Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I can't find the west coast systems epoxy any were but did stumble upon a marine urethane type deal at my local Fleet Farm. I didn't buy it because it said urethane and not epoxie it had like a 5 step process to it were you had to buy each 5 things seperate.

Then I was going to do a pvc/plexi cage but that failed when I couldn't come across the right elbow to connect the pieces together. So here I am with an iguana that is too big for its enclosure and have no idea how or were I am going to get a cage for him. I also don't have a place to put my ig. while the oil based urethane would dry if I wanted to go that way.

Tyler

do you have a guest room? set up some nice sized plants in there, put a few book shelves on the wall, put the ehating and lighting inside a bunny cage (or other smalle wire, non-flamable cage) someplace high with a basking shelf (you can also anchor some nice branches to the walls) and lay down a tarp underneath it all. Instant home. or at least temporary solution.

you can also just build a nice wooden frame, and use a staple gun to put some chicken wire around the outsides, and something plastic for the bottom, for cleaning east.

I also built a fairly sturdy cage out of just that sire you're suppsoed to put around the base of a tree, but you need a pretty big iguana to not slip through the holes, but you can always put chicken wire on the outside.
-----
1.3 Dogs (max, tasha, kaya, screw)
1.0 Ghost Corn
1.0 Ball python
0.0.1 Red tailed Boa
0.0.2 Red Eared Sliders
0.0.1 Softshell
0.0.4 insane tarantellas
2.1 ferrets (Otis, Milo, Monty)
1.0 Cat (Kitten)
0.0.1 Emperor Scorpion
0.0.1 Melleri Cham (Sir Arthur Chamleon Doyle)
And an ever-changing fishie tank...

Is there a way you could post a photo of the cage as you've constructed it so far? I read your previous post earlier down the page and I can't figure out what type of cage you've built. It sounds like you have a solid back and bottom but screen sides and maybe a screen front? Not sure - like a said, a photo would be helpful to determine what you could seal this with. If drying times of paints/varnishes/epoxies is an issue I would recommend using the FRP board as recommended by Chris, or possibly using white tileboard with a liberal bead of silicone to seal all the edges. The FRP board is usually $25 or more per sheet while the tileboard is usually only about $7 per sheet [these are 4'x8' sheets]. The only problem is the tileboard absolutely has to be sealed everywhere with silicone or water will get behind it and cause it to swell, and discolor. Basically this approach to sealing a cage is just cutting out a liner from a water-impervious material and gluing it or screwing it to the inside of your cages solid surfaces.
-----
Matt Campbell
Animal Keeper, Small Mammal/Reptile House
Lincoln Park Zoo Chicago, Illinois

Assistant Curator
Wildlife Discovery Center at Elawa Farm
Lake Forest, Illinois

The cage I was talking about in the earlier post was the one he is in now and I was going to add on to it and seal it with something but I can't find anything to seal it with that meats the specs. That FRP board sounds nice as I would just make a whole new set up for my ig. I was thinking about FRP sides, back, base, and then plex front and scree top.

Also I went looking throught the iguna photos in the photo gallery and most of the enclosures aren't sealed. They look like regular pine just like mine but and the iguanas look fine. I'm not going to lie but I've had two iguanas in the cage I have now, one died young and the other isn't looking as good as when I firts got him. I have zoo med bulbs constant temp of 90-95 in the basking area and he still doesn't look to be coming around. I also feed him a calcium rich diet of collards and such greens along with a variety of other foods. I am hoping this larger and sealed cage will do the job if not then....I don't know.

Do search for west marine online. You can find the epoxy there.
Do you have any woodworker stores near you?
They should carry epoxy finish as well.

You do not need to go to that trouble and expense. I have made aquariums using 2 part marine grade epoxy on plywood. Throw in a glass front and puff: 300 gallon tank! It works great.

However, all you need is a primer and some paint. Or just use pool paint or basement/cement paint. My burm enclosure has pool paint, my iggy enclosure has basement paint and my water monitor has a combo of both. He also has an 80 gallon pond to laze in using the above mentioned epoxy method.

I have done all of the above with great success.

Best wishes.

