WAYNE'S WORLD

Wayne is currently in a 10 gal. glass tank that is entirely too cramped for his style. Even though he's a whopping 5 inches long, I watch him scrape at the glass begging to get out. So I started construction of his new VIV in hopes to have it finished ASAP and place him in. I'm assuming the VIV move would be easier on him as a baby rather than an adult.

I will consist of three pieces. So the part of the enclosure that he will be living in is going to be 48" x 24" x 24". The bottom piece will be a "chest" of sorts. It will have two doors that open. I haven't decided between sliding doors or regular doors that just open outwards. The middle piece will be the VIV that will have sliding glass doors on the front and then screened in on the top with vents on either side. And then the top piece will be the canopy that sits on top of the VIV obviously. It will have a circle cut out of the back to allow for wiring do that it can have a clean look about it.




I started with the VIV itself to work around that and make up for any measurement mistakes. I am not good with math at all. An eraser was used several times. -_-


I sent this to my husband to show him my progress and my mess and also to let him know I was stripping drill bits and screws. It was his fault obviously.


So after all of that I filled in any holes with putty and sanded everything down to get ready for paint. I had to do all of this inside the garage because of the horrible Tropical Storm Bill which was pouring rain outside. So because of this my entire garage is covered in saw dust (I only had about a 4' x 4' space to work with). Motorcycles, workbenches, toolboxes, everything is covered in dust. I will break out the air compressor when I have more room.


So I will be painting today and post as I go on. A good place to get Wayne friendly paint:http://www.ecospaints.net/ecos-reptile-enclosure-paint.html

That looks like it will be quite nice! One suggestion I have is to add some ventilation to the enclosure. It's important to allow for plenty of airflow. This post may give you some ideas on how to put that together. https://beardies.dreamwidth.org/2145.html

CooperDragon":15ztjdq5 said:

That looks like it will be quite nice! One suggestion I have is to add some ventilation to the enclosure. It's important to allow for plenty of airflow. This post may give you some ideas on how to put that together. https://beardies.dreamwidth.org/2145.html

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Got'em! You can see them in the sketch above but I just haven't cut them out yet. They're both 10x8 and on either side. I'll post pics when I get them in.

Looks nice. looking forward to the next photos. When it comes to the doors I like the looks of the sliding but I like the access the normal doors give.

I have even thought about doing a screen front door on my next one. More ventilation and lot less weight on the door.

warhawk":2txe1djb said:

Looks nice. looking forward to the next photos. When it comes to the doors I like the looks of the sliding but I like the access the normal doors give.

I have even thought about doing a screen front door on my next one. More ventilation and lot less weight on the door.

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Thats a good thought. Hopefully access isn't too much of a hassle.

So Ive got the VIV almost finished. I have to mount in the basking perch still and place the tile. I'm taking the tile to a buddies to get cut today. I tried it and it that was not a good idea lol. So heres some updated pics!


Here I've primed the wood and outlined for the vents.

Made the cuts and installed the vents.

Next I got everything painted and dried so I could install the screen on the top. I decided that putting the screen in first was not a good idea because I wouldn't be able to stick my head through the top and thank God I didn't because.---> ** NOTE TO WHOEVER- MAKE SURE YOU GET PAINTABLE SILICONE.** I had to cut out all the old silicone and repaint because I got the regular stuff and it looked absolutely hideous. NOOB issues. So with new paintable silicone and everything dried it looks great. My son is wanting to paint clouds on the back wall. I'm trying to figure out how to let a 9 year old do this without looking hilarious. I was thinking cotton balls dabbed in a bit of paint. ??


Inside the VIV with vents pointing inward and screen on the inside. I also painted the screen on the vents so it didn't look metallic.

So next I stapled on the screen top so I can sit the basking light on top. Originally I had a hole cut out of the canopy where the basking light would shine through but I went with a screen instead. This way I can move the basking around if I decided to rearrange his enclosure.



Then went in the bottom sliding glass rail. I'm having glass cut today and will install that last.


So thats it for now! I'm playing with different basking bulbs at the moment and testing basking temperatures inside the enclosure before I mount the perch. I want to make sure that when Wayne is older, I can just switch out the bulb and it will be the correct basking temp for him.

That's looking good! I didn't notice the vents in the original plans. They look like they're a good size and the screen top will help too. For the lights, you may want to think about an adjustable stand so you can change the heights based on temp readings across seasons. For small adjustments you could also use a lamp dimmer to cut or increase power to the bulb.

CooperDragon":1zquylhs said:

That's looking good! I didn't notice the vents in the original plans. They look like they're a good size and the screen top will help too. For the lights, you may want to think about an adjustable stand so you can change the heights based on temp readings across seasons. For small adjustments you could also use a lamp dimmer to cut or increase power to the bulb.

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Adjustable stand!? Is this sthing I make or purchase? Good call on the dimmer! Didn't think about that. Thanks! Glad I saw this before I mounted.

You can buy them or put something together yourself (perhaps PVC?) I use a couple of these and like them a lot http://www.amazon.com/Zoo-Med-Reptile-Lamp-Stand/dp/B000255OUO

CooperDragon":280tbdhe said:

You can buy them or put something together yourself (perhaps PVC?) I use a couple of these and like them a lot http://www.amazon.com/Zoo-Med-Reptile-Lamp-Stand/dp/B000255OUO

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Oh man, for some reason I read adjustable perch. That was like music to my ears. I can't use a stand as there will be a canopy on top. There will be some extra height in the so I can raise if need be.

Ok so I'v got the VIV finished and the canopy. All thats really left to do is the stand and play around with some decor. Here it is....

Here I started priming for all of the wood for the canopy.


Piecing everything together and I installed some boards inside the canopy told hold it up above the VIV.

I added a hinge top to make access easier just incase and also left the back of the canopy open to aid in venting.


I also added a privacy curtain for our "Sleep in Sunday's". Wayne's enclosure is in the master bedroom and come 8 AM the room is lit up like the 4th of July. So this will help with that.

Complete look with out the curtain for regular viewing. Now to get to work on that stand.

Here is Wayne checking things out. I can not believe how teeny tiny he looks in there. Its pretty ridiculous. But soon he'll fill it out.

That looks great! Is he having any trouble getting up and down the ramps?

I really wish I was that handy.

I just don't have any of the power tools needed and am reserving all my stored favors for when I move and get to make all my friends help. :lol:

It looks really good!!!

CooperDragon":33uoyev2 said:

That looks great! Is he having any trouble getting up and down the ramps?

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He seems to be doing ok. When I sanded the ramps I did it by hand And used coarse paper so he's able to still get a grip. I'll have to keep an eye on that as he gets bigger.

SukiLove":xcad1tos said:

I really wish I was that handy.

I just don't have any of the power tools needed and am reserving all my stored favors for when I move and get to make all my friends help. :lol:

It looks really good!!!

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Thanks so much! I worked really hard on it.