# Arboreal Enclosure Build



## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

<}:¬{) Okay guys and gals let's see what I can construct with the following. Proposition is to make an arboreal snake enclosure. The design ( stage 1 ) is down on paper and as you can see I have the preliminary outline cut out. 

Okay lets get the show on the road - this is stage 2 = most of the materials I will be using in this project. ( Donnie Darkko is just being a cute companion - again spreading his butt on any new surface!!!)

Like to see & hear any positive guidelines and input - photos welcome... etc


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## my_shed (Jan 5, 2011)

May find it easier with a better set square :lol2: 

Looks like you're all geared up, looking forward to how it turns out

Dave


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## Kamuro (Feb 9, 2012)

*Something i found on my build (with pics)*

looks like ur all set....

Only thing i would say when i built this (just recently finished & done decor) its in 2 section the base storage is 1 unit the viv & electrics housing is the 2nd unit (which has a cover panel to tidy the open top)









I found it "tricky" at the start, partially because of a school boy error, As I designed it, so it would fit with the back being screwed onto the ends of the sides, not the sides into the back like the pic below, basic cutting error..doh! (eg I left the back 30mm short - the 15mm thickness of the boards on either side)

I had "fun"...lol trying to hold the back in position with the sides (Im alright with this stuff being a carpenter son, working for a builders merchant) but the side would often colapse inwards, untill I got 2 large (about 6ft) clamps like this from work, I was then able to position/clamp the 3 peices in place (top & bottom of viv) & pre-drill & counter sink the sides & screw into the back (if u get my drift)










Hope this makes some sense! :2thumb:


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)




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## dunkyg (Sep 9, 2011)

watching with interest!!:2thumb:


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

Cheers guys - just a few things : the wood is 9mm OSB board cut at B&Q for free. :lol2:= the set square joke - maybe your serious = ? - still it works, be it a tad worn on the edges:whistling2: (Technical hey) 

( btw ~ as well as trying to demonstrate the build of the enclosure I hope to add the other specifics such cost of materials and my reasons of choice etc. I also hope that I wont use too many smilicons - like this one :bash: and this one :devil: which will smooth out any :blush: on my behalf thus leading to less of this :gasp: and this :Na_Na_Na_Na: but will eventually recieve a :2thumb: from you lot and perhaps even a little :notworthy: for my efforts.)

p.s - thankyou for the kind hearted PM from Dannie Lucia but I can reassure you _the photo of the materials was taken with the parts lying upon a floor._ The cat was not gorilla glued in place to a wall as you thought. :no1


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## Meko (Apr 29, 2007)

you're being far too posh with all those tools... I usually start and finished, just armed with an electric drill / screw driver.


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

Wood board of choice was OSB ( Orientated Strand Board) 9mm thickness and at less than £14 per sheet ( which is over 2meters by 1meter size at B&Q).










I also used this 










which was Gorilla Glued (*TM) ( "ching"):thumb: to one side of the pre-cut OSB using a couple of clamps like this


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

Later, after the adhesive had stuck the said together, a little 'tidying up' of the edge was needed. This is were the Gorilla Glue had exuded out from the two pieces of wood. *TOP TIP = *is to let it dry then remove the hardened 'overspill' as oppossed to trying to remove when still tacky. The later process will no doubt lead to more of a mess than initially intended!








After drying - a little tidying. Using a chisel to remove exuded hardened glue.


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## my_shed (Jan 5, 2011)

Looking very proffesional so far :2thumb: and yeah, it was a joke about the set square since all your cutting was already done :lol2:


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

my_shed said:


> Looking very proffesional so far :2thumb: and yeah, it was a joke about the set square since all your cutting was already done :lol2:


 Thanks - The set square was needed to mark out a decent cut on the batons. 





Meko said:


> you're being far too posh with all those tools... I usually start and finished, just armed with an electric drill / screw driver.


 
I don't like to use screws and nails matey. 

( See your in Preston - I'll send you a PM sometime when I'm less busy etc.)

Anyway - let's continue to the next stage of progress:

Okay, got some exterior high gloss (deep base) paint mixed up = ~£13 for a one litre tin. 










Assembled the two painted sides onto the backing first. Once the sides had been attached the base and ceiling were adhered in place so giving a basic box. *TOP TIP =* notice on the first photo I have delibaretly NOT painted the sides of the supporting battons which are then glued onto the backing board section which also is not painted. This gives a stronger bond which can then later be overpainted and varnished so as to make a quality seel.










p.s - I did infact choose to use a few small copper panel pins to see that the pieces of each section did not slide away from one another whilst the adhesive cured.


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## Dakotalondon (May 14, 2012)

:2thumb: looking funkay , whats going in ? :2thumb:


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## Meko (Apr 29, 2007)

KWIBEZEE said:


> I don't like to use screws and nails matey.
> 
> ( See your in Preston - I'll send you a PM sometime when I'm less busy etc.)


I don't like buying things so i find screws easier 

Take it you're local?


