Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Greetings from Canada,

I'm building my first wooden snake enclosures. I'm using 3/4" spruce plywood. Each cage will be 42x24x24 (LWH in inches), stacked so the entire unit will be 42x24x72. Since they will be naturalistic with 6" of bioactive substrate and live plants, the sealing for the wood must be good enough to withstand high humidity without warping. To prevent excess direct water contact, plastic lining on the floor and up 6" of the sides will be used. The remaining 18" will be covered with a natural background image.

What would you recommend for sealing the interior? Exterior?
Since the interior will be covered with images, color is not an issue. I only want to seal it once, not again in a few years time.
Should the wood be sealed prior to assembly or after?

Thank you,

Eric
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www.serpentarium.tk

My Snakes:
0.0.1 Asian sunbeam snake, Xenopeltis unicolor
1.1 Colombian boa, Boa constrictor
0.0.1 Calabar ground boa, Charina reinhardtii
0.0.1 normal Kenyan sand boa, Eryx colubrinus
0.0.1 nuclear Kenyan sand boa, Eryx colubrinus
12.16.2 normal corn snakes, Elaphe guttata
4.1 amelanistic corn snakes, Elaphe guttata
0.0.1 albino striped California kingsnake, Lampropeltis getula
1.0.0 southern pine snake, Pituophis melanoleucus
0.0.1 northern brown snake, Storeria dekayi
0.0.1 long-nosed whipsnake, Ahaetulla nasuta
0.0.1 Saharan sand snake, Psammophis aegyptius

Maybe line the inside with expanded pvc or whatever they are using these days. I think you can get it in 1/16 inch.
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Jason

Thanks, I'll consider that.

Eric
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www.serpentarium.tk

My Snakes:
1.1 Boa constrictor
0.0.1 Charina reinhardtii
1.1 Chrysopelea ornata
0.0.1 Chrysopelea pelias
1.1 Coelognathus radiatus
1.1 Gongylophis colubrinus
0.0.1 Lampropeltis getula
3.2 Lampropeltis triangulum
1.1 Lamprophis fuliginosus
1.1 Liasis fuscus
3.6.18 Pantherophis guttatus
1.0.0 Pituophis melanoleucus
0.0.1 Psammophis sibilans
1.1 Rhynchophis boulengeri
1.1 Spalerosophis diadema
1.1 Xenopeltis unicolor

"What would you recommend for sealing the interior?"

Fiberglass or two-part floor epoxy.

"Exterior?"

Water-based/waterborne polyurethane or paint. your coice, your preference.

"Should the wood be sealed prior to assembly or after?" After.

Take care!
HH
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Due to political correctness run amuck,
this ol' hillbilly is now referred to as an:
Appalachian American

I've heard of epoxy, but what's the fiberglass method?
I was considering sealing it before assembly to make it easier. Is there a specific reason why it should be done after assembly?

Thank you for the input,

Eric
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www.serpentarium.tk

My Snakes:
1.1 Boa constrictor
0.0.1 Charina reinhardtii
1.1 Chrysopelea ornata
0.0.1 Chrysopelea pelias
1.1 Coelognathus radiatus
1.1 Gongylophis colubrinus
0.0.1 Lampropeltis getula
3.2 Lampropeltis triangulum
1.1 Lamprophis fuliginosus
1.1 Liasis fuscus
3.6.18 Pantherophis guttatus
1.0.0 Pituophis melanoleucus
0.0.1 Psammophis sibilans
1.1 Rhynchophis boulengeri
1.1 Spalerosophis diadema
1.1 Xenopeltis unicolor

Fiberglass resin can be sprayed or brushed/squeegeed on. Most people brush or squeegee it on.

As Chris said, it is a bit of an overkill in your situation. I made those recommendations because you asked about "sealing" the wood, plus, the way you worded your post gave me the impression that you're not one to cut corners and probably wanted the best method.

I say seal it "after" assembly so that the sealer can also be used to seal the joints. This can also avoid little knicks & scratches that could create a weak point if the wood is sealed prior to assembly and gets banged up any.

Another thing Chris mentioned is the potential problem of painting over either epoxy or fiberglass. You may have to chemically etch the top coat for adhesion but it shouldn't affect the effectiveness of the sealer.

