# My DIY vivarium build



## mitch2028

Good morning everyone
Been meaning to post this for a while, i bought my first snake a few months back and decided i wanted to get bigger housing ready for it. I started looking round for 4ft vivariums and was suprised at how much companys and shops charge for them. In the end i decided to have a go at making my own....not as hard as you might think.

I started by measuring and marking my floor to see what size of viv i would have the space for.

Once i had got the dimensions i got up to b&q and had some contiboard in maple i think its called cut to the sizes i required. top, bottom, 2 runner pieces and 2 sides. For the backing i got a thin sheet of white hardboard (i cut this myself with a stanley knife) i picked up some chipboard screws, screw caps, iron on wood laminate, some pins and 2 fascia vents. 

I got home and screwed together the contiboard i had cut (from my little sketch, take some time over this as it has to be perfect) Also be careful as your screwing chipboard is known for splitting, aswell as the vivarium being very wobbly with no back board at this point.



Once this is done you can put on your back board, before i pinned the board to the back of the viv i siliconed on my background picture (much easier than trying to cut it inside the viv) i then used the poly top pins to secure the back board in place. The viv is now very sturdy!



Then the finishing touches on the wood, cap off the screw heads with the screw caps from b&q and then iron on the laminate wood to cover the bare chip board (part and parcel of having it cut) once youve ironed it on trim off the excess with a stanley blade.


Here is a pic of the screw caps (nice finishing touch i think)


Here is a pic of the iron on laminate and some small feet i had knocking around


I am using a mat on a stat in this viv, The best way to hide the wires is to drill a hole in the base of the viv now and shove through the thermostat sensor and the wire from the mat (you need to cut the plug off to shove the wire from mat through) dont worry, its only 2 wires to re wire the plug, brown to the fuse on the plug and blue to the opposite side.

OK so once youve got the wiring sorted, i tape mats down with heavy duty gaffa tape to prevent the snake getting under the mat. You can now mount your thermostat somewhere!



Im pretty dissapointed i dont have the runners from viv builder yet, he has good feedback but im not convinced theyve taken well over a week. Ill add to this thread when they arrive.

I went ahead and fitted out the tank
I used a xl hide, l water bowl, smooth wood, cork bark, aspen bedding and the best bargain were the plants 79p each.






heres a pic of the critter in question, im going to try keeping her with another female corn in this viv, as a guide, next to the viv is a small faunarium 12" long i think, so the viv stands at roughly the 4 foot mark.





So left to do, i have to fit my uv starter and bulb, runners and glass, but hopefully this gives people a rough guide of how to make a viv and just to show how over priced vivs really are for what they are. I wish i had used my slr now instead of my phone and made it a bit more detailed. oh well.

It hasnt cost me much, i think £35 so far for everything apart from decor and heating. Ill do a breakdown of the cost when i get chance.

ps im no carpenter by the way, its pretty simple.


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## SilverSteno

Looks fantastic! Unfortunately I'm no DIY person and would rather have someone else do the hard work :lol2: I'm tempted to get my corn a 4 foot viv (partly so I can have 2 2 foot vivs on top of it for my Steno's:lol2

Where did you get that background from?


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## brian

looking very good well done

Could you have stuck your background pick to your backboard and then pined it in place just a thought ??


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## Sueg65

Well done viv looks great.


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## snakelover

ok so its for a corn, and your getting a UV :S?


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## mitch2028

brian said:


> looking very good well done
> 
> Could you have stuck your background pick to your backboard and then pined it in place just a thought ??


yeah thats what i did, think i might have worded it wrong up there 

Ill use UV, why not? corns get sunlight in the wild, i want to make it as natural as possible.


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## Anthony

Nice job mate ... really good at that : victory:

Where did you get the plants from at 79p ?

Also one disagreement and i am sure quite alot of others would agree, i wouldn't use UV for corns personally (by the way i am not having a go, so do not take it personally or anything) but apart from that all is good


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## mitch2028

i stand corrected, corns are nocturnal and dont require UV, thanks for the advice. My g/f can have the uv for her geckos. I got the plants form a place near me called carols discount.


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## Master_Of_Darkness

thats looking really good! I wish I could build things like that 

I'm sure it will make a very cosy new home! 

the contents are good too - lots of good hidey places!


