Finishing a canopy

[Zoe]

I'm building a canopy for 2 x 24" T5s for a FW tank.

I went to check out the plywood selection at Rona today; the only finished 1/2" plywood they have is fir/pine.

Is it OK to use fir and pine over an aquarium?

And also, what should I finish the inside of the canopy with? White paint... waterbourne varathane... nothing...?

Thanks,

Zoe

[lohachata]

you can use the fir/pine plywood.go to your local sherwin williams paint dealer and get some "Tile clad II" 2 part epoxy paint...i like to use black;but white is ok too.just make sure that you give it 2 coats about 24-48 hours apart.

[bmlbytes]

I would paint it with either an epoxy paint as loha suggested or a waterproof/mold resistant paint. Also, I wouldn't paint it white, as it will get dirty and look bad.