have several different woods to choose from) and need some crown moulding, I highly recommend this!

I know it doesn’t look great yet! But just trust! I did build a new box for behind that door and fixed it to where the door would close and be functional and the storage is also functional!

Next, I started building the door for the bottom. I didn’t want this to be one large door because I wanted to be able to open the top and the bottom separately. I used 1×3 oak for this and used wood glue and pocket holes to put them together. Yes, I use my countertops as a work bench quite often!

Then I got it stained. Yes, I’m staining in my living room. Whatever works right?

I installed more piano hinges onto this piece and then got it installed on the closet.

Now because these are on piano hinges they have trouble staying closed on their own, but we bought small round magnets and installed them on the inside of the doors and the door trim with super glue on the top and bottom and that fixed that problem.

Next, I needed to take care of that big gap at the bottom of the closet. I was thinking I wanted it to look something like these piece of furniture.

I bought a 1×6 piece of oak and trimmed it down to the exact size needed with my table saw. Then I drew out a pattern on a piece of printer paper and then folded it in half so it would be thicker to trace and then cut the pattern out. I traced it on one side starting from the center and then flipped it over and traced it on the other side, leaving “feet” on both sides.

This is what the pattern looked like, I was pretty happy with it. Just ignore the meat we have thawing for dinner, lol!

Then I took it outside, clamped it down and cut out the traced area with my jigsaw.

I got it stained, then I installed some flat deck brackets to give me a way to attach it to the rest of the bottom door.

I had Tyler hold it in the right place for me as I screwed it in. It worked perfectly and it doesn’t drag the ground at all when the door opens!

Then it was time to build the faux drawer fronts, because remember, I want this to look like a built in armoire. I bought 1×12 oak for this (because they don’t have 1×10) and cut it down to about 9.5×23.5 pieces, then routed the edges just like I did the upper door and got them stained and sealed on the front and back. To install I measured about where it would go, made sure they were level and brad nailed them into place.

Once the handles came in I installed those as well. These are the same drawer/cabinet pulls that I have in my kitchen, that way they help tie the spaces together. And here are the matching knobs I have on my cabinet doors in case you want them too.

I installed one on the top lift up door as well. These are my fave pulls, they are so dang pretty and great quality!

What do you think? Do you think this is a cool addition? Or would you prefer the coat closet??

Here’s all the fun before and afters!

This was a gift for my husband, he turns 40 this year and I think he loves it!

Salt water tanks take a long time to get set up and really thrive, this is a few months old at this point and we had a few corals in there that didn’t make it. But we think we have it figured out, and by “we” I mean “he” because this is his hobby, not mine. I just enjoy watching the fish and can’t wait for the corals to thrive! I think the yellow canary fish we have in there is my favorite!

Here’s what the inside looks like. For everyone who was concerned that Ellie needed a light in her litter box area, even though she’s a cat and she can see in the dark just fine, Tyler put one in for her. Also, this litter box is literally the best thing ever! It’s an auto litter box so it scoops itself! For one cat, we only need to replace the litter refill once every 3-4 weeks! You don’t have to touch it in between then. So dang easy! And it doesn’t smell!!!

I’m super happy with this build! It turned out just the way I envisioned it!

And here is the back side in our laundry room again. Not quite sure yet what we will store above the tank, but it’s there if we need it!

And for fun, this is what my entryway looked like when we first moved in compared to now. Crazy how much it’s changed right?!

Next up, this fish tank project might have led into another project we were never considering doing! But it turned out amazing! Stay tuned!