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Sealing Plywood

McGoo Sep 14, 2006 01:56 PM

Im making a viv for my water dragons and need to seal the plywood for humidity reasons. I would like it to be a clearcoat. What can i use that wont hurt my dragons?

Replies (3)

chris_harper2 Sep 15, 2006 09:19 AM

This is a tough question as there are a range of options that all come with their own set of tradeoffs.

Before I try to help you through the maze of options, I'll ask you a few questions first.

1) How much is cost a concern?

2) Do you want an lifetime finish or would you consider re-applying the clear coat every year or two?

3) Regarding safety to your animal, how long are you willing to wait for a clear coat to fully cure so it's safe.

4) Give me a basic idea of the design of your cage.

5) Why a clear coat? Are you trying to show off some fancy wood grain or something like that?
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Current snakes:

0.0.1 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Java locale (green)

1.2 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Jave local (green)

2.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Seleyar locale (all black)

1.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Celebes locale (Black & Tan)

McGoo Sep 15, 2006 10:45 AM

Cost can be sacraficed for safety. How long to dry with the sealant your thinking of am i looking at. I want a clear coat because i have wood burn markings on it. The set up is a 75 gallon and this is going to be like puting a 90 galon on top of it.
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They Call me McGoo
1.0 Hog island boa
1.1 Water dragons
1.2 Pacman Frogs
0.0.2 Corn snakes

chris_harper2 Sep 15, 2006 10:55 AM

How long to dry with the sealant your thinking of am i looking at?

I'm not thinking of any one sealant. I'm thinking about a variety of options.

The set up is a 75 gallon and this is going to be like puting a 90 gallon on top of it.

Let me clarify. You have a 75 gallon glass aquarium, correct?

And you are building a plywood canopy that will more than double the height?

If the above is correct, will the sealed plywood be directly exposed to spray from a mister, waterfall or anything like that? Or will the plywood only be exposed to the humidity of the cage, most of which will originate from the glass portion of the cage?

Will the plywood portion have any exposure to substate (like as in a wall-mounted planter) or will all of the substrate the plants be kept in the glass portion of the cage?
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Current snakes:

0.0.1 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Java locale (green)

1.2 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Jave local (green)

2.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Seleyar locale (all black)

1.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Celebes locale (Black & Tan)

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