Finally finished building enclosure! Pics!!

[gideonus]

grizz: i just used polyurethane. I didnt end up coating it as thick as i wanted to , so right now im just hoping its enough.

The best stuff to seal an enclosure, from my experience, is marine spar varnish. I use it on my mahogany handrails outdoors and it stands up beautifully to sun and rain.

 

[tv321406]

What screen material are you using for the sides of the enclosure? It looks like it's pretty rigid fine mesh that you've stapled to the inside of the wood frame.

its that stuff called "pet screen" from lowes. its not rigid at all but its pulled pretty taught. and yes, it is stapled on. i am looking to see how hard it would be to cut some grooves in the frame to mount the screen like it would be in a window or something. of course, its too late to do that this time around, but maybe for the next

 

[addicted]

I LOVE IT!!!

It's sturdy, comfortable for your cham and aesthetically pleasing for the humans around

I bet it's the focal point of the room...I know mine is and it's not nearly as beautiful (the exterior, that is)

 

[ScottChoc]

Such a great enclosure. How do you feed him? It seems like crickets would escape out of the top and bottom chicken wire.

 

[tv321406]

i have just been hand feeding him. i am weighing the pros and cons of putting the pet screen at the bottom. one one hand, i would be able to let him "hunt" which i love to watch (i doubt the crickets could make it to the top before he gets them) but on the other hand, it would make cleanup more difficult having a screen that would not allow feces to just fall through into the tray below. anybody have any input?

 

[jontowns]

buying

I looked at the pics you have posted and I want to buy the whole SETUP FOR what you said and can pick everything up tomorrow. Call me 859-368-7776 Jon

 

[Action Jackson]

Nice wood work. I like the two tone also.

Be careful of your electrical splice at the top. I should be grounded if it has 120vac in it. You wouldn't want any water sprayed in there either.

I like the dadoed grooves in your 2"x"2's I thought about doing that and inserting the aluminum screen panels like the ones use on LLL cages. Then your bugs can't get out but it would look more like a piece of furniture.

Nice job.

 

[tdotcham]

why did you leave all the mesh exposed on the inside where the cham can rub against it??? when i dealt with my aluminum mesh i made sure anywhere where I didnt run more 1x2's across, that i took wood about 0.5 cm thick and lined any where there was exposed cuts or staples.

especially with the chicken wire... cosmetics are one thing, but i would be more concerned about the chameleon getting hurt by mistake snagging a staple or a cut on the edge of the mesh than trying to make it look pretty for pictures.

let me take some pictures of what i did.. im sure you'll end up doing it

 

[sagemoon2004]

Sealing wood on enclosures

How long would you wait after sealing any wood for a cham enclosure, so as not to expose them to the fumes? I would be afraid the heat from lamps would also make more fumes become airborne and not healthy. I want to start a cage this weekend, as well, but am worried about the sealer for wood. Is treated wood safe? This crazy toxic world we live in...

 

[tdotcham]

I sealed my cage, and honestly it's not bad. I did the recommended 4 coats with light sanding between and full dry time (I did one coat a day). I had free time waiting for my cham, so I just let it air out for a couple days and I havent had any smell issues.

i used a sealed bottom as well (which is now a mistake now that I know how much water actually goes through) but the sealing holds up great with water that sits on it

 

[VeiledOwner87]

very nice frame work

 

[Bigsease30]

I would love to get a copy of plans if you ever got around to making them.