Built a 4x2x2 out of melamine, bad odor iasue

Kyzer

Member
Hi so I built a 4x2x2 out of half inch white melamine, I sealed it with Dap Alex plus acrylic with silicone, and used gorilla glue to glue down the sliding door rails.

At first I had shelf liner as my substrate and got rid of it because the enclosure has a really high odor, and I thought that would get rid of the smell but it hasn't.

Does that Dap caulking or gorilla glue give off strong odor? I finished the tank 4 days ago , this is my first time building a tank so I'm not sure if this is common Or not. My little guy has been in their 2 days now, and seems happy in his new home but I'm worried about this odor, that doesn't seem to be going away.

109823-1018942367.jpg
 

Claudiusx

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Yes, you need to remove your dragon from it until you don't smell any odors anymore. If you can still smell odors (VOCs) then the products you used are still curing. And those VOCs are extremely dangerous for your dragon, especially being confined in a space with them.

It is most likely the silicone giving off the smell, but it could be the glue. Either way, it's not safe until there is no smell anymore.

For one of my builds when I used poly for one of them, I had to let it set out for 2 weeks before the smell was gone..

-Brandon
 

Kyzer

Member
Original Poster
Damn, he's going to hate going back into his 18x18x18. Is their any way you could think of to speed up the process of getting rid of the odor? I won't be able to move him until tomorrow evening when I get off work his lights been over 2.5 hrs now and the glass viv is packed away in the garage...

Do you think it can wait until Tomorrow evening?
 

Claudiusx

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
I kept the lights on and aimed a fan into mine to help cure it once I realized it was taking so long.

Ideally, you should move him right away, and that's all i'd feel comfortable recommending to be honest.
Sorry, it's just one of those things you learn about as you go, because who thinks to ask a question like that ha.

-Brandon
 

Kyzer

Member
Original Poster
Ok Brandon I appreciate the advise we rushed to get Yoshi into his new tank because he was not liking the small tank and the crappy coil UVB bulb seem to be hurting his eyes, and the new reptisun 22" is to big this small tank , this sucks!
 

Claudiusx

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Yeah I understand. Good thing is silicone typically cures quicker than something like poly. So hopefully the tank is all aired out in a day or two.

-Brandon
 

Kyzer

Member
Original Poster
RodinBigD":1e4lflwo said:
Do mind me asking what you used as a door track? and where you got it?

Hey honestly I followed this guys build, he was the only one I could find with a step by step build basically.

I did mess up though and did not follow it to a T. I suggest following it to a T if u want things to run smooth.

1. My friend who is a carpenter told me to mount the sides on the outside rather then what the biblical dragons guy suggested.

2. I used 1/2 melamine instead of 3/4 and it split pretty bad in certain areas stick to the script and you will have a easy build.

https://youtu.be/YxjuVMu1C9M
 

Kitlings

Member
Yeah it's probably the caulking causing the odor. That stuff stinks like hell! It's not good for you or your dragon. Definitely take your dragon out and ventilate the tank with fans/open windows/etc as much as you can for at least a week.
 

Kyzer

Member
Original Poster
Kitlings":2il1nhtm said:
Yeah it's probably the caulking causing the odor. That stuff stinks like hell! It's not good for you or your dragon. Definitely take your dragon out and ventilate the tank with fans/open windows/etc as much as you can for at least a week.


Yea I had him out for 3 days and did as Brandon suggested with the fans and keeping the lights on and things are much better now he's back in their and doing well other then the new tiles I got I'm pretty happy with his Viv.


He ended up hurting his eye though and when I came home from work the other day they're was specs of blood on the side wall of the tank, he had it closed and we've been putting eye drops on it and he's began opening it again.

Jeez who every said beardies were an easy first reptile were full of it lol, been some emotional roller coaster, but all and all we love it and love Him
 

Kitlings

Member
Kyzer":59lmgyi7 said:
Kitlings":59lmgyi7 said:
Yeah it's probably the caulking causing the odor. That stuff stinks like hell! It's not good for you or your dragon. Definitely take your dragon out and ventilate the tank with fans/open windows/etc as much as you can for at least a week.


Yea I had him out for 3 days and did as Brandon suggested with the fans and keeping the lights on and things are much better now he's back in their and doing well other then the new tiles I got I'm pretty happy with his Viv.


He ended up hurting his eye though and when I came home from work the other day they're was specs of blood on the side wall of the tank, he had it closed and we've been putting eye drops on it and he's began opening it again.

Jeez who every said beardies were an easy first reptile were full of it lol, been some emotional roller coaster, but all and all we love it and love Him

I totally agree, beardies are not beginner animals like some people say. They take some work!

What did he hurt his eye on? It sounds like that could be a serious injury if he was bleeding onto the sides of the tank. What kind of eye drops are you using for him?
 

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