looking for some info on a huge enclose i would like to build

philscichlids

New Member
Well I'm new to this forum . Id like to start off by saying that this cham forum looks really good . I'm in the process of building a giant size jackson cham enclosure . When I say giant I mean it going to be 7' tall , "4' tall enclosure with a 3' tall base" 3' deep and 16' wide . I have a nice size wall in my basement that I want to make into a enclosure . I am a very handy woodworker and I'm thinking about building the whole enclose out of 3/4" birch plywood and 2x4's and finish the whole front off in either oak plywood or oak waynescoting . With that being said I'm looking for ideas on how to waterproof the whole inside ? "Floor , walls and ceiling . I was thinking a few coats of latex drylock but I'm not to sure how well it will stick to wood . Any info that anyone has on this fun project will be greatly appreciated . Also how many adult Jackson chasm do you feel I could put in this size habitat ?


Thanks

Phil
 
tried it

There was a great thread about a month ago on the wood types and sealants. should be easy to locate, as it had about at least 24 posts. now, 3' base is awesome. chams need to be able to at least be 6' off the ground to feel safe and secure. here is the rub. i have tried keeping multiple jax together and it just doesn't seem to be a good result. the single male will be ok. always light green and ready to go. the females will be dark colored, stressed, & mad at the male and especially the other females. i tried it in a cage actually larger than your dimensions. you need at least a full sized room to even think about doing this, say 10'x12' minimum. they were immediately turning back green after i seperated them within 2-3 hours. it just won't be a good idea. sorry.
 
You will be very glad you made a bigger enclosure for your Jax. My Jax is a very active cham, so I really believe he needed a LOT more space than the typically recommended 2x2x4 enclosure. He seems much happier now - less of the nervous pacing I was seeing in his smaller cage.

Back last spring, I built a 3x2x6 custom enclosure for my little guy:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/thank-goodness-9-ft-ceilings-111618/

I stole all my best ideas from this awesome post:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/diy-chameleon-mansion-build-102657/

It's a fun project, but a little easy to go overboard :) This winter, I am going to redesign how the screen panels are installed. Fun!

For waterproofing, I built a separate base piece and lined it with 2 plies of 6-mil vapor barrier/waterproofing sheet, stapeled them in place, and sealed them into a bar drain assembly. If I were to do that again, I would install some thin, tapered pieces of rigid insulation or wood under the waterproofing membranes to promote better drainage.

For sealing, I used a water-based spar urethane varnish in 3 coats. Again, looking back, I would probably use oil-based next time. I like working with oil-based better, it's just a pain for ventilation and cleanup.

Have fund and post lots of pictures. You sound handy, so I am sure it will be ah-MAZE-ing!
 

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Thanks for the response . I sat here and looked for the previous thread about building enclosures and im not to sure i found the one you were talking about . Im still leaning towards usin drylock from homedepot . It water proofs and seals concrete so why wouldnt it do the same for wood plus it can be tinted to pretty much most colors .
 
Thanks for the response . I sat here and looked for the previous thread about building enclosures and im not to sure i found the one you were talking about . Im still leaning towards usin drylock from homedepot . It water proofs and seals concrete so why wouldnt it do the same for wood plus it can be tinted to pretty much most colors .

I'M GOING TO TYPE MY RESPONSE IN ALL CAPS FOR A REASON. IMHO, I WOULD STAY AWAY FROM USING DRYLOC FOR YOUR CHAM ENCLOSURE. TAKE A LOOK AT HOW NASTY THIS STUFF IS. JUST BECAUSE IT WATER PROOFS CONCRETE DOESN'T MEAN IT WOULD BE PERFECT FOR YOUR ENCLOSURE. AFTER READING ABOUT IT ON DRYLOCK'S WEBSITE, EVEN THE LATEX STUFF SEEMS PRETTY NARLY. CAUTION, CAUTION, CAUTION. RIGHT OFF THE BAT THE PDF'S ON DRYLOC'S WEBSITE TALKS ABOUT THE FUMES, BREATHING THE DUST, AND CANCER HAZARDS. APPARENTLY CYRSTALLINE SILICA IS A NASTY STUFF. :(:(:(:(

Ok now back to a normal tone of voice. philscichlids, there has to be a better option for you to use on your enclosure. As much as we all are trying to care for our chameleons in a perfect manor, look into another sealant. I'm pretty sure there have been a number of recommendations in previous posts. When you mentioned using the dryloc, I just went to their website to see if there was any issue w/ putting it on wood. I never found that answer, but I saw info that would make me throw up huge RED FLAGS to use for such a precious animal.
 