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

Further progress :
'Green is the new black' - interior ceiling painted sky-blue = TEST_POT ~ £1.30 ( B&Q again!). Gluing top frame piece in and lower base panel which will keep the substrate in.










Top batton painted green and another batton being glued to the base panel. The battons will form a frame onto which a hinged door will be attached. So far so good and half the time is waiting for the glue/ paint/ varnish to dry. It will be a good week or so before I am satisfied that the thing is safely cured but I will leave it outside some days. I will also fill the interior with water, place on its side, leave to stand for a good day or so and repeat a couple of times. - Yes I am that fussy - lol.


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

Dakotalondon - thanks buddy. I may put the Togo star-burst T's in them when they are bigger - LOL - but at the moment I'm on the look out for Boiga cyanea.

Meko - sent you a Pm.


Now here's the funky bit: - inspired of course from the days of electric yellow crackled spandex kex :

Seriously though - the yellow & green represents a canopy background etc - tree outlines broken up by light etc.


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

*"..ain't it funky - 1,2 ,3, 4 ..."*

Update... no sign of definite Boiga cyanea ( hatchlings or less than ~12 months) on the horizon. Thanks to those that have suggested HAMM etc but without 100% confirmation/ reservation etc I don't think the £120 Coach to the Show will satisfy me. ( The Coach deal looks pretty darn good in my opinion and well worth the cost etc).

Okay, a few more photos of the build. The paint work has been over sealed with Yacht varnish. Hopefully this will give a waterproof, durable seal that will last a good while. - let the photos do the talking :


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

*And onto the frame*

Progress with the hinged door.

Assembly of a basic frame using Gorilla Glue 










A couple of heavy duty staples didn't go a miss - help strengthing the structure and an aid in preventing slippage as the adhesive dries and cures.










A little tidying up of the sides


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

Getting the glass cut today to fit in the frame. Also got myself some air vents and some hinges. Looking out for a couple of small clasp hooks now.


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

*big frames and small butts...*

Got the glass - 4mm with all sides buffed so as to avoid cutting myself etc = £6. Placed the said piece in the frame which sat nicely and its surface is flush with the level of the frame edges etc. Took another section of pinewood and glued this on top so as to hold the glass in frame.










Used this type of pine stripwood









And used the clamps ( basic though they may be) to hold it all in place whilst drying and curing









Once dried used these butt hinges to hang the door onto the main body of the box.


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

*slated*

Well I guess the logical progression of things would have been to show you guys the aforementioned glass hinged door attached to the enclosure as is. Well, in the way of things a little technicality arose which meant that the progess of the build was to be made easier if the said door remained to one side so to speak. Only a temporary step and onto another little detail.

The tube heaters arrived today. These are 45 watt 1 foot tube heaters. They cost under £26 for both delivered. Find these on ebay - plenty of sizes and wattages. The fact that these devises are splash proof appealed to me since it's not rocket science to work out that electrical components and water don't often mix well. Need I say more? - No!

As with my last custom enclosure I decided to tile the back-wall where the AHS heater was placed. This was mainly to add a safety feature into the design and rest my fear that the wood of the enclosure would not catch alight. ( You can find details of the said build - KINGSNAKE HABITAT etc).

It just so happened that I happened upon a couple of roof slates that were being thrown away in a skip by some work attended upon a Catholic Church in Leeds. ( One of the only times I openly admit to thanking such an establishment may I add - although no parson or workman was there to voice the such:whistling2.

I made a quick measurement of the section where the tube heater was to be placed and cut the tile according to that size. After testing for a fit I drilled a small hole in each corner


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

*Slate at back of tube heater*

Here is a photo of the slate, cut to size, fitted into the enclosure where the tube heater will sit 










And another 










Marked out where the tube heater brackets should rest and in due course attached these too 










As you can see, another batton was cut to size and added to the back panel of the enclosure. It was painted and varnished too to tie in with the theme of things. The slate fits nicely into this neat shallow alcove as such and the ledge of the batton will prove its use in the next chapter.


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

*Heat guard*

Now onto the heat guard. Again this was a DIY job. The one supplied with the tube heaters had open ends and would have allowed a critter into the area of the tube heater.

Simply took a section of 15mm x 15mm pine wood and stapled some 0.5cm x 0.5cm mesh to it. The length of the section matched the length of the internal width of the enclosure.

Back










Front










Top of heat guard held in place via small screws that pass from the outside of the box into the ends of the wooden strips. It is very sturdy.










Front section of the heat guard was made from an offcut of the OSB board. Again the width of the interior was measured aswell as a desirable height - in this instance the height at which the top of the horizontal part of the heat guard lay. The need for the additional batton previously mentioned brings the alignment of the piece into place so that a nice flush fit is achieved. ( see picture - the photos do a better job than my explanations I'm sure!). Again a section of 0.5cm x 0.5cm mesh was used to cover a series of 35mm holes that had been bored out from the OSB panel.

