cabinet

[nike orion]

whats your choice?..
mines bowing,cheap mdf unit,on hunt for something like oak or walnut..dunno bout pine,mind says steer clear....

[Carylnz]

The harder the wood the better as it will last longer without being so affected by water spills and tank weight.
Can't help you more specifically as I do not know your wood options over there. Mine is made of rimu but that is a NZ hardwood and you do not have it in the UK.

[Rockfish]

Oak is certainly popular in the UK at the moment, with some stores offering mass-produced oak cabinets and a few doing custom-made ones. You can also get good quality solid pine cabinets; the important thing apart from structural strength is that it's been either clear lacquered or stained to make it more water resistant - but any wooden cabinet will have its limits in that regard if constantly exposed to damp conditions.

Some MDF cabinets can also be ok if they are higher-end quality. If the edges are properly sealed (like ABS plastic edging rather than just iron-on type edging) then they will be similar to the better quality kitchen worktop type boards, which are of course designed to take a fair amount of abuse.