MEGA Self-standing Free-range build 3'x3'x8' with build-log

Hey all,

I have been planning this for a LONG time now and I have finally begun construction. I thought some of you may be interested I'm very proud to say that all engineering and aesthetics are designed entirely by myself. The actual build is also being done almost exclusively by myself, with a little muscle help from my girlfriend from time to time . The build isn't complete yet but so far its been a great experience!



BACKGROUND:

-Clark (my ambilobe) has been free-ranged since I got him at 3months old on a 3-post cat-tree with each post having a planter on it: 1 hibiscus, 1 taller ficus, and 1 planter with no plants but a large batch of those sticks you can buy from any art store (usually in the fake plant section, its just like dried sticks). I added the sticks because I realized he regularly sat at the very top of the ficus, which was about 6' off the ground. The sticks go, literally, to the ceiling and he spends his night up there every night since.

-I cup-feed him crickets/dubias and had his heat lamp and UVB bulb both projecting sideways onto the plants. The UVB was sitting on its side on my desk and the heat lamp was hanging from a clip on my blinds. Both JUST out of reach of him, of course (else he tends to try and climb right into it).

-This initial setup cost me around $40 total probably (I already had the cat tree)


PROJECT:

-**ALL** wiring/piping/etc is out of sight. This entire project is built with AESTHETICS in mind. Absolute minimum seams present.
-38"x38"x92" (approx 3'x3'x8') self-standing wood frame.
-2 sides will be housing "false-walls"/planters.
-2 sides will be open
-Hood houses home-made 4-bulb T8 fixture (F32T8 @ 6500K)
-Hood houses misting nozzles
-Hood is inaccessible to animals, but light flows freely
-False bottom with drain
-Front opening hidden door.
-Small storage space underneath.
-Misting pump, water reservoir, and drainage chamber underneath.
-Can be FULLY disassembled and moved (this took me FOREVER to design!!!!!)
-Water-feature and an "air-waterfall" (hopefully I don't mess this part up...!)

-Approximate MATERIALS cost: $600
-Approximate PLANTS cost: $250
NOTE: You will need a power saw and power drill, as well as most basic hand tools.



BLUEPRINTS/SCHEMATICS: I have spent countless hours thinking about this project and I have a somewhat photographic memory so I have the blueprints "drawn" so to speak, in my head. If anyone is interested enough, I could draw some up for you. I will try to point out the design features as I build them through this build log as well.


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IT STARTS!

So far over the past 2 days I have spent a good $200 on plants and another $400 at home depot for wood and miscellaneous supplies. I have yet to buy any of my airplants and I still need a few more pieces of plywood, but for the most part...construction has begun

I will upload pics as I go and will attempt to keep a thorough build-log. I *HOPE* I have finally considered everything that may come my way, but I highly encourage everyone to throw bad scenarios at me.

I just wanted to throw up this thread while I'm taking a short break...I will add pics and updates soon !

Pic of some of my main plants to start things off...I'm praying those palms are cham safe...any ID help appreciated https://www.chameleonforums.com/plant-id-safety-help-plz-photos-inside-64533/#post601788

Reserved #1

Bad scenario... you're breaking my wallet

Sounds like an amazing free range.. Really interested in that waterfall you're talking about. cant wait to see pictures.

heh well my idea with the waterfall is that I am going to pull my tubing up through my false wall and use a cork tube to bring the water "towards" the viewer ("out" of the back wall). I am then going to have that cork waterfall spill outward and down into "nothing" as far as the viewer will see (there will be plyboard blocking the view of the false bottom) but the water will in reality just fall through a hole in the ground and get filtered straight back into the waterfall.

its kinda hard to explain...i'm hoping to build everyday going into this weekend so hopefully some pics will explain it better in a few days



I do have a concern on my lighting though...I'm pretty sure 4 T8's are going to be a ton of light output, but I'm afraid it might be too much light "up top" (that is too bright for the viewer) and simultaenously fail to make its way all the way down 6-7' to the plants on the very bottom of the enclosure...been toying with the idea of adding a waterproof garden light on the ground for supplemental lighting but i'm not sure how necessary that will be yet

this thread is relevant to my interests. will be checking back for progress pics!

Sure wish you would have posted some pics with this thread. Sorta mean to tease us like that... :-(

haha movie sorry man i'm just typing up a post every now and then as I take a break from cutting. I'll post pics tonight, right now its mostly random bits of wood across my apt.

Sounds Awesome

Cant wait to see some pics !

so... its sunday night. Where are these pictures i've been waiting for!

Well I forgot that I can't "delayed edit" my posts so I guess my updates will start off here...

Most of my pics are just of supplies so far....I have completed the light hood as well as the main body frame. Tomorrow I have to drop in the support studs for the drainage/false floor and then begin my waterproofing/painting.

The build is going PAINSTAKINGLY slow....as you can tell from the pictures I am doing this smack in the middle of my 1 bedroom apt and have next to know room to work. I'm working solo on top of it so moving some of this stuff around takes forever on its own!


First, a link to the album with a lot of pics: https://picasaweb.google.com/110155...&authkey=Gv1sRgCOnl_qjGqcCJQw&feat=directlink

Most of the pics are of my supplies and whatnot, you can see I have alot .

Secondly, some pics. The light hood is nice and simple with a small design to "lock" it in place on top (will show in next photo update). The main frame is just basic 3/4" plywood and some support studs are going in tomorrow (I messed this up, I should have gone with 1/4" "shell" plywood and a more sturdy stud-based frame....I designed it right on paper then messed it up somewhere along the way but I digress....the 3/4" plywood is fine and sturdy, just really heavy!)


