BRI Aquatic Cabinets News

Here at BRI Aquatic Cabinets we take great pride in the quality of our aquarium furniture. But no matter how much time and effort you put into the wood working side of manufacturing the aquarium cabinets and canopies, the finish is the bottom line. If the finish is bad or just OK, the furniture doesn’t have that quality look to it that sets it apart from the rest. Over the years we have put a great deal of time into research and development to produce only the best possible finishes. Finishes that will give you years of beauty and joy and make your home aquarium a life style enhancement.

One of biggest advantages in ordering aquarium cabinets from BRI is the wide range of colors in both stains and solids that we offer. This gives the customer a lot of flexibility to personalize their home aquarium to match their individual taste. Every one likes the ability to custom order the color of their aquarium cabinet and canopy and we to like offer this service. It is good for business. However we run into a lot of challenges with this and have developed certain approaches designed to give you highest possible quality finish with virtually unlimited choices of colors and stains.

BRI works with many of the name brand stains and paints. This gives the customer a lot of choices to match existing furnishings and or to create their idea of the perfect home aquarium. The problem from a technical point is that many of these products are not compatible with each other. So we use different finishing techniques with each application. I want to take a moment to describe the types of finishes we use so that you can make the best possible choice for your investment.

Our number one preferred finishing system is from Sherwin William’s Chemical Coatings division. The products are very stable, consistent, tough and produce a beautiful finish time and time again. These are not products that you will find at a typical Sherwin William’s retail store. They require specialized equipment to apply, an intimate working knowledge of their particular personalities and are beyond the scope of the typical handyman DIY’er. The Industrial division carries its own line of colors and clear coats. They can only be purchased from the Industrial division. They have two different stain charts. We highly recommend that you aquire both of these charts to help you assist your customers with picking out stains. One is a bi-fold chart and the other is a quad-fold brochure. The quad-fold has not only stains in it, but also some really beautiful dye and stain combinations to pick from.

In this product line we use their vinyl sealer and conversion varnish as a clear coat. BRI aquarium cabinets are predominately used for salt water fish and reef aquariums. Marine aquariums are very destructive to finishes. We have found that overall, the conversion varnish gives far superior results and longevity in this harsh environment. The conversion varnish does not yellow like polyurethane does and is much tougher than lacquer. Sherwin William’s does offer custom color matching if you can not find the color that you like. They also charge for this service and that charge is passed on to the cost of the aquarium cabinet as a custom option.

The only draw back we have with the conversion varnish is it is incompatible with any other product line other than it’s own. Sherwin William’s retail stains will not work with it. Neither will Minwax stains. The only products the conversion varnish works with is its own.

BRI also offers it’s aquarium cabinets and canopies in Sherwin William’s and Minwax retail stains. These two product lines offer a great selection of additional colors and best of all you can find them every where. However when using these products the aquarium cabinets must be clear coated with polyurethane. Polyurethane is what the individual manufacturers recommend. In our own experience we have found this to be the only type of clear coating that will handle the high oil content in these products. Minwax has a water based stain line and that can be clear coated with lacquer. Lacquer is a lot prettier than polyurethane. However it is not as durable and that is a consideration with salt water aquariums. Polyurethane is a very durable finish to use. In fact if you have wood floors in your home there is a good chance some type of polyurethane is protecting them. But polyurethane has two drawbacks for the customer to consider when ordering their aquarium cabinet and canopy. First is it is very thick and passes that on to the overall look of the aquarium cabinet. Secondly it has a light amber tint to it that may increase a little bit over time.

Another finishing technique BRI specializes in is using latex. Many times the customer wants their home or business aquarium to match the existing walls. In this case we can spray the cabinet with the exact same latex that is already there and for a protective top coating several coats of lacquer is applied. Generally we would recommend a custom color match in conversion varnish. But for several reasons this may not be a practical choice.

One very important concern here is picking out stain colors. The color you see on the brochure or the outside of the can is not what you are going to find in the can. Photos do not convey the actual color with any degree of accuracy that you can rely on. On the back of manufacturer’s product cans and brochure you will find a similar statement.

Then there is the issue of the wood itself. Each wood species has its own unique color and affects the end result of the stain’s color. The majority of stain charts are based on red oak. When you apply the stain to another type of wood a different color will result. If you are dead set that the furniture has to an exact color you will have to take additional steps.

Buy some stain of the color you wish and apply it to bare wood and see the results yourself. If it is acceptable then fine. If not, you may wish to pick another color and try that. Another option is to order a custom color match. In order to do the color match we will need some sort of sample to go by. BRI does not do any color matching in-house. All color matching is done by Sherwin William’s Industrial Coatings division.

Due to unique and difficult process involved with color matching on different wood species and deviations within manufacturing processes, BRI uses the same expressed statements as the paint and stain manufacturers do. We do not guarantee in any way the ability to produce 100% accurate color matches or reproduction of colors on the can or on the manufacturer’s brochure.

Visit www.briaquaticcabinets.com for more information on aquarium cabinets.