Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ok i got ur message. Thx. I m not suer what i have discussed so ill start all over. the cage is 72" long 48" high and 30" deep. I hope to put a mangrove monitor in there. because of their SUPER sharp claw i am wondering how i can seal it and make it rockhard finish. You said something about envirotex? can i pickit up at say Home depot or will I have to go to a paint shop? can i put arbeurite or whatever you call it.what would be a good wood to use you think? i wan tit to look nice as well. I have only 2 more months to finish this thing so... i need to get it finished. Also to anybody .. which is better a mangrove monitor or blue tailed monitor or peach throat monitor? and why do you think so

I would not use Envirotex for a monitor cage. I think the cheapest way to seal the inside of a monitor cage is to use fiberglass resin. However, the solvents are very nasty and it's a pain to work with. If it were my cage I would go to Home Depot and buy sheets of FRP board, also known as fiberglass reinforced panel. Cut it to size and attach it to the cage walls and floor with Liquid Nails or a similar adhesive.

If you need more information on this do a search on both the current monitor forum and the archived monitor forum. Both are a wealth of information on both resin and FRP board. In fact the monitor forum is a great place to get advice on cage construction. At least it used to be.

Neither resin or FRP will make for the most attractive cage interior, unfortunately, but you still have the exterior of the cage to make it look nice. My two favorite of the readily available woods are birch and oak. Birch with a mahogany stain has a nice cherry look to it. Oak can be stained with some of the lighter browns or honey colored stains to show off the grain. Both birch and oak laminated plywoods are readily available at Home Depot and other places.

If you really want a stained wood interior with a durable clear coat you'll have to ask some questions and do some searches over on the monitor forum(s). Many of the more durable epoxies have a cloudy look to them when cured but I don't know which ones. I wish I could recommend Envirotex but I just don't have any experience with it and species that scratch a lot.

Sorry for our e-mail trouble. Let me know what further information you need.

Regarding your choice of monitors, I have never worked with the blue-tailed. I have worked with mangroves and peach-throats. From my limited experience with them I liked the peach-throats better because they seemed more arboreal and displayed better. I have no idea if that holds true for all specimens.

Actually the FRP stands for Fire Resistant Panels and is the same as used in resturants and bathrooms in commercial locations.
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It's called fiberglass reinforced panel all the time over on the monitor forum. Regardless, I think we are talking about the same product.

It like saying tomatoe or tomato lol
It is a fiberglass re inforced panel , from a "trade name standpoint" i use to buy it as FRP( fire retardent panel) as it was used in kitchen applications now it could be that they simply use a different compound in the actuall making of it to make it fire retardent. but none the less its the same lol
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Buisnesses come and go everyday, what keeps you here is how you treated the customer the day before....
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I just did some searching on the net. It does appear that there is more than one name for these types of product. Fiberglass Reinforced Panel appears to be the general product name, but I'm sure there are different manufacturers who call it different things.

You could use freezer board, I've seen it at home depot. Its a plastic sheet 4'x8' cut it to size, silicone it down, caulk the seams. The sheets I've seen usually have a textured surface/ white in color. Its 1/16" thick or so, easy to work with. Maybe its an option for you. Goodluck, Clint

HEy thx for the info guys. i was thinking maybe melamine now *cheaper*. but would it be tuff e nuff? As far as epoxy goes i think ..... No ill just go to all the home depots/totems/home hardware/windsor ply wood/all the other shops, and jutslook arund and check there ..STUFF.. out. Thx for all the info guys. If you think of anything else or if some one else has any good ideas please pot em eh! thank you muchly.

Melamine has a nice finish, the problem lies in the substrate. Soil, sand, mulch, etc. these have to be allowed to retain a certain amount of moisture which maintains humidty levels. Your unprotected melamine will disentigrate quickly under those conditions. That is why I use freezer board to line my cage interiors, some of which are melamine. Just line the whole bottom of the cage and a couple inches above the soil line on the sides, back and front. With monitors its important they be provided with a suitably deep, moist layer of substrate. As most monitors enjoy digging. Mine do so especialy when they are sheeding, even sleeping in burrows. This really helps out the sheeding process. Suitably deep can be 8"-16" deep do a little research on which ever species you decide on. Goodluck, Clint

A monitor cage constructed of melamine will likely have to be lined with something more durable anyways, so there is little advantage to using melamine in the first place unless you like the look of the cage exterior.

Plywood is lighter but then you have to spend some extra money to finish it's exterior. A worthwhile tradeoff for me. Your mileage may vary.

BTW, I think Clint and I are talking about the same product. I just looked it up on the net and it is indeed called Fiberglass Reinforced Panel. I'm sure it has other names as well.

Great minds think alike, Chris. I was thinking it was the same stuff, after I posted it. These sheets are basicly plastic paneling, I just bought a sheet last nite. I'm using it with a converted base cabinet, comes in almond as well. Its also used to line shower stalls. Very acceptable product for water proofing a cage. 20 bucks a sheet is a good price vs. a gal. of poly, brush, and a lot of time.