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## RoninUK

The viv looks nice. Are you planning to just silicone the runner strips for the glass into place? 

BTW you can often pick up the runner strips for glass doors in 4mm or 6mm at good hardware stores.

Mark


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## mitch2028

cheers for the comments! yeah the runners arrived thursday i think, siliconed them in place with clear diy stuff, i know where stocks the runners locally now thanks for that. Im about to pick my glass up in the next hour so ill update today probably!


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## mitch2028

so heres the finished article

cut the runners to size using a hot knife that i heated up on the hob. used a nail file to get rid of the rough edges. Used diy clear silicone to set them in place.



Then using mark and wendys method, i cut some cardboard out and slotted it into my runners to see what size glass i needed (worked an absolute treat)

Stuck on my door handles and thats it all finished.




My next ones a viv for my girlfriends leos, has to fit on top of a set of draws! I might build another to stack on top of the one i have already made.

If anyone would be interested in me making either a viv or a stack then get in touch, as i think mine look quite proffesional if i say so myself :lol2: im after a brazilian rainbow boa for my girlfriend as an xmas pressy, so could come to a negotiation if someone has one for sale and requires a viv/stack/rack


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## Tina

That's an amazin job Mitch, it looks so good. : victory:


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## SuperTed

nice one.


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## markandwend

well done mitch, pleased the glass measuring idea worked for u.
cheers,
Mark.


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## Deans On Toast

That's a real good job - where did you get the background from?


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## becka

thats looks fantastic! wish i could do something like that but i'd bodge it up lol. it looks really smart fancy making me one? :lol2:


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## quik_silver_0707

I really mean this, that looks good. Made my own with my Dad (4 x 4 x 2.5). They are so easy to make and you make it to the size you want, on the cheap i must add : victory:


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## Mujician

How do you put the runners in? do you have to put them in at the same time as the glass or can you glue them on and then put the runners in? I didn't notice and screws on the top of the viv apart from the one at the front - how is the top held on? Cheers - Really looks good!


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## katrinamw

Do her geckos need UK? My Leos certainly don't. Can't you just take it back and get a refund?



mitch2028 said:


> i stand corrected, corns are nocturnal and dont require UV, thanks for the advice. My g/f can have the uv for her geckos. I got the plants form a place near me called carols discount.


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## Superbuzz3

Hello Mitch,

Fantastic looking viv....I hope my turns out as good as yours.:notworthy:

I found the link to your thread whilst searching for help.

I am nearly finished building a viv myself (or my brother is buikding it for me), and I just need to get the glass.

My dad said I have to get it bevelled/smoothed at the edges. Is this correct? Or do the corners just have to be rounded?


Cheers

Ben


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## dthoms233

*help*

i want to build a 2feet by 2feet by 3feet (3feet in hieght) vivarium for crested ceckos. Can some one please give someone please give me tip or a good website with step by step instructions?


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## Declan123

Thats real nice,


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## BoomSlang*

Hi, i'm building a vivarium for a coastal carpet and was wondering where the best place is to buy a background picture for the back board?

Cheers, John


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## Triangulum

Fantasticly Done.
Very Profesionally done.
I love the idea of the cardboard as a guide. Thats the only stage im at, is buying the glass. Much appreciated, Scott


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## reptile.kid

looks very good m8 i made my own vivs not long ago dunt look as good as urs :lolsign: like the backing and climbing branch good job well done m8


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## reptile.kid

Superbuzz3 said:


> Hello Mitch,
> 
> Fantastic looking viv....I hope my turns out as good as yours.:notworthy:
> 
> I found the link to your thread whilst searching for help.
> 
> I am nearly finished building a viv myself (or my brother is buikding it for me), and I just need to get the glass.
> 
> My dad said I have to get it bevelled/smoothed at the edges. Is this correct? Or do the corners just have to be rounded?
> 
> 
> Cheers
> 
> Ben



you have to get the edges sanded down b'coz there really sharp n will slice your snake/lizard u can do it yourself with a filing stone my local pound store sells them.Soak the filing stone in warm water first stops the dust and stops it chipping the glass


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## Jase Boa

Nice viv, shame it's wasted on a worm :whistling2::lol2:


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## butterfingersbimbo

wow thats a great viv, me and my mate are going to have aa go at building one! : victory:


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## butterfingersbimbo

hope you don't mind i have pm'd you for measurements : victory:


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## casper1963

great viv think uve inspired me to have a go cheers:no1:


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## jrf23

Awesome build! Looks like a real professional job! I'm planning to build something similar myself so I might have to pm you if I get stuck if that's ok?


