Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I build a retic enclosure(s) about 5 weeks ago and finished it with a stain/sealer polyurethane type finish and have put the 2 units in our warehouse (taking them out and sit in the sun for 2 weeks straight also) to allow the "offgasing" to take place. Wow, what a wait it truly is for this to happen!!! I still smell it when I stick my head in the enclosure so it will take some more time.

My question is: next time (which won't be long) I would like to use something that won't take near as long to offgas. Reading down a bit further I noticed some of you had been talking about Epoxies. Can you name some brands or give me some clues as to what to look for to make sure I do not end up in this same boat again "waiting" to offgas? If it says EPOXY is that safe, are there any other catch words to "be on the look out for", etc.

I really appreciate your help.

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"New strategy R-2, Let the Wookie Win!!!"

>>I still smell it when I stick my head in the enclosure so it will take some more time.

The problem with those stain/poly combos is that they don't absorb into wood like regular stains. And they really don't coat like a paint either. What happens in the hands of someone inexperienced is that they apply the first coat much too thick trying to achieve and even color. This is especially problematic with birch and pine type plywoods.

To make a long story short, applying oil-based poly to thick is almost the same as leaving it in the can with the lid on - it never dries. I hope this is not what happened to you. It's a problem with any oil based poly, but it's especially problematic with these hybrids as ones tendency is to apply them too thick.

>>Can you name some brands or give me some clues as to what to look for to make sure I do not end up in this same boat again "waiting" to offgas?

Actually, most epoxies take a very long time to offgas. Fiberglass resin is a good example. The one product that does not take long is Envirotex Lite and it's numerous clones.

>>If it says EPOXY is that safe, are there any other catch words to "be on the look out for", etc.

Not necessarily. Not all expoxies are suitable for potable water, for example.

If you really want to avoid long offgas times you might consider laminating plastic or FRP on the insides of your next cages. You might even consider doing that with your current cage if it never offgasses.
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Current snakes:

1.1 Gonyosoma oxycephala - (Silver/Yellow)

2.2 Gonyosoma oxycephala - (Green)

4.3 Gonyosoma janseni - (Black)

I may be in trouble then. It may never "offgas", kinda expensive to just trash, is there any way to fix the mess I have now?

You spoke of "laminating" my current cages. Can you direct me to a website that tells me how to do this?

Should I buy one of those "strippers" and strip my cages now then apply the Epoxy you spoke of?

Would I be able to apply the epoxy on top of the coat that is currently "offgassing"?

Thanks for your help.
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"New strategy R-2, Let the Wookie Win!!!"

>>I may be in trouble then. It may never "offgas", kinda expensive to just trash, is there any way to fix the mess I have now?

I am not an expert woodworker by any means, but do try to read several specialty forums every now and then. The most common "fix" is to sand the un-cured polyurethane off with a belt sander. Understand that there are some safety concerns with this. Specifically the dust is very nasty.

I would not bother with this until you give the cage an awful lot of time to offgass. I had a project I built for the university take weeks before it stopped smelling, but it eventually did and was able to house delicate insects. You don't want to hear this, but I even put the enclosure in a 90*, humidity controlled incubator that was available. It still took over a month.

>>You spoke of "laminating" my current cages. Can you direct me to a website that tells me how to do this?

I thought about this a bit more and am not sure that it's such a good idea. The solvent fumes will still find their way out into the cage. Best to let it continue drying.

But laminating simply means gluing some sort of plastic sheet to the wooden carcass of a cage. FRP, expanded PVC, or shower/tile board, all work. They do tend to be cheaper than epoxies.

>>Should I buy one of those "strippers" and strip my cages now then apply the Epoxy you spoke of?

I would use a sander. But again, I recommend waiting.

>>Would I be able to apply the epoxy on top of the coat that is currently "offgassing"?

That may work. However, the Envirotex Epoxy that I have used (and recommended by the other poster) says it should be applied over water based polyurethane. It does not specifically say NOT to apply it over oil-based, but I wonder if the uncured solvents could affect the epoxy?

Again, I think your safe choice is to wait. Increase the heat, decrease the humidity.
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Current snakes:

1.1 Gonyosoma oxycephala - (Silver/Yellow)

2.2 Gonyosoma oxycephala - (Green)

4.3 Gonyosoma janseni - (Black)

Iunderstand, I have them in a warehouse now that reaches 100 in the daytime, I suppose I can use a heater or two to try and drive out humidity or at least reduce it and just let them "bake" for another month or two. It has been 6 weeks but I can wait.

Thanks

Mike
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"New strategy R-2, Let the Wookie Win!!!"

Envirotex epoxy. You can get small amounts from Michaels craft stores or you can get it by the gallon from www.Alpineimports.com I built 7' retic cages out of 1/2" plywood, applied the epoxy to all of the interior maybe 1/8" thick and the cage could probably hold a bull. The epoxy seeped into all the seams and cemented it together. Works great, little or no smell.