Crystalline silica is indeed a health concern when it becomes airborne, primarily a concern for concrete workers, masons, demo crews, and others in the construction industry, less so for end users. In all fairness, I have not read the PDS or MSDS for the product. If It's a powder that sets when mixed with water, crystalline silica is not a concern unless you later cut or sand the cured product. Everyone should definitely wear masks when working with all concrete, grout, and mortar materials - silicosis and other silica dust induced respiratory illnesses are serious and with long exposure to construction workers can become fatal.

For this application, I would be more concerned about allowing enough time for off gassing of any polymer modifiers that might be present.
 
Update: I looked at the data sheets for Drylock. Since it's solvent borne, I don't think there are issues with respirable silica. However, solvents are their own bag of fun. Make sure you give it plenty of time to air out before introducing your cham.

On another note, I don't think this material will give you the water proofing performance that you are looking for. It's basically a mortar, and despite the acrylic modifiers, will still exhibit pretty high porosity, which will allow it to retain moisture. Also, since this is a polymer mortar designed to adhere to porous masonry, I would have some concerns about adhesion to a wood substrate. You might do a test patch to be sure to look at adhesion and saturation properties.
 
Ok , I have built several dozen 3d backgrounds for aquariums using drylock in the past and never had any issues with any chemicals leaching out and killing fish , I figured it would probably be just as safe for reptiles . For aquariums I would fill the tank let it sit for a few days and do this process like 5 times before shipping the finished tank to a customer . Maybe for reptiles its a bad idea ? I'm just trying to figure out how to protect the wood from rotting several years down the road . I appreciate your opinions
 
Lol, I didn't mean to derail you. You have used it before, so you know it better than me :D it might work just fine.
 
Well I'm new to this forum . Id like to start off by saying that this cham forum looks really good . I'm in the process of building a giant size jackson cham enclosure . When I say giant I mean it going to be 7' tall , "4' tall enclosure with a 3' tall base" 3' deep and 16' wide . I have a nice size wall in my basement that I want to make into a enclosure . I am a very handy woodworker and I'm thinking about building the whole enclose out of 3/4" birch plywood and 2x4's and finish the whole front off in either oak plywood or oak waynescoting . With that being said I'm looking for ideas on how to waterproof the whole inside ? "Floor , walls and ceiling . I was thinking a few coats of latex drylock but I'm not to sure how well it will stick to wood . Any info that anyone has on this fun project will be greatly appreciated . Also how many adult Jackson chasm do you feel I could put in this size habitat ?


Thanks

Phil

Here's a video of one that I built: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PcIbzeCQ0R8
 
I stopped to my local homedepot last night and sat and looked at all my options from there . I found a water based killz bare wood sealer primer and mildew inhibitor that had very low voc's. I'm thinking mabe 3 heavy coats of that and then several coats of a exterior semi gloss in some sort of natural tone "tan or gray" . I don't plan on having these enclosures under water or anything but with misting the chams 3-4 times a day and a higher humidity between 50-65% a little extra sealer won't hurt . I plan on taking my time with this fun project so I'm in no rush . It will more than likely be aired out months before any critters are in them . I've been out of this hobby for about 8-10 years so there are alot of new things people are doing .what's the big deal with having some sort of drainage system ? I saw some people creative ideas on doing it . It's a little bit on the expensive side but has anyone thought of using a shower base unit in the bottom of there enclosure ? They come in a huge variety of sizes and it is perfect for a floor in a reptile cage . Easy to clean and disinfect , all excess water goes directly into a drain that can be plumbed into a sump or bucket . Any thoughts on this ?
 
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