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Glad we could help! It's 1/4 inch ABS sheet plastic, or it also goes by acrylic sheet. It depends on your temperature, if you have it set at 400 it'll start to bow in 4-5 minutes, where at 350 it takes about 7-8 minutes. We prefer the lower temperature because you have less of a chance of bubbles appearing. They don't affect the performance of the drain but they don't look nice. These are pictures of an imperfect sheet before a coat of black spray paint to the back. Like we said before, you only need the slightest bow to the plastic for it to work, a very deep bow doesn't allow the water to drain as easily with our size drains. But If you go for a bigger drain it might be a non-issue. Thanks for asking!
So the plexi just serves as a drain, not the floor support of the enclosure? it looks like there is wire mesh above the plexi.
Are you sure that this will be stable for some years ? The combination water + wood isn't the best one
Pretty much. The plexi just channels the water to the drain, the wood is the support. The mesh is stapled to the sides and the top. Nothing goes over the plexi. Here's a picture of the bottom of one cage and the top of the cage below it with the 1/4" screen. In this picture the drain or drainage tubes haven't been installed yet. And here's another frontal view of the cage.
Sorry i'm dense, so is your plant or any other floor furniture sitting directly on the plexi? These pics look like the plexi is the floor and there is a screened shelf underneath?
Your design and execution are amazing. I may not have this right, but did you say you used fiberglass screen on some? If so, doesn't fiberglass screen break down and need replacement fairly soon in outside applications? Maybe just a myth??
Again, outstanding job.
Nick
We tried a variety of screens to see which ones we prefer in the long run. We'll let everyone know. But, these habitats ARE NOT for outdoors. They are in my bedroom. It should help with any degradation. I've found information online that says they will last from 3 to 5 years all the way to 6 to 12 years. I think it depends on who is selling it and what they want you to buy. We'll see how they hold up in comparison. Check back in 5 to 15 years and I'll let you know.
Thanks Nick!
How well does your plexiglass bottom catch water running down the sides of the enclosure? I'm getting leaks because of that, and I can't think of an elegant solution.
Just to point out, UV has a negative effect on plastics and resins (fiberglass). Basically the same thing as what Nick is talking about, just not from the sun. Your lamps could very well do it. Monitor the strength of the mesh directly under your UV light every few months or so.
I'm so glad you posted the detailed info about the plexi bottom. My husband made a great wooden enclosure a few weeks ago, because he too doesn't like the look of metal enclosures, and I won't allow glass. Today I noticed mold and damp wood underneath the floor of the enclosure. We have wood floors too, but the water didn't get there yet. Using your instructions Steve made the plexi bottom, but we'll have to wait until early next week until it can be installed, and I'll have to find a temp enclosure for the girls. I *heavily* hand mist, because I have a difficulty keeping humidity up (montane species). How do you not get water running down the back wall if you hand mist? If a significant amount of silicone is used in the seams, will that work? The back of our enclosure is solid and the inside is laminate. We don't want to have to redo it again if we don't have to.