sbwalker5
Member
Hi, I recently posted about my temporary Kiddie Pool enclosure for my yearling Marginated, Douglas
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/sand-pit-kiddie-pool-as-outdoor-enclosure.95818/
This gives him an hour or so outdoors time each day, if it's nice weather-wise. However, I was still concerned that it wasn't warm enough for him still. We're having a decent summer here in the UK, but temperatures are still no higher than around 70 degrees (around 22 celcius). I wanted to make a very mini (Douglas is about 3 inches long) greenhouse for his temporary enclosure, that might get a bit warmer.
Usefully, I work as a Science Technician at a school, so I managed to find some good little scrap materials to work with. I'm not very creative usually, but it's surprising how simple it is to knock something up...
I found some scrap strips of plywood, and a clear plastic lid for a small tray. I knew we had a hot glue gun, and small saws. So my idea was to create a three-sided box with a clear lid..
I measured the inside of the lid lengthways, and marked and sawed three plywood strips to that length..
Once I had three done, I used the glue gun on the edges, to build a wall that was three strips tall...
I basically did the same for the other two sides, then glued these together at the edges to make a three-sided rectangle base. I then used some smaller cuttings to glue between the strips for a bit more support.
The idea is for the clear lid to sit on top...
For a bit of extra insulation, I have just taped some bubble wrap around the insides...
This is a temporary thing for this summer. The wood hasn't been treated, so won't withstand moisture for long, and also the front being open might let a lot of heat out. But for now this hopefully will be a way to keep Douglas a little warmer if he needs whilst he is outside. I'll be seeing if this works when I get home!
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/sand-pit-kiddie-pool-as-outdoor-enclosure.95818/
This gives him an hour or so outdoors time each day, if it's nice weather-wise. However, I was still concerned that it wasn't warm enough for him still. We're having a decent summer here in the UK, but temperatures are still no higher than around 70 degrees (around 22 celcius). I wanted to make a very mini (Douglas is about 3 inches long) greenhouse for his temporary enclosure, that might get a bit warmer.
Usefully, I work as a Science Technician at a school, so I managed to find some good little scrap materials to work with. I'm not very creative usually, but it's surprising how simple it is to knock something up...
I found some scrap strips of plywood, and a clear plastic lid for a small tray. I knew we had a hot glue gun, and small saws. So my idea was to create a three-sided box with a clear lid..
I measured the inside of the lid lengthways, and marked and sawed three plywood strips to that length..
Once I had three done, I used the glue gun on the edges, to build a wall that was three strips tall...
I basically did the same for the other two sides, then glued these together at the edges to make a three-sided rectangle base. I then used some smaller cuttings to glue between the strips for a bit more support.
The idea is for the clear lid to sit on top...
For a bit of extra insulation, I have just taped some bubble wrap around the insides...
This is a temporary thing for this summer. The wood hasn't been treated, so won't withstand moisture for long, and also the front being open might let a lot of heat out. But for now this hopefully will be a way to keep Douglas a little warmer if he needs whilst he is outside. I'll be seeing if this works when I get home!
