Sav enclosure

[infernalis]

Are my links not working??

There is still improvements being made every evening.

I have to re-do the cage blog, I have it started.

[Skits]

Originally Posted by infernalis

Are my links not working??

There is still improvements being made every evening.

I have to re-do the cage blog, I have it started.

The links you sent are working, savannahmonitor.org isn't working for me though.

And jarich, alright perfect, thank you. I'll ask my dad if we could build a way larger enclosure in my basement, or else I'll try to do at least an 8x3 in my room.

[infernalis]

rehash....

Before I begin, I do fully realize that most anyone else may not have all the resources available, and this is a basic guideline only. One source that you may wish to look into for the aluminum sheets (Road signs) is your local scrap yard, many municipalities routinely scrap out used road signs for the value of the scrap aluminum.

Your two biggest priorities here is going to be the ability to hold/maintain humidity & heat within your enclosure, the second being it must be strong/sturdy enough that it will not fall apart over the long run.

With that in mind here we go..

I covered the end panels with 3m sign vinyl, simply because I had it on hand. an acceptable alternative would be to paint it with sealer commonly used on basement floors or patio decks. The extreme humidity will rot your wood otherwise.



The entire inside where dirt goes is paved in aluminum with vinyl undeneath. The concept behind the aluminum is it prevents the dirt (even when soaking wet) from ever coming into contact with the 3/4 inch subflooring wood, another acceptable alternative would be to purchase marine grade lumber. (equally expensive)



Nails or decking screws are simply not strong enough to hold well under the extreme conditions the enclosure will be subjected to, so extensive use of nuts and bolts is highly recommended.



Combining the top boards, with the bottom boards forms a pattern like this.. With heavy plywood sub flooring sandwiched inside the grid. STRONG.











The back wall, I used sheet aluminum (signs) to cover the bottom 30 inches where the clay soil will come into contact with the wall.

Continued next post.

[infernalis]

The back wall set into place and ready to bolt down.



The framing is treated 2x6 lumber bolted together to form 4x6 spars with locking tabs for the bolts.





The top portion features the use of a ceiling/roof with framing to allow for two layers of insulation. Heat rises and the biggest thermal losses would otherwise be through the top of the enclosure.

[infernalis]

Once I got the ceiling installed, I sealed up the gaps. I used hot glue (carpentry grade) to seal all the little cracks and gaps that would allow for humidity to escape. This will prevent the dirt from rapidly drying out into dust.



Then I installed all the insulation except where I need to wire it for lights.



Then installed the hooks to support the lights



Drilled holes for the wires..



Wiring is in, the roof is on, and one end is bolted down.



The center light is on a conduit, so it cannot "wind chime" into the outside lights and shatter...



ensuring the correct parameters are being met.



Continued on next post

[infernalis]

Insulated the front..



The observation window/door is a hotel shower stall door, the glass is heavy and tempered.

Put on some of the finishing boards..



dumped in a whole boatload more dirt..



Getting close to all finished, just need to cut a bunch of the finishing boards to cover the bottom ugly.

The dirt. Clay creek soil, Harvested from my property..





support columns...

My house already has a row of them down the middle. I added 2 more directly under the cage to prevent my reptile room from collapsing, The cage itself weighs hundreds of pounds, and the dirt adds about 1500 more pounds bringing the weight up to just over a ton.



Now what's really important is getting another foot deep of dirt in there.
as you can see the entire bottom is heavy treated 2x6 lumber like what would be used to build a lakefront dock.



There is still another several hundred pounds of dirt heading into that box, The darn ground froze up on me out there. The weather is supposed to be quite mild this weekend, so I am taking my pickup truck back to the creek and getting another truckload of that sweet clay.

This was a serious project and was planned out carefully.

My previous cage was of similar dimensions, but not as well build, it fell apart after about 2 years. When I tore it down to get it out of my house, I found wood rot in the structural joints, You simply must use marine grade treated lumber or you will regret it later.

I have seen quite a few lesser builds (through pictures) that all fell apart, when a sav gets digging and moving stuff around in there, it puts a lot of stress on the enclosure walls.

Decorations will be kept minimal, Monitors destroy anything put in his cage with them, it's the nature of these beasts.

Thanks for looking.