Reptile & Amphibian Forums

PLease help! I really have two questions. The first question is what is a good, reasonably priced way to waterproof the inside of a monitor enclosure. It is a mangrove monitor and Ill list the dimensions and stuff below if you need to know. I already applied a sealer to the inside which proved to be a bad idea. Its been 5 months and the smell has finally gone away. I would like to use something that is easy to apply, durable and easy to maintain. Oh and if it were cheap that would be ok too.

Also heat sources. Id like to stick with bulbs. Any suggestions on type, quanity, location, and arrangment.

The cage is 6'x3'x3' and made from 3/4" finished plywood. The front is sliding plexi-glass that runs the length almost and both sides are also plexi. It is partially framed with 2x4. I'm using a floor register vent in the top of the cool end of the enclosure. The humidity requirements are pretty high and Id like the enclosure to last. Ive looked at frp and sealants. I keep hearing about film? I dont know how it will stand up to the claws though.

Thanks for any help you can give.

FRP is probably the #1 choice of monitor keepers. I think that is the way to go.

I would suggest something like using one R40 65 watt bell-shaped incandescent flood. Basking surface temp around 140F, cool areas 75F- got a temp gun?

Those dimensions are pretty small for an adult mangrove monitor. The vent should be on the side rather than the top. In fact, maybe just cover the vent up completely. The cracks around the doors should be enough ventilation.

Cheers

Thanks for responding. He is still pretty small so this should last a while. I used the vent so that I can control the amount of air flow with the position of the fins. I think I will go with the FRP. What brand of bulb is that? Thanks

The 65 watt floods that I use are GE, but other brands may offer the same type of bulb. In case you don't have a temp gun, they are a very useful tool when setting up a monitor cage. Cheers

I heard that the halogen bulbs from home depot types were potentially dangerous. The textured glass that covers the face of the bulb is what you look for and the middle of these types arent textured. Essentually you get a very hot spot in the center. I read it a couple of times on here. I alway just buy the repti-specific bulbs but Im unsure about how many I need for an enclosure this size. Or what wattage. I dont want to go through 10 bulbs to find the right configuration.

You are probably referring to comments myself and others on the monitor forum have made about halogens. It is easy to pick one that does not have a clear patch on the face of the bulb.

But just to be on the safe side, I recommended to you, a specific type of INCANDESCENT (not halogen, reread the above posts) bulb that many keepers, including myself have found to be safe. I don't know many successful monitor keepers that use "repti-specific bulbs", but you can do as you please.

When you say prefinished plywood, do you literally mean the stuff that comes prefinished from the factory with a UV cured coating, sort of like prefinished flooring?

If so, not much will stick to it and that might in part explain why it took so long for the odor to go away. But I suspect you just used regular plywood and sealed it with oil based polyurethane, and are using the term "finished" to describe that.

I would like to use something that is easy to apply, durable and easy to maintain. Oh and if it were cheap that would be ok too.

What sealer did you use exactly?

Your biggest problem here might be finding something to stick to whatever sealer you used. Whatever you use be sure to run a test first.

Otherwise, the whole tradeoff between durability, ease of application and cost is a huge problem. As durability increases, for example, cost tends to go up or products become more difficult to apply. Now factor in that you have already applied a seal coat and it gets even more difficult.
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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)