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The age old question... which I've yet to find a consistent answer to. What product or category of product do people recommend most heavily for wood enclosures? I *thought* I had a winner with Helmsman Spar Urethane (haven't used it yet, though), but finally found a negative review saying that it can out-gas for up to two months, even with proper ventilation.

I am finishing a walk-in vivarium, the sides and floor of which are plywood. I'm going to be using silicone to caulk the joints and gaps to help with water/moisture resistance, and then treat the interior with a wood sealer of some kind.

My options seem to be polyurethane, spar urethane, or acrylic. Some of these seem to be water-based, some seem to be oil-based. I'm finding it difficult to find reliable information on the out-gas time (not the "dry to the touch" cure time) of these products.

The interior will be a tropical-esque environment for two large boas; high humidity with standard heat gradient (not ever exceeding 90-95 at bask points.)

Any reliable tips on treating wood for a project this size? Should I return the spar urethane and go for poly? (the non-toxic options, like classic shellac, will not hold up to the humidity and heat: they're more decorative than functional.)

(Somebody recommended two-part epoxy paint used for garage floors, someplace else: but I read elsewhere that these can put off gasses for years.)

I have been using Polyurethane for many years with no issues with prolonged off gassing. I've also used Varathane, water based, but I don't like using it as a first coat due to it raising the grain but it has worked great as follow up coats with a Poly first coat. I still prefer the "warmth" of a Poly finish over the "cooler" look of the Varathane.

To get better penetration on the first coat of Poly I cut it 50/50 with thinner. This allows the Poly to get deeper into the wood prepping it for follow up coats. This is also a good tip if you choose to stain pine whether solid wood or pine plywoods. Pine is notorious for not taking stains evenly but this preseal coat eliminates that.

After the sealer coat I sand lightly, vacuum off any dust and follow up with 2-3 coats of straight Poly with sanding and vacuuming between coats. I then allow it to cure and off gas for a week in a warm area.
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BigT
There is a difference between ignorance and stupidity. The ignorant can be taught, stupidity is beyond our control.
1.2 P. m. melanoleucus B/W N. J. Northern Pines
1.2 P. d. deppei Mexican Pines
2.2 P. l. lineaticollis Linis or Lined Pines
1.2 P. m. lodingi Black Pines
0.3 P. c. sayi red bulls
1.1 Drymarchon melenurus Blacktail Cribo
1.2 D. corais Yellowtail Cribos
1.2 M. s. cheynei Jungle Carpet
2.6 L. p. pyromelana Arizona Mt. Kings
1.1 L. g. californiae B/W Cali kings
0.0.3 M. f. flagellum Eastern Coachwhips
1.2 G. m. bottegoi Western Plated lizards

I recommend using a "water sealer" of some sort (i.e. Thompson's). Then, I would use a piece of Styrene or comp for the bottom. It will hold up much better, be a lot easier to clean, and is very inexpensive and very easy to put in place. Just silicone around the edges. Best of Luck!

Thompson's water seal and the clone products are just paraffin wax dissolved in solvent naphtha and petroleum distillates. As the volatiles in the naphtha and distillates evaporate they leave behind the wax and oil residues contained in the distillates that never dissipate. Personally I would not want to expose any of my animals to these residues.

While the name may imply that it is a water "sealant" it really is nothing more than a temporary water repellent and the manufacturer's recommend regular repeat applications to maintain the water repellent benefits, if you can call it that. I won't even use this stuff on my deck. Thompson's is an example of superior marketing of an inferior product.
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BigT
There is a difference between ignorance and stupidity. The ignorant can be taught, stupidity is beyond our control.
1.2 P. m. melanoleucus B/W N. J. Northern Pines
1.2 P. d. deppei Mexican Pines
2.2 P. l. lineaticollis Linis or Lined Pines
1.2 P. m. lodingi Black Pines
0.3 P. c. sayi red bulls
1.1 Drymarchon melenurus Blacktail Cribo
1.2 D. corais Yellowtail Cribos
1.2 M. s. cheynei Jungle Carpet
2.6 L. p. pyromelana Arizona Mt. Kings
1.1 L. g. californiae B/W Cali kings
0.0.3 M. f. flagellum Eastern Coachwhips
1.2 G. m. bottegoi Western Plated lizards

Thanks for the info! Immensely helpful, printed this out and took it with me to Home Depot in fact. I honestly just get kind of lost when I'm in that place, so it was helpful to have something of a guide to keep me on track with what I was looking for. I wound up finding a staffer who was actually surprisingly knowledgeable (including knowing what areas he didn't know enough to make recommendations around!), and it turns out he had a chemistry degree and a nephew with snakes.

Thanks again.

Cheers!

Curious what the employee said.
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Mark

He sent me home with both a spar urethane and a water-based polyurethane by "Varathane" brand, with the suggestion that I do more chemical research on both from the manufacturer, some demos on scrap from the wood I'll be using, and go from there. I returned the spar and stuck with the water-based: which if I'm reading correctly is also one of the recommended ones on here, up above.

I'm satisfied with it so far! It has a beautiful glow on the plywood I've used (which is not the best ply -- on a budget, unfortunately) and so overall I'm very pleased so far. No pulling or unusually flowing as it dries -- a few drip spots which were my fault from early carelessness, but nothing critical.

The fumes are minimal compared to others (the spar sample I test *still* smells stronger than the far-more-coats water-based) and I'm damn satisfied.

I'm 4-5 coats in on the walls, and will let this cure for a couple of days before I add another 1-2, and do the floor.

This project has been a learning experience for me. I'm not completely clueless but I've only ever worked with smaller enclosures (typical 3x2 and 4x2 stackables), so the walk-in vivarium style set-up has really pronounced and magnified the things I don't know how to do well enough, ha. I have a lot of regrets and "shoulda woulda couldas" but so far this sealer isn't one of them.

In a year or two I may replace some of the wood for aesthetic reasons (assuming no major problems arise with leaking, moisture, etc) but so far I'm really stoked with how things have turned out.

Thanks for your help, guys.

Sounds good so far.

Spar varathane will have a stronger smell and take longer to off gas. It's meant more for high moisture/outdoor applications. It contains more oils to resin than Polyurethane to preserve flexibility with extreme temp changes. I know some have used it with success on enclosures. The Varathane should do the trick for you. I expect to see some pics of this enclosure when finished.
-----
BigT
There is a difference between ignorance and stupidity. The ignorant can be taught, stupidity is beyond our control.
1.2 P. m. melanoleucus B/W N. J. Northern Pines
1.2 P. d. deppei Mexican Pines
2.2 P. l. lineaticollis Linis or Lined Pines
1.2 P. m. lodingi Black Pines
0.3 P. c. sayi red bulls
1.1 Drymarchon melenurus Blacktail Cribo
1.2 D. corais Yellowtail Cribos
1.2 M. s. cheynei Jungle Carpet
2.6 L. p. pyromelana Arizona Mt. Kings
1.1 L. g. californiae B/W Cali kings
0.0.3 M. f. flagellum Eastern Coachwhips
1.2 G. m. bottegoi Western Plated lizards