Killerrookie
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- May 11, 2014
- Messages
- 2,063
Hello everyone!! I just built my first enclosure ever for another Sulcata I'll be getting very soon.
Now this was a pretty fun experience and I screwed up a lot.
Anyways, here's a pic of the entire enclosure!!
The enclosures measurements are 6 long by 2 wide and 2 feet high. 6x2x2. I first made the frame of the enclosure using 1x3 boards then used a nail gun to nail the plywood onto the frame.
The base that the tortoise enclosure sits on is just a regular bathroom cabinet base I bought at Lowes to store things in.
After I did so I router the edges to smoothen it out and make it look nice and neat. Now it was my first time ever using a router and messed up a piece of plywood by accident!!
Here's a pic of what I did with the router.
I used hinges to mount the window and also used crown molding to make the enclosure look nice.
After this I painted the inside of the enclosure using three coats of drylok.
Then painted the outside using this wood stain and finishing it off with a semi gloss paint to make the enclosure pop a little after I installed the door.
Now I already had a zoomed terrarium hood and didn't want to spend more money on a light fixture to hold a uvb tube so I built a bracket to hang the light in there and also hide all the wires from the other lights too. Also I re-wired the lights to extend the cord down to the cabinet for easy access.
Picture of the bracket:
In total I have 5 lights in the enclosure.
• 1 75 watt basking bulb
• 1 60 warf fluorescent day time bulb for lighting
•1 36 inch reptisun 10.0 UVB T5 bulb
• 2 100 watt CHE
Here are the temps for the enclosure:
Basking spot: 95-110F
Cold side: Around the high 80's
The rest of the enclosure is around the 90's. It never gets below 80 in the enclosure.
Now at night it's at 90-95F.
Note that all the lights are set on timers so it's easier on me and helps me from reaching to the back and turning them on.
Humidity is at 75-90% around the enclosure. I also have vents to air out the hot air in the enclosure.
I have a PVC pipe that I drilled small holes into going along the enclosure to give off humidity which isn't really needed but it also doesn't hurt to have one. The PVC is connected to a humidifier down in the cabinet. It makes the enclosure look cool.
Now for substrate I used organic bedding soil and then added a small layer of Reptibark and Cypress Mulch for the top. Also added Sphagnum moss for extra humidity. There's also two hides for the tortoise to choose and sleep in or he can just dig anywhere and sleep.
The substrate:
Now here's more pictures of the enclosure for you guys to look at and if you have any questions or things to ask or just anything please just ask or tell me!!!
I hope you like the build and please ask any questions or tell me if I did something wrong.
Now this was a pretty fun experience and I screwed up a lot.
Anyways, here's a pic of the entire enclosure!!
The enclosures measurements are 6 long by 2 wide and 2 feet high. 6x2x2. I first made the frame of the enclosure using 1x3 boards then used a nail gun to nail the plywood onto the frame.
The base that the tortoise enclosure sits on is just a regular bathroom cabinet base I bought at Lowes to store things in.
After I did so I router the edges to smoothen it out and make it look nice and neat. Now it was my first time ever using a router and messed up a piece of plywood by accident!!
Here's a pic of what I did with the router.
I used hinges to mount the window and also used crown molding to make the enclosure look nice.
After this I painted the inside of the enclosure using three coats of drylok.
Then painted the outside using this wood stain and finishing it off with a semi gloss paint to make the enclosure pop a little after I installed the door.
Now I already had a zoomed terrarium hood and didn't want to spend more money on a light fixture to hold a uvb tube so I built a bracket to hang the light in there and also hide all the wires from the other lights too. Also I re-wired the lights to extend the cord down to the cabinet for easy access.
Picture of the bracket:
In total I have 5 lights in the enclosure.
• 1 75 watt basking bulb
• 1 60 warf fluorescent day time bulb for lighting
•1 36 inch reptisun 10.0 UVB T5 bulb
• 2 100 watt CHE
Here are the temps for the enclosure:
Basking spot: 95-110F
Cold side: Around the high 80's
The rest of the enclosure is around the 90's. It never gets below 80 in the enclosure.
Now at night it's at 90-95F.
Note that all the lights are set on timers so it's easier on me and helps me from reaching to the back and turning them on.
Humidity is at 75-90% around the enclosure. I also have vents to air out the hot air in the enclosure.
I have a PVC pipe that I drilled small holes into going along the enclosure to give off humidity which isn't really needed but it also doesn't hurt to have one. The PVC is connected to a humidifier down in the cabinet. It makes the enclosure look cool.
Now for substrate I used organic bedding soil and then added a small layer of Reptibark and Cypress Mulch for the top. Also added Sphagnum moss for extra humidity. There's also two hides for the tortoise to choose and sleep in or he can just dig anywhere and sleep.
The substrate:
Now here's more pictures of the enclosure for you guys to look at and if you have any questions or things to ask or just anything please just ask or tell me!!!
I hope you like the build and please ask any questions or tell me if I did something wrong.