Glue sealant & grout!

[Ethelia]

Hello all.

Ive bought all the bits and pieces to create Miso's platforms and furnature in her new viv, however I still have not bought any grout, sealant or glue.
I have high density foam, timber and logs.
The foam will need grouting and sealing.
The timber will need nailing and glueing.

Could a kind soul please tell me what is safe to use inside her viv in terms of glue sealant and grout.
Glue is my main worry as Im going to be using a bit of it.

No brand names please because Im in the UK and we never have the "good stuff" over here.
Just descriptions like "no ammonia" "no polyeurethine" etc (can you tell I have no idea what im talking about?)

I would be massively greatful because Ive just spent alot on all her bits and pieces (instead of buying myself a new suit) and I dont want to ruin it or put my little monster at risk.


Hugs!
Holly

 

[aoscar]

wood glue works, I had great success with sanding sealer, I also used sanded grout though there seems to be more people who prefer the non sanded variety. hope this helps.

 

[jakeh2009]

glue guns work great and are cheap, that is what i ended up using on my platform, i tried liquid nails and i must have bought the wrong product because it didnt work. grout is grout i think, you can go with either sanded or non sanded, i used non sanded and worked great some people say its easier than sanded but i dont see how much of a difference it would make, and for the sealer i used mod podge, worked great just added water and put into spray bottle for first few coats then did a full concentration over the top and high traffic areas... There are many other sealers out there though, just look for a non toxic sealer, i also seen a few there were for like old wood toys and other things like that, if its safe around small kids im sure its not going to hurt your BD. Just make sure to apply the proper amount and let it air out for a while and then your done... Make sure to keep refitting your project or it may become to wide to fit into your enclosure if you are using a tank or a top load viv. good luck and let us know how it turns out.

 

[kinky]

Hello all.

Ive bought all the bits and pieces to create Miso's platforms and furnature in her new viv, however I still have not bought any grout, sealant or glue.
I have high density foam, timber and logs.
The foam will need grouting and sealing.
The timber will need nailing and glueing.

Could a kind soul please tell me what is safe to use inside her viv in terms of glue sealant and grout.
Glue is my main worry as Im going to be using a bit of it.

No brand names please because Im in the UK and we never have the "good stuff" over here.
Just descriptions like "no ammonia" "no polyeurethine" etc (can you tell I have no idea what im talking about?)

I would be massively greatful because Ive just spent alot on all her bits and pieces (instead of buying myself a new suit) and I dont want to ruin it or put my little monster at risk.


Hugs!
Holly

I'm in the UK too. B&Q do a pot of PVA glue that i used for my fake rock. it's none toxic and there was enough to cover roughly 2 square metres 3 times. It costs around £8 in B&Q but i found it slightly cheaper at an independant tile shop. That will seal the grout and also stick your wood together. I used the same shop for my grout I just asked for some sandstone grout. The guy told me that the Americans call tile adhesive 'grout' so i bought some of that as well just incase the grout didn't stick, but it was fine. i got a 3KG bag for about 6 quid. I used 2. To stick the polystyrene together i used coving adhesive from B&Q although it took ages to dry, my ledges are also embedded into the sides for extra support. To seal my viv and floor tiles i used some acrylic sealant from B&Q, the stuff in tubes that you put in the squeezy gun thing (!). I cant find it on diy.com nor can i find the stuff i have left but its a white tube with acrylic written quite small on the front. I got some aquarium sealant off ebay, the stuff you can apply under water but i found it really hard to work with.

Hope this helps. Building my viv and fake rock is all i've thought about for the last 6 weeks and i know how hard it can be to find stuff, especially when this forum is US based. My runners for the doors are STILL on order from B&Q after 5 WEEKS! I was so glad when i found them here..

http://www.vivtronic.co.uk/reptilepets/index.asp?PageName=ProductList&CurrentCategory=46&CatDescription=Vivarium%20DIY&ParentId=8&ParentDesc=Miscellaneous

had them in 2 days.

 

[jargonchipmunk]

yeah... we call grout.... grout lol tile adhesive we call.. erm... tile glue I guess? I'm not sure which Americans your hardware store clerk spoke with :wink:

more to the point. there are also solutions you can add TO the grout instead of using the sealant process, these make the grout itself a lot sturdier. Either way works fine I guess. There's also specific grout sealers in the tile section of most large hardware stores, they serve to strengthen the grout as well as basically waterproofing it. I haven't tried using these myself, but I plan to give them a go on the next round of personal projects I do.

 

[aoscar]

Hello all.

The guy told me that the Americans call tile adhesive 'grout' .

no, we call grout- grout and tile adhesive- tile adhesive or glue