Building a tree...

[SliK JiM]

Well, following on from this post: https://www.chameleonforums.com/protecting-wood-will-soil-89008/ given that my enclosure build is taking shape, I've got some time to get to building my tree idea...

So, this was the rough plan:

And here is the current output (please ignore the string holding it in place):

Close-up of the base (still needs tidying up a bit - I just used a spare piece of old perspex I had lying around, so I will trim it down a bit when it's finished):

It's actually going pretty well, but as I expected, it's pretty unstable on it's own and it will need the other 2 similar 'trees' to be completed so that they can all act to stabilise each other.

I quickly mocked up this to simulate what the branches will look like:

I think when it's done and all 3 are in place, it's going to work quite nicely! This is a rough (I really do suck with paint) plan for what I want to achieve with the enclosure.

Each colour represents a different tree, there will probably be a lot more branches in the final version, but you get the idea!

What are everyone's thoughts? Any suggestions? I don't think the photo's quite do it justice, but I will post some further photo's tomorrow/Wednesday when I've done a little more!

 

[maxttu]

Dude! That is going to be outstanding! Can't wait to see the progress and final result!!

 

[Wykd]

Yeah that will look sick dude! assume you will be using vining type plants for your foliage along the limbs of the trees?

 

[camelguy1337]

Very nice plan, will be quite awesome!

 

[SliK JiM]

Cool! I'm glad everyone likes the look of it so far! I should get the other 'trees' up tonight.

Yeah that will look sick dude! assume you will be using vining type plants for your foliage along the limbs of the trees?

Indeed! I have a number of pothos (devils ivy in the UK) ready to go in and might find some other plants to include as well. Any suggestions?

I'm tempted to try a few plants from the frog keeping community that I can attach directly to the wood, but will have to wait and see.

 

[RinsCookie]

Aww man that looks so awesome. Won't the wood eventually rot away though? D:

 

[blackened]

Very interesting! I look forward to seeing it progress

 

[SliK JiM]

Aww man that looks so awesome. Won't the wood eventually rot away though? D:

Eventually I guess the wood might rot, but we are talking a very long time for that to happen! It won't be in contact with the soil as it will be held above it by the steel supports, so it should easily cope with the day to day mistings in the enclosure (as I've never had wood rot on me yet!)

I will post some more photo's later!

 

[SliK JiM]

Right, well since my last post I've made a little progress with the trees! I've finished the other two main trunks and they look pretty good if I do say so myself (excluding the string obviously):

Since making these, I then started to think about how to join the 'branches' onto the trunks.

At first, I planned to just screw them into place, but I tried this with the first piece, and, well, it didn't really work that well!

So instead, what I did was put a screw into the trunk, then hollow out the middle of the branch so that I could slide it into place. While this doesn't give me the same strength in the joint, it still holds the branches up and I can use something to bind it together at a later date (twine/fake vines/other vines) or hold it in place with an eye hook screwed into the frame, so I'm pretty content.

Here's what it looks like thus far:

Obviously got quite a bit more work to, but I'm making progress, even if it is slow and steady!

As always, comments are always very welcome!

 

[maxttu]

Fantastic! This is going to be so awesome! Can't wait!

 

[coldbloodedAL]

Dude this is a great idea! I look forward to seeing the progression and finished product! Do you have a way of cutting rebar? If you drill a hole just big enough for rebar in the trunk, then again in the "branch", just pound each end on with a hammer so its nice and tight. That would be plenty strong enough.

 

[SliK JiM]

Dude this is a great idea! I look forward to seeing the progression and finished product! Do you have a way of cutting rebar? If you drill a hole just big enough for rebar in the trunk, then again in the "branch", just pound each end on with a hammer so its nice and tight. That would be plenty strong enough.

I'd struggle to find any at a good price! I was thinking of using those double sided dowel screws (http://www.amazon.co.uk/DOWEL-SCREW...H9Y8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1344416528&sr=8-1) but it would be hard to screw the branches on once I've got the mesh in place {it's relatively easy at the moment to position the wood as I can access every side of the enclosure!} but once it's in the chameleon room (as I will have to dismantle/rebuild it to get it in) it will be very tricky!

I will definitely have a look though and see what I can do. I have a few steel threaded rods left over that I could use which would give a similar joint as rebar.

I'm hoping that when I get a few more big branches in, I can start adding small ones with cable ties and use these to bind everything together!

I like these ideas, so please keep them coming!!!

 

[italian chameleon]

super cool! congratulations!!

 

[SliK JiM]

super cool! congratulations!!

Thanks!

Tonight's progress has been excellent as well (sadly no pics though). I've made the joints a lot stronger by putting another screw the other way round along the length of the original screw (queue crappy paint picture):

This massively improves the strength in the joint. For some of the bigger branches, I have been able to stagger the screws (see picture below) which again has worked a treat.

It is coming along very nicely, but sadly I've managed to use up all of my wood so I'm going to have to go and harvest some more tomorrow/Friday (need to do some real work at some point!).

The only downside to this whole endevour is that I am now going to have to re do my other enclosures as I'm properly chuffed with how this is looking already! Let alone when it is planted and covered in vines etc.

 

[txg8gxp]

This is a really great idea, I can't wait to see the finished product. Good work

 

[KarmaChameleon1337]

I think I'll build a tree too. My backyard is basically the remnants of a forest and after a storm I have a pile of perfect branches I could use taller than me and 3x my height in length.

 

[ISA my Veiled]

This is a fantastic idea, I took branches out of my backyard and peeled the bark off and cleaned them and they are awesome looking in my cage

 

[Luna]

That looks amazing

 

[SliK JiM]

That looks amazing

You should see it at the moment! So many more branches! I literally can't wait to get it finished. It's going to be so down-heartening to take it apart (as I still need to varnish the enclosure it self and add the mesh etc), but rebuilding it again will be fun!

I need to make sure I label the branches up when I dismantle it so I know where they all go, otherwise it would be an absolute nightmare!

 

[SliK JiM]

Well, here we are! Updated photo's of the almost finished trees!

I only want to put a few more small branches in here and there, but other than those, I am really pleased with how in turned out (well, excluding the string!)

And a close up of one of the joints:

It's hard to try and imagine where the plants will go in between the branches, but where you see the gaps, that is where they'll slot in. I cannot wait to get the plants and vines in as it's going to fill out so much!

If anyone fancies trying it I cannot stress how easy it has been! Please do ask any questions if you have any!

If I were to do it again, I think I would make the bases slightly differently, making a much larger tripod with feet for greater stability. This would not be as simple however and would take quite a bit of thought!

Sadly tomorrow this will all come down (after labelling up all of the pieces) as I now need to start treating the main enclosure and fitting the aluminium screen. This should take around a week I guess, but by the end it will be a 100% finished enclosure. I will probably start a new thread for it, so keep your eyes peeled! {well, I'll probably put a link in this thread anyway so you'll get an alert if subscribed}

Cheers all! Happy building!