Check this link out i have made multiple cages likle this for
iggys here in Florida for like rescues etc. Simple cheap and quick.

http://www.[bleep]/articles/iguana_cage.htm

good luck
ken
-----
0.1 Albino Cal. King (Fokker)
1.0 Reverse Okeetee Corn (trouble)
0.1 Creamsicle Corn (Spot)
1.1.9 Bearded Dragons (Bob & Margret and there kids)
1.3 Dogs(George, Sandy, Cookie) they are rescues, Lhasa Apso, Mutt, Boxer
1.0 Betta
0.1 Wife
0.1 Kid

http://www.r e p t i l e forums.com/articles/iguana_cage.htm

take the spaces out sorry
-----
0.1 Albino Cal. King (Fokker)
1.0 Reverse Okeetee Corn (trouble)
0.1 Creamsicle Corn (Spot)
1.1.9 Bearded Dragons (Bob & Margret and there kids)
1.3 Dogs(George, Sandy, Cookie) they are rescues, Lhasa Apso, Mutt, Boxer
1.0 Betta
0.1 Wife
0.1 Kid

Hi Tyler,

I agree with much of what you've already heard here. I especially agree with Matt that it's not clear what your current situation is and what your needs are.

You seem to say you need a clear coat that will dry quickly. In that case you should avoid any polyurethane or varnish. Water-based polys dry quickly but an iguana will destroy that finish in a matter of weeks.

I'm sorry, but we really don't have enough information to give you the help you need.

My best guess is that you need something quick and easy. In that case the shower board or FRP is probably best. Shower board is much easier to work with but does not withstand scratching very well. I lined an iguana enclosure with it many years ago and it got scratched up very quickly. But if you really need to line the cage with something while you decide what to do about a larger cage I believe this is your best choice. But again it's not clear to me what your current situation is.

Perhaps answering these questions will help us help you:

1) How large is your iguana? Snout to vent, total length, and its girth will all help.

2) How big is its current cage?

3) Is its current cage the one you are trying to seal or is it a new, larger cage you are trying to seal?

Once I know the answers to the above questions I'll probably have more.
-----
Current snakes:

1.1 Gonyosoma oxycephala - (Silver/Yellow)

3.4 Gonyosoma oxycephala - (Green)

2.1 Gonyosoma janseni - (Black)

Ok here it goes the whole story. My iguana is around 3' and is too big for his 5'tall x 3'wide x 2 1/2'deep enclosure wich is made out of pine. Since my ig lost some weight when I took him out of the cage I rescued him in, I figured pine might be the reason he his getting skinny (not 100% sure) though everything is good (food, heating, lighting) except for his current cage.

So I wanted to seal the pine cage he is in now and also add onto it but since I couldn't find any epoxy I thought of building one out of pvc. That failed when I couldn't find the right elbows to put it together and thats when I hit a brick wall and now don't know what to do.

How do you make a frame for the FRP?
Is the pine causing his loss of weight?
Is the size of the cage causing loss of weight?

Chris....do you have any pics of the ig cage made out of FRP?

Tyler

I highly doubt it's the pine that is causing him trouble. As you say, many people keep Iguanas in pine-framed enclosures with no trouble.

I don't see any reason for you to make any changes to this cage if you're not having any trouble controlling environmental variables. If it's too small then you need to focus on building him a larger cage.

>>How do you make a frame for the FRP?

FRP can be attached directly to the walls of any cage. If it's a framed/screened cage it has enough structural integrity to attach to the frame only.

>>Is the pine causing his loss of weight?

Again, I highly doubt it.

>>Is the size of the cage causing loss of weight?

I suppose it could be causing him some stress, but that's a more appropriate question for the Iguana forum.

>>Chris....do you have any pics of the ig cage made out of FRP?

The iguana cage I built used regular cheap shower board, not FRP. I do not have any pictures.
-----
Current snakes:

1.1 Gonyosoma oxycephala - (Silver/Yellow)

3.4 Gonyosoma oxycephala - (Green)

2.1 Gonyosoma janseni - (Black)

I found he also sneezes once and a while

My sister has two rather enormous iguanas, who continued to outgrow all the cages she bought for them. About this time I moved into an apartment and out of the college dorms and had my loft left over. My parents came up with a great idea that has worked really really well. They just put a bottom on the loft, wire meshed the top, sides, and back, and fitted doors on the front. This gave the Iggies a 7 ft or so tall enclosure with the length and width dimensions of a twin size bed. Add some big branches and a ton of lights, and wallah! Most colleges will have enumerable used lofts for sale pretty cheap in the fall and spring. Just something to consider.

Elizabeth
-----
1.0 Mali Uro Archimedes
0.0.1 Egyptian Uro Zuberi Mosca Khu (Mosca)
0.0 Fish
0.1 Sulcata Minnie
1.1 Iguanas Flik and Loki
0.1 Newfoundland Jasmine
0.1 Feline Winter
Indiana & Wisconsin