EDIT: I do not know why but I repeatedly get errors when I try to upload my files, but it won't tell me why...it just says "upload failed." You should be able to see all the pics via the link to the album in picasa. Plz let me know if that doesn't work

What about posting pics of your design drawing? For uploading pics make sure they are jpeg and not too large of files.

has there been any progress on this project lately?

Sorry for the slow updates....school and work have both started and I had to build a computer for my dad last week. I also upgraded my own computer at the same time


As for the project, yes I have made quite some progress! I will take some pics in the morning as the paint is drying but I have finished the frame included the bottom floor, setup the pvc pipe to protect wiring, and have setup the drain hole as well....took me way longer than I thought. I painted the entire thing today using some Weatherproofing Stain. The idea being to protect it from the misting moreso than anything else, but I have to say the stain looks WAY better than the paint I used on my last project....so far very happy with it, have to see what it looks like in the morning.


Edit: Also, my order from Josh's Frogs arrived today so work on my backwall can proceed soon as well My mistking system should be here any day now


@moviemanmania: i should have done that but unfortuantely they are on my old drive now...I will see if i can pull them off my old drive. I'll throw up pics of the finished frame tomorrow it should give a good idea

Ok I fail at being timely but here are some updated pics finally....

FULL ALBUM HERE: https://picasaweb.google.com/110155...nFreeRange3X3X8?authkey=Gv1sRgCJ-1sdnW0KCejAE


I have finished (most of) the wood frame and given it 2 coats of All-Weatherproof Deck Stain (rated for Snowstorm+). I will be adding on a layer of 6mm plastic sheeting as well before I mount my false walls over it. I'm being overly careful to avoid water:wood contact....I don't want moisture damage or mold a few years down the line.

My storage area / first floor are also done and the PVC has been routed properly. I tested my light hood and although it is a TINY bit off (~1/16") it is acceptable given where I'm working and my complete lack of tools. Frustration has led me to buy several tools already >.<

Lastly, I have been messing around for hours on my plant placement, which in turn controls my back wall area and arrangements. I've only foamed up a prelim of the first back wall piece which will be entirely covered so it has no features; its more meant to test before I get into the complicated parts...

Trying to fit in a waterfall and possibly a drip wall/ledge of some sort but I am designing and arranging these as I go so the going tends to be slow. Rest assured though I AM building. I don't have a choice, my girlfriend is about to kill me for having this mess in our living room for weeks already


Oh, and one last thing...my original estimate was quite off. NOT counting tools (only components/plants used directly in this project) my cost will end up right around the $1,000 mark once I factor in the front 2 panels and the airplants I haven't bought yet, along with the misc other things I need (I'm already over $700)...



EDIT: If you notice any potential problems with my build or design **PLEASE** don't hesitate to point it out!


EDIT 2: Still working on the design of my waterfall....the current idea is to have it come out the back wall, flow diagonally across and land on the elephant ear palm, sliding down the leaf of the palm and "pouring" into a larger, hollow log (which will lead to the drain). In theory it sounds great, but I am unsure of how much pressure the palm leaves can sustain before swaying, so I may have to somehow secure the palm leaf or the water pressure may make the motion too unstable for a consistent flow...still theorizing this, haven't gotten to test it out yet obviously

I have also pulled my original design drawings off my old drive. I have somewhat changed the design since then but I do have the original files in GOOGLE SKETCHUP format if anyone is interested (sketchup is a FREE 3d modeling program by google).


Email me at [email protected] and I will send you the files, they are roughly 10MB each.


Note for those who care: my original design was for a 2-level design housing my kingsnake on the bottom and my chameleon on top. I have since changed things around to house only my chameleon. Also, my original design had 3 open walls, my final one was 2. There have been several other minor changes including a slight increase to the dimensions.

I took a few JPGs of the 3D model just to give you guys an idea...

again, I have CHANGED this design somewhat substantially, but the core frame is still the same. I have simply dumped the entire middle enclosure area and given that space to my chameleon as well as added a 2nd wall.

Also, no screens/doors as originally intended, it will be open on the sides.

Yes I was going to suggest loosing the doors since the sides will be open anyhow. I would be concerned about your waterfall and your plants. Will the waterfall water the plants also or be a separate system? Reason I'm asking is because if the waterfall waters the plants it will become dirty and cloudy from the soil. also, a waterfall is generally not a very good idea as they can harbor harmful bacteria and can potentially make your cham sick very easily.

@moviemania: yes good point, I have considered that.

I have bought a Mistking system for watering purposes which will have its own dedicated clean water source.

The waterfall has its own dedicated water reservoir and drain. This water will re-circulate.

Lastly, there is a separate 'drainage' reservoir connected to my "main" drain which is what will collect the misting water.


The idea is:
misting reservoir = clean water, filled regularly
main drain reservoir = dirty water, emptied regularly
waterfall reservoir = on loop/re-circulates

moviemanmania said:

Yes I was going to suggest loosing the doors since the sides will be open anyhow. I would be concerned about your waterfall and your plants. Will the waterfall water the plants also or be a separate system? Reason I'm asking is because if the waterfall waters the plants it will become dirty and cloudy from the soil. also, a waterfall is generally not a very good idea as they can harbor harmful bacteria and can potentially make your cham sick very easily.

Click to expand...

it could be done hydroponically..using grodan rockwool blocks..or the hydroballs?? thats possibly and idea..

is that a potted 4 stem banana tree ?, thats a really awesome looking set of trees