Starting to build a wooden - where do I find foam blocks?

mrvoodoo

mrvoodoo

New Member
I'm about to start working on building a wooden cage - I'm planning to have foam on the back wall, carved into rocks - mudded with grout/cement - then painted and whatnot..

(as much as I'm spending I need to make sure it's pretty for the wife's sake)

anyone know what places I can look at to purchase some foam to carve? Need the foam at 36x48 and I dunno the recommended thickness - 2-4"???
 
hardware stores, although they'll probably be more like panels than blocks. They should have several choices of rigid foam insulation which is really easy to work with.

For thickness I'd say the thicker the better depending on how wavy or deep you want to go with your carving, keep in mind thicker might also decrease the cham's 'liveable area' in the end but that really depends on whatever shapes and design you've got in mind.

If you can't find anything thick enough, one easy fix is to glue several panels/sheets together until you reach your desired thickness, then sand it down to the shape you want
 
They sell foam sheets at home depot. Here is a link of a rock wall that I made with foam, mortar, water proof seal, and laytex paint.
http://www.diychatroom.com/showthread.php?t=8381&highlight=reptile

I used a hot knife and a wood burner to cut the foam. You can also use a steak knife to cut the foam and sand down with fine sand paper. Make sure you have a mask on. Also the mortar will make a mess. I put on 4 thin coats and allowed each coat to dry for a day. Then, sprayed the whole thing with cement sealer in 4 thick coats. Again I allowed each coat to dry for a day before adding another. You also have to turn the background upside down to get the bottom parts.
 
Yeah marc - I was using yours as an example of what I was going to do. Unfortunately I don't have a home depot near by... I've got a lowes but I can't find any ofthat foam insulation - everythign here (and at the hardware/home building supplies stores sell other insultions and not foam)... I may have to order some online or pick up the small blocks from arts and crafts store and do a buttload of gluing. BTW - thanks for the inspiration
 
mrvoodoo said:
Yeah marc - I was using yours as an example of what I was going to do. Unfortunately I don't have a home depot near by... I've got a lowes but I can't find any ofthat foam insulation - everythign here (and at the hardware/home building supplies stores sell other insultions and not foam)... I may have to order some online or pick up the small blocks from arts and crafts store and do a buttload of gluing. BTW - thanks for the inspiration
Click to expand...

Try to stay away from the arts and crafts stores. They charge way too much. You can call around and ask your local construction dry wall suppliers. Most dry wall suppliers have this in bulk. One time I bought 40 sheets from one. If that fails, you can ask a retail store, "when is the next time they unload a shipment?". They usually use foam sheets to help pack their trucks. Then they throw them away. If you tell them it's for a school project, they will usually let you have it all. Glad, to inspire you. Good luck.
 
Why foam? There is a post someone made about EpiWeb and I think it would make a better back...or you could do both a rock wall with natural looking pieces of EpiWeb (with moss or small plants in it) in nooks and crannies for a nice detail and raise in humidity. The EpiWeb is a good price, as well.

Here is EpiWeb:

http://www.firstrays.com/epiweb2.htm
http://www.firstrays.com/epiweb.htm

If you are totally set on a big rock wall, here are some cool instructions on how to use some recycled styrofoam and make fake rock formations for vivaria. Just adapt the instructions to your design and idea.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Make-a-fake-rock-cavebasking-spot-for-a-reptile-c/

Whatever you do, post photos!!
 
id try cork, but then you might be worried about mold or something if you don't allow it to dry out, but with the appropriate air flow, it should prevent mold spores from settling on the cork.
 
I like using the foam and mortar mix, for a couple of reasons:

1) It is mold resistent
2) It is water proof
3) It is fire proof
4) I like to sculpt and the foam lets me control the shape.
5) Easy to clean surfaces (Therefore, making a more sterile living environment)
Yep, I'm a germ freak :p
 
It is possible to use polistyrene blocks/sheets, so long as you are covering it with grout. That is very cheap at hardware stores like B +Q but is also used in packing so if you ask around you may get it for free!
 
i have also made foam rock walls for my cages. lowes does carry the foam, its in large 4x6 sheets with thickness from 1/2 to 2 or so inches. it comes with a plastic sheet on it, peel it off(you can leave it on for the back). i will post a picture of mine later tonight.

buy two of the large sheets, both 1" thick. use one as your backboard, and cut the other one up to make your rocks and glue them to the mainboard. get ready for a mess and have the vacuum handy. cut the rocks out to your liking, then buy some sanded grout and some grout coloring.

mix up a somewhat dark brown (the color of the cracks) and cover the whole thing with a large paintbrush. i do two coats of the dark color to get everything well covered. then make up a new batch without as much color (lighter). just coat it over the very face of the rocks, not the cracks. This will give you depth and a more realistic look.

i have found that using the grout color really worked out nice(they have all kinds of colors), and preventing me from painting it. even though deep cracks do look neat, i recommend keeping the cracks as shallow as possible becuase the feeders will find a new home in the rock and never come out, making one hell of a raquet.
 
yeah, like spencer said, don't make the cracks too deep. Also try to avoid making areas that can potentially build up small pools of water. I carefully sculpted mine so that the water will easily run off and not build up. Pools of water have a good chance of building bacteria. The grout coloring saved me alot of time when painting mine.
 
One more tip in sculpting the rocks: Remember not to create too many shapes that look similar. sculpt your rocks like they are all different with different shapes. It is a natural reaction to just sculpt rock shapes that have similar shapes. But you have to fight that urge when creating them. This will make your rock wall look realistic. Also, remember to get some reference pics of a real rock wall before you start.
 
Thanks guys! I found some. When I had asked the other day the guy didn't know what I was talking about - I said I needed foam panels like what would be used for insulation and he blathered on about fiberglass, told him what it was for and he suggested a crafts store:rolleyes: ... I went today and picked up some more supplies that I didn't have room for in the car yesterday and took a stroll down the insulation aisle - sure enough there it was (wife spotted it first gotta give her those props)

btw - his name is Dex (after Dexter the serial killer show lol) so I got a little label made up for the cage (one of those brass plates that I'll put on top of the door) - "Dexter's Laboratory"

here he is - I'll do some pics of the buildup later (gotta grab a better camera... my kodak's lcd display got busted :eek: )
Dexter1.jpg
 
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