Suggestions on Mounting Zoo Med Cork Tiles

[jajeanpierre]

I'm putting together two Reptibreeze enclosures, 24"x24"x48". I bought Zoo Med's cork tiles for the back wall.

I'll need to use two tiles 24"x18" and cut four 12"x12" tiles. The grain of the bark will mean that the small tiles will have to be cut in half and stacked vertically.

I bought a bunch of cork rounds to use as little plant holders to mount on the back, putting much of the greenery on the back cork wall, rather than having a big plant on the floor of the cage. I'm trying to keep the floor pretty much bare for ease of cleaning and dealing with a dripper.

I don't want to glue it to anything because once glued, I can't remove it without damaging the tiles. I want to be able to take it out of the cage to be able to clean.

I was thinking of using a 1x2 framing along all the seams, screwing the cork onto the wood frame and having some sort of stand at the bottom so it doesn't fall forward and I would probably tack it to the top as well.

Any suggestions on how to attach the tiles?

 

[Vegas Chad]

I would suggest silicone but if you want to be able to remove them then thats not a good option. I would suggest drilling little holes into the cork and use zip ties. If you want to get really fancy you can glue magnets to the cork and then magnet the outside of the cage. I have done this a few times and if kind of fun. You will need to spend the extra to get good magnet though.

 

[distortionz]

Thread some fishing line through a needle and poke it through the cork and screen and run it back a few times and tie off.. it worked when I would do polystyrene backgrounds

 

[eat2muchrice]

I would attach everything to an acrylic sheet (Home Depot) that could be fit into your enclosures in one or two piece sections and would be easy to remove for cleaning. Acrylic will prevent molding, warping and rot. I used 3M double stick tape squares to stick onto glass, it’s been holding really good and if I needed can peel it off without damaging the panel. You can see in my journal page I used two sheets of 24’x18’ tiles, different then your project but it will give you an idea of the looks and how I did mine.

Few tips: 1. Order extra tiles, they all have different looks so pick the best that match up and return the rest (Amazon is the cheapest). 2. They come warped or will warp if not secured onto a solid flat surface.

Good luck and please post pictures when your done, I'd love to see it.

 

[jajeanpierre]

I would attach everything to an acrylic sheet (Home Depot) that could be fit into your enclosures in one or two piece sections and would be easy to remove for cleaning. Acrylic will prevent molding, warping and rot. I used 3M double stick tape squares to stick onto glass, it’s been holding really good and if I needed can peel it off without damaging the panel. You can see in my journal page I used two sheets of 24’x18’ tiles, different then your project but it will give you an idea of the looks and how I did mine.

Few tips: 1. Order extra tiles, they all have different looks so pick the best that match up and return the rest (Amazon is the cheapest). 2. They come warped or will warp if not secured onto a solid flat surface.

Good luck and please post pictures when your done, I'd love to see it.

Your journal is what gave me the idea. I have enough tiles to do both cages and they are similar enough that I am not worried about matching. I bought a bunch of large rounds to act as plant holders that can be strategically placed to disguise the seams.

I thought of the Plexiglass, but it is just so expensive and it still is quite flexible. I must have spent an hour talking to Home Depot people who were giving me all kinds of advice. I brought the biggest tile with me so they knew exactly what I was working with.

I've thought about aluminum channel to keep it from falling forward.

What do you think of a wood frame made of 1x2s? I was thinking of 1x2s running everywhere there is a join between the tiles, which should keep them flat. Do you think that would keep them from warping? That would make three verticals, one on the outside where the two 24" tiles are stacked, one vertical 18" away, where the two big tiles (24"x18") meet the four 12" square tiles that are cut in half and the third vertical on the outside. Then, I would put horizontal pieces at the top, the bottom and wherever there is a seam joining the tiles. I might be able to get away with only three horizontals--top and bottom and one in the middle where the two 24" tiles meet each other.

I could then build some sort of stand along the outer edges to make sure it would not fall forward.

I wonder if a piece of thin plywood might be better to mount the tiles on.

I'm leery of attaching this wall to to the sides of the cage as it might distort the frame or rip the screen. I intend to put all kinds of small edible plants on the cork-tile wall. My male thinks he is an iguana (he eats everything in his cage--plants, rocks, dirt and pine bark if I gave him access to them) and the vet recommended I don't put any plants in other than Hibiscus since he is not convinced of the safety of most plants on the "safe" list. (He's an avian vet who also sees a lot of reptiles in his practice.)

I want to be able to take it out fairly easily for cleaning. My fear is a massive build up of dead rotting crickets trapped where water collects and I can't easily get to. Yuck.

It all seemed like such a simple project, but it doesn't seem to be.

I really appreciate everyone's advice.

 

[eat2muchrice]

What do you think of a wood frame made of 1x2s? I was thinking of 1x2s running everywhere there is a join between the tiles, which should keep them flat. Do you think that would keep them from warping? That would make three verticals, one on the outside where the two 24" tiles are stacked, one vertical 18" away, where the two big tiles (24"x18") meet the four 12" square tiles that are cut in half and the third vertical on the outside. Then, I would put horizontal pieces at the top, the bottom and wherever there is a seam joining the tiles. I might be able to get away with only three horizontals--top and bottom and one in the middle where the two 24" tiles meet each other.

haha, I'm sorry but no matter how many times I read this I can not picture it in my mind. Making the frame out of wood would be fine, I would seal it for some added protection. I think that as long as all the sides of each panel are secured down then it should not warp...much...