Since you're going to line the bottom & so much up the walls you can "protect" the wood with something like sintra, tileboard, etc... Seal the joints with paintable caulk or silicone.

Have a good one!
HH
-----
Due to political correctness run amuck,
this ol' hillbilly is now referred to as an:
Appalachian American

Since they will be naturalistic with 6" of bioactive substrate and live plants, the sealing for the wood must be good enough to withstand high humidity without warping. To prevent excess direct water contact, plastic lining on the floor and up 6" of the sides will be used.

I'm a bit confused. You mention a plastic lining for the first six inches. Are you looking for a recommendation for the plastic or what to use for a sealer on the rest of the cage interior?

And will you have any misting systems or water features that might cause direct moisture contact on the upper walls?
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Currently keeping a small collection of various Gonyosoma. Both G. janseni and G. oxycephala.

I am looking for a recommendation on a sealer for the wood. There shouldn't be direct contact with water, as I will be using lining for the bottom (to hold the wet substrate) and nature images for the walls (for decoration and protection). Constant high humidity, however, will result from the naturalistic enclosure, so I don't want it to warp.
What wood sealer do you suggest? Epoxy?

Eric
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www.serpentarium.tk

My Snakes:
1.1 Boa constrictor
0.0.1 Charina reinhardtii
1.1 Chrysopelea ornata
0.0.1 Chrysopelea pelias
1.1 Coelognathus radiatus
1.1 Gongylophis colubrinus
0.0.1 Lampropeltis getula
3.2 Lampropeltis triangulum
1.1 Lamprophis fuliginosus
1.1 Liasis fuscus
3.6.18 Pantherophis guttatus
1.0.0 Pituophis melanoleucus
0.0.1 Psammophis sibilans
1.1 Rhynchophis boulengeri
1.1 Spalerosophis diadema
1.1 Xenopeltis unicolor

A couple of quick comments about wood warping. First, plywood and other fabricated sheet goods are very resistant to humidity induced warping. Plywood is especially good. Secondly, when humidity does cause warping it is due to vapor and epoxies and other sealers don't totally block vapor, believe it or not. You can put on several very thick coats of marine varnish on a piece of solid wood and it will expand and contract nearly as much as an unfinished piece.

Personally I think that using epoxy in a cage that will have a plastic liner on the floor and first 6" of the cage walls is overkill. If it were my cage and I had a plastic liner I would simply use a high solids acrylic paint for bathrooms and paint the murals you want.

If you're really wanting to use an epoxy then I would just skip the plastic liner and use just the epoxy. Epoxy can be used to seal plywood boxes which will hold water for decades. I'm not sure what epoxies are available in Canada.
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Currently keeping a small collection of various Gonyosoma. Both G. janseni and G. oxycephala.

I forgot to mention that epoxies tend to have very high gloss and don't lend themselves well to things like painting murals. Were you going to paint over the epoxy with an artists acrylic? If so you should research adhesion as I know some paints don't adhere well to epoxy.

Keep us posted on this project, it sounds interesting. I'm also planning on switch to cages with bioactive substrate.
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Currently keeping a small collection of various Gonyosoma. Both G. janseni and G. oxycephala.

Thank you, Chris!
I was reading The Art of Keeping Snakes and it inspired me to make naturalistic cages with bioactive substrate and live plants. Wood/melamine cages were discouraged due to swelling, warping and not holding water, however, I'm insisting on using them anyway. Therefore, I would rather do overkill. The book suggests glass cages, but I prefer the wood ones because they are better thermally, they stack easily due to the solid top, heat pannels can be added, and they give the snake more security.

Eric
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www.serpentarium.tk

My Snakes:
1.1 Boa constrictor
0.0.1 Charina reinhardtii
1.1 Chrysopelea ornata
0.0.1 Chrysopelea pelias
1.1 Coelognathus radiatus
1.1 Gongylophis colubrinus
0.0.1 Lampropeltis getula
3.2 Lampropeltis triangulum
1.1 Lamprophis fuliginosus
1.1 Liasis fuscus
3.6.18 Pantherophis guttatus
1.0.0 Pituophis melanoleucus
0.0.1 Psammophis sibilans
1.1 Rhynchophis boulengeri
1.1 Spalerosophis diadema
1.1 Xenopeltis unicolor