Wood Type

[reptilez]

What type of wood do you guys suggest I use for my Savannah Monitors Enclosure?
Thanks,
-Reptilez

[Bartman]

i used melamine for my tegu tank and its doing good. It also doesnt soak up water very easily so when i have to spray my tank the tank wont suck up the water..or the tegus poo. This will help the tank not smell and only the substrate will have to be changed

[LurkerAccount]

Melamine is that stuff that kinda has a plasticy coating type thing, right?

How much do you pay for a sheet of that?

[reptilez]

and how big do the sheets come in aswell?

[LurkerAccount]

Yes bartman, please tell... you are online...

[Bartman]

it is wood that is covered in a white plasticy type of material. I dont know exactly how much it is but i built a full 80ish gallon tank and it cost me 100 bucks for material not including glass. The tank was 4' x 21" x 21"

[LurkerAccount]

is that inculding the lights and everything?

[Bartman]

no just the wood. with absolutly everything i payed around:
100 - wood
50 - uv light
20 - bulb and fixture
50 - plexi glass
decorations - 30 to 50ish
and than i had some extra wood around my garage and stuff to add a little more professinal look to it. And i also had the vents but if i didnt they would have cost me 10 bucks each.

[LurkerAccount]

Oh man, mine will be more then twice that big, that's gonna be pricey...
But glass is cheaper then plexi, right?

[Bartman]

i dunno about that but now i know that glass is better just causs the lizards claws scratch up the plexi and than it looks ugly

[reptilez]

Correct.
Is there any other kind of wood that we can use that wont be so expensive?

[LurkerAccount]

Yeah, I also read in your other post that you got everything precut, did that cost extra?

[LurkerAccount]

Reptilez, I think I'm gonna use plywood, with lots of polyeurothaine(sp?), what were you saying correct too?

[reptilez]

They usually do it for free if its wood. But the glass will cost ya!

I was saying correct about the glass being cheaper then the plexi-glass

[LurkerAccount]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

[Bartman]

getting it precut didnt cost me extra it cost me less because than i save the store material. Even little pieces they use. I dont know other woods but im pretty sure that ceder or pine or somthing like that is poisenous to lizards n snakes. key word THINK

[reptilez]

Originally posted by aaashrimp
Reptilez, I think I'm gonna use plywood, with lots of polyeurothaine(sp)
What does that look like?

[LurkerAccount]

Reptilez, I think I'm gonna use plywood, with lots of polyeurothaine(sp?), what were you saying correct too?

Bartman, cedar is very expensive so I don't think thats a problem anyway, and plywood is from pine I think, but thats why you paint it and put polyeurothaine(sp?), on it...

[LurkerAccount]

oh, plywood is like a few sheets of wood in layers, it's hard to explain but you've probly seen it before, ask your parents if there around.... You can also get it very thin which is good because you don't need an inch of wood to keep a monitor in...

[Bartman]

i dunno but you should find out forsure before you start buying wood. Just a thought.....good luck to both of you

[LurkerAccount]

Another option is chip board, it's really

[LurkerAccount]

cheap but it looks like sh*t

[reptilez]

aaashrimp:I already answered your question on the last page!!!!!!!!!!!
-Reptilez

[LurkerAccount]

What? look up, look waay up :D ^^^^^^^

[LurkerAccount]

I know you already answered, it was a mistake.... geeze

[reptilez]

what is polyeurothaine(sp?), ? Why would you do with it?

[LurkerAccount]

polyeurothaine(sp?), is liquid plastic, so the wood won't absorb moisture and rot.

[Lisa]

melamine seems to be the cheapest option and the least amount of work (presealed) it should come in sheets of 2'X4', 4'x4' and 8'X4', a sheet of 8X4 melamine costs about 30+ dollars (canadian) if you plan out your cuts you can save money by using fewer sheets and less wood.

When you're done make sure you seal all the joints with 100% clear silicone.

[Invictus]

Regarding using thin plywood - don't. Go for the 3/4" thick fr a sav cage, simply because the wood will dip if you make a really long cage, which is what savs require. However, I've never seen Melamine go for $30 or more unless it's textured/colored. White melamine at the Home Depot in Calgary is $23 for 3/4". Maybe it's all the taxes in Ontario. :D

And yes, as Lisa said, USE SILICONE. You get moisture in between the joints, you'll have a broken cage in no time.

[reptilez]

I went today and a sheet of 4x8 is $22.69. I didnt ask though if they had anything smaller though......Damn!! All i asked was to see what the largest was. Oh well!!
Thanks for everyones help!:D!,
-Reptilez
P.S. Does anyone have any pics of there finished Sav Cages?? Or know of a thread that features Pictures?

[Bartman]

invictus..

i built a cage that is five feet long and didnt use silicone on the melamine pieces. I have had the cage for about half a year and nothing has fallen apart...do you think it will soon?

[reptilez]

Maybe when you next clean the hole enclosure....Silicone the edges.
-Reptilez

[Pia]

Melamine will save you time because you won't have to do any surface treatment, but man it's heavy!!!! I had a cage built for my beardie that is 5'x2'x2' with a cabinet of the same size underneath for storage. Total cost for melamine, 2 sliding glass doors with tracking, and screen for top and vents was about $200. I went to a lumber place and they had lots of colors to choose from, I went with a woodgrain. I siliconed all the seems. I've had it for 1 1/2 yrs and it's held up well, no problems from moisture (mind you it's for a beardie so it's not a high humidity environment) or from scratches from claws. As for wood choices, pine is inexpensive but is a softwood and is more easily dinged up and scratched than hardwoods like fir and oak. I would stay away from cedar because of the strong scent. Once it is sealed with polyurethane it might be OK but I wouldn't chance it. One final tip, put the enclosure on castors (wheels), it will be much easier to move if the need arises.