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## lola

This viv looks fantastic -- well done that boy :lol2::lol2::lol2:

Do B&Q really cut the wood/board to the sizes you require - is there any charge or any limit to the number of cuts?? this would be soooo useful


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## Jase Boa

lola said:


> This viv looks fantastic -- well done that boy :lol2::lol2::lol2:
> 
> Do B&Q really cut the wood/board to the sizes you require - is there any charge or any limit to the number of cuts?? this would be soooo useful


I think it's 50p per cut :bash:


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## lola

yep have just rung them... first 4 cuts per board are free then any others are 50p per cut  (note to me: must find cheaper contiboard though if possible...)


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## Vitarajay

mate, i am well and truely impressed!

Ive been planning on building a viv for some time due to my interest in getting a beardy and my boyfriend has said if i build it he'l buy the beardy for me so looking at your thread has made me determined to do it even more.

Im curious as to how tall to make mine though, any ideas from people on here what an ideal size for a baby beardy would be. I know they love to climb and i have several hights in mind.

Once again you deserve a congratulations at that master piece.


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## Phoenixking

*real nice job there m8!*

excellent work on the viv! just wanted to let ya know i saw ya blog about a month ago and it inspired me to make my chinese water dragon a bigger viv. i took onboard alot of your advice and i'd just like to thank you for posting your blog and let ya know that my viv looks ace thanks your step by step guide. thanks again m8 and very well done.


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## Vase

Looks awesome, well played!

*We want to know where you got that background from?* :2thumb:


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## jackelsley

looks nice just wanna know were can i get runners and glass


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## Meko

Seeing as you're in Essex Loubylou211 on here and glass, just search on yell.co.uk for glass merchants.


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## callumcook

looking exellent:no1:


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## mofie86

**

love it! 

im thinking about making a viv (as one day i wanna get geckos)
just dont know where to start 

any tips ?


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## 15060

Well done! Its looking great!


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## BEARDED DANNY

wow thanks tank looks great, i'm thinking of making my own aswell and you have just give me a great idea with the feet..so they will be going on too.....thanks very much:2thumb:


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## DazzaH

Can you just use normal silicone or do you have to use a special sealent


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## DannyLeigh

Normal clear silicone should be fine, you just have to be sure it is completely dry before putting stuff in. A lot of people use pond sealant to be safer too.


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## Meko

normal silicone can be toxic so you're best using aquarium sealant.


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## weelad

very nice! , but be carfull with the tape inside the viv .. a few people have had their snakes getting stuck too it


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## snowyj99

Great job! Well done! :2thumb:


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## DazzaH

Meko said:


> normal silicone can be toxic so you're best using aquarium sealant.


Looks like a trip to pond shop when I start to build my viv


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## cornman247

What kind of morph is that corn snake


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## My_SnAkE_rUlEs

wow thats pretty kool
(sorry posting this mainly for tips for when i make mine) =]
thank you


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## JotnJosie

looks really good well done


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## cezz

Nice, would something like this be a good base? Double Bridging Unit Maple Style, 0000003658345


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## alan1

nothing wrong with that 
well done mate, bet you're proud !!!


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## petsforsalecoza

mitch2028 said:


> Good morning everyone
> Been meaning to post this for a while, i bought my first snake a few months back and decided i wanted to get bigger housing ready for it. ...
> 
> I got home and screwed together the contiboard i had cut (from my little sketch, take some time over this as it has to be perfect) Also be careful as your screwing chipboard is known for splitting, aswell as the vivarium being very wobbly with no back board at this point.
> 
> http://imageshack.usimage
> 
> Once this is done you can put on your back board, before i pinned the board to the back of the viv i siliconed on my background picture (much ...


Looks good. Yours is one of the box type. I'd be interested into designs of a frame shaped one with glas on each side.


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