Wow, no wonder you were procrastinating! That was an incredible amount of work! It is perfect! I am going to try to incorporate much of what you did in my new glass enclosure. Thank you so much for sharing and explaining the step by step.
Happy Habitat Rebuilding Day!
- Thread starter Madkins007
- Start date
- Status
Thank you again for those pics and detailed explinations. I'm sure that Polycarbonate set you back quite a few bucks. Can you provide the thicknesses of both sets of Lexan? I would have never thought of doing it that way. Very original.
Just wondering, how much water do you need to provied the enclosure per day in oreder to maintain proper humidity levels? Also, do you spray all that water into the enclosure via spary bottle or do you also add it by just pouring it directly?
Heating cables seem to be the way to go. May as well get some
Just wondering, how much water do you need to provied the enclosure per day in oreder to maintain proper humidity levels? Also, do you spray all that water into the enclosure via spary bottle or do you also add it by just pouring it directly?
Heating cables seem to be the way to go. May as well get some
CT Tortoise Mom- the rebuild took about 2 hours. Not a lot of time, but I work 3 jobs so don't get a lot of free time, and I am lazy SOB to being with!
Luke- I got the base MDF and front/back walls at Home Depot. The polycarbonate was 48"x36"x.093" thick and ran me like $58 for a scratched piece. I was originally going to rip it in half and use faced plywood for the bottom 2-3", but the final 18" height was OK. (I misspoke when I said the walls were 20" high- I had forgotten this bit!)
The side panels are from US Plastics.com and I had in the shop. I don't remember if it is 3/32 or 1/8" thick.
If someone was to do this on a tighter budget, I would use MDF board for the ends (like melamine-coated shelf boards) and base (I had to use some other scrap rigid plastic to waterproof the base) and even the back if it was not going near a window, but I would still recommend polycarbonate for the front (and back if you want it transparent.)
Another interesting building option is corrugated plastic (like corrugated cardboard), like so many signs are made of now. The stuff is light and cheap, waterproof and easy to clean, and if you get it in white or the semi-clear color, it is transparent. You can get it at many 'instant sign' places cut to the sizes you need for a fraction of the cost of many other materials.
Luke- I got the base MDF and front/back walls at Home Depot. The polycarbonate was 48"x36"x.093" thick and ran me like $58 for a scratched piece. I was originally going to rip it in half and use faced plywood for the bottom 2-3", but the final 18" height was OK. (I misspoke when I said the walls were 20" high- I had forgotten this bit!)
The side panels are from US Plastics.com and I had in the shop. I don't remember if it is 3/32 or 1/8" thick.
If someone was to do this on a tighter budget, I would use MDF board for the ends (like melamine-coated shelf boards) and base (I had to use some other scrap rigid plastic to waterproof the base) and even the back if it was not going near a window, but I would still recommend polycarbonate for the front (and back if you want it transparent.)
Another interesting building option is corrugated plastic (like corrugated cardboard), like so many signs are made of now. The stuff is light and cheap, waterproof and easy to clean, and if you get it in white or the semi-clear color, it is transparent. You can get it at many 'instant sign' places cut to the sizes you need for a fraction of the cost of many other materials.
awesome post mate
Im going to look into the heat cable for sure and the bio substrate and the hermit crabs lol havent had one of those in years
Did you say the heat cable only last you 6 months? Did it burn out?
I will be needing a ton of it to do an 8 foot by 12 foot tank and there is no way I will be tearing that out so often...
Im going to look into the heat cable for sure and the bio substrate and the hermit crabs lol havent had one of those in years
Did you say the heat cable only last you 6 months? Did it burn out?
I will be needing a ton of it to do an 8 foot by 12 foot tank and there is no way I will be tearing that out so often...
Hustler, in a larger habitat, I am not sure the cables would be your best option. You might consider Flexowatt (from the same source) or pig blankets.
The cable just stopped working. There is no burnt or 'floppy' spot on it to give me a clue of what happened. I figure one of my bends was too tight and made a stress point. For $26 and since I needed to redo the mulch anyway, I am happy with the value.
The cable just stopped working. There is no burnt or 'floppy' spot on it to give me a clue of what happened. I figure one of my bends was too tight and made a stress point. For $26 and since I needed to redo the mulch anyway, I am happy with the value.
Looks amazing mate
Those are some spoiled torts....
Got the hermits an hour ago.... to be honest I was more excited about the crabs than i have been about going to the pet store in a while..... Had one when i was a kid lasted 7 years.
Those are some spoiled torts....
Got the hermits an hour ago.... to be honest I was more excited about the crabs than i have been about going to the pet store in a while..... Had one when i was a kid lasted 7 years.
- Status