Back : OSB front panel with 35mm holes and mesh stapled to its rear.











Front view:










In place ( the section will be varnished later)










The tube heater manufacturer recommended that the heater be at least 6cm up from the ground surface and at least 10cm down from the upper surface of where it was to be installed. I made sure of that stipulation but the sides I think may be pushing it a little bit. I tested the heater anyhow. I first had to drill a small 8mm hole at the rear of the box, pass the wire through, re-connect a plug and plug it in etc. All worked fine. I 'll make sure that a thermostat is also connected even though the manufacturers state that the heater should not exceed a temperature of around 30*C. All good to me I thinks. 

Pretty chuffed with the progress so far. Thanks to all the folk who have viewed this thread so far. I really hope it inspires one or two people too. It is a really good challenge to bring family members together too I feel in the aspect of letting parents and childs etc get together in planning and building a project design like this. It really is pretty simple and as you can see none of the tools used are complicated or hard to source. Happy DIY'ing...


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

*Nearly there...*

A little more progress. Today was planning where the air vents should go. Whilst thinking about this had the idea of placing a couple of holes at the very top but once covered with mesh will be used to rest a light source there which will allow for a diffused amount of light to shine through. I have a spare starter unit etc. I intend to rig up a couple of LED units though - possibly green as again I have some spare from another project.

Holes bored in the ceiling 35mm bit.










Door hung onto the main box - shaping up.


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## Meko (Apr 29, 2007)

Looking good mate.

I'll reply to your PM soon. I read it on my phone and then forgot about it, I just realised when I spotted your thread again..


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)




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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

Update coming soon - been out and about and collected a few branches ( rhodedendron = a semi-hardwood species) ordered a few artificial orchids from Malaysia, collected a few ' wedges' of wood from felled trees that I think will make good PLATFORMS and also varnished a couple of seed pods which will serve as water dishes or 'feeding' pots if the critter doesn't decide to eat and so the prey item will be left in the viv overnight to see if it consumed that way etc. Photos to follow.

The seed pods I can't remember the species name at present as I type. POLLYWOG and DARTFROG supplies sell them for sure btw.


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

*bits & bobs*

Having a root around for various 'bits' that could go in the enclosure - came up with these ;

Various branches and cork tubes:









Rhodedendron branches collected from a local woodland:









Glued a couple of ledges in place. The larger flat piece is just resting on the ledges at present. ( - not worked out how to secure this ~ it would be ideal to be able to remove these if need be :









Seed pod water bowl glued to a piece of liana. A little 'reach' I went for so that placing the bowl or removing the bowl I get the advantage of being able to grab the length of the stick and remove the whole rather than just the bowl. This way I am not placing my hand into the viv - the branch can be accessed with the fingers themselves from a 'safer' distance / less disturbance :

























Having a design brain storming session here - trying out various lengths of the branches etc - do they/ don't they fit - etc.... Also note the plastic egg crate shelf I fitted in - just testing it out here . Wanted a couple of ledges at various levels just to add dimension and allow the sanke a flatter surface to choose from if it wanted to.










3 cuppas later ....









finds the Malaysia flower pack sent off ages ago.


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## Dakotalondon (May 14, 2012)

:2thumb: looking good : victory:


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

Today's log : - more tinkering with pieces of wood and of various lengths - snapped a couple etc ... but with a picture building up I'm more or less inclined to let the wood fall into place of its own merits - so nothing more than this. Shapes and angles work out - enough hand room here - and same on the other side... how about from above, access to below - etc - it all wraps around the construction of the interior design and the dimensions of the 'box' in its original design. This is what gave scope to my thoughts this afternoon :

Hopes you likes - comments please : :2thumb:

Decided to gorilla glue this wedge of a shelf in place:










Painting over the dried bits of gorilla glue that holds branch ends in place etc.









Bits added




































VIV 2 shaping up in another style :


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## motorhead (Dec 5, 2010)

just read the thread what sort of snake is going into it ?


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

motorhead said:


> just read the thread what sort of snake is going into it ?[/QUOTE
> 
> Really like to get Boiga cyanea for them. These would just be 'growing on' enclosures though. I'll try my luck later on in the year. Didn't get myself over to HAMM this time around:gasp: which is where I'm told it would have been a pretty definite outcome.
> 
> Still tinkering with one or two little things. Next is to fit a door onto viv 2 and get the Habistat thermostat linked up. I fancy putting both tube heaters on one circuit. = simply use a two-gang extension lead with one viv as being monitored with the thermostat sensor etc and the other one also being 'regulated' by the same set-up. My other two Lampropeltis vivs work on this principle. I'll put them on a digital timer anyhow so that the 'over-ride' will also be an incorporated safety feature too.


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## KWIBEZEE (Mar 15, 2010)

*this would be nice:*

This would be a nice addition - but I think the cyanea with that incredible green skin is what tickles my fancy :











Thanks to Donnny Darkko for the image!


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