Tarzan's DIY enclosure build
- Thread starter Darko.Dares
- Start date
Darko.Dares
Member
So...unfortunately my camera was broken so didn't really get any more progression pics but finally have some finished pictures to share! Still a few little tweaks to do and the plants need to fill out a bit but here we go (sorry for the rubbish quality pics, it's all I have! Will try to get better pics soon) -
Darko.Dares
Member
I have used acrylic child safe paint and then sealed it with a mixture of pond safe sealant and child/toy safe clear sealant paint
Wish I'd read this before doing it - definitely was a good work out for my biceps haha!
As above - perfectly safe
I have used acrylic child safe paint and then sealed it with a mixture of pond safe sealant and child/toy safe clear sealant paint
Screameleon
New Member
Awesome great job
What are the dimensions of the cage? And was it "great stuff" foam you used? I'm trying to do something sort of similair and wondering if I got enough cans.So 3 month old baby panther Tarzan is currently in a smaller enclosure whilst he grows into himself a bit, and I have recently started a little diy enclosure build, which I will document here over the next few weeks. Ok, so I cheated by buying a second hand viv the same as below for the grand total of £20 including light fittings (love me a bargain!).
View attachment 174093
After doing LOTS of research, I decided that an all glass enclosure was a big no-no, but as I live in England in a very old and draughty old granary built sometime in the 1500's, all mesh wasn't going to work either. Struggling to find something that would work well, I decided to adapt this existing viv. I have cut out two panels on the sides at the bottom. I am hoping that this, combined with the air vents at the top and mesh cutout in the roof, will provide some good air flow. If not, the plan is to get rid of the glass doors and replace with mesh ones.
So far I have used expanding foam to sculpt around the walls for a more naturalistic feel, and started to cover with grout. I encorporated the plant pots for the ease of switching and changing plants. When the grouting is finished I will be painting the lot, sealing with an aquarium safe sealant, and stuffing full of plants and vines and branches for lots of hidey places. Struggling to find a sealer I will be sure is safe atm, but I have a few weeks until I'm ready for that so hopefully my research will be fruitful! (Suggestions welcome!)
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Hope you guys enjoy watching the viv being created...
Darko.Dares
Member
The cage is 2ft X 2ft X 3ft. If I'd done a bit more research before starting I'd probably have gone a bit bigger.
I just used standard expanding foam - with the amount of sealant I used and grouting and a really long curing time (2 months) I figured it would be safe.
Thanks
sacmaverick
Member
Progress Is looking good
