How To Make A Hide

[Kylec]

y about half an hour maybe just a little longer but sand stone is a soft material so it was fairly easy the only bad thing is my coastal is consantly in there and its a heavy hide to move lol

 

[engineerk9]

A clay plant-pot, cut a hole in the side, just big enough for the snake to slither thru'

 

[dragonlover1]

the only down side with the expand foam is that it isn't strong enough over a large horizontal area without some support under it, what size animal are you planning on using it for ?

I built a cave for a tortoise enclosure a few years ago using expanda foam,then painted and sealed it but the claws ripped into it a bit.Foam might be good for snakes .How about something for dragons that the claws wont damage?

If you wanted to make a pond I probably wouldn't use expanda-foam. Try cement or grout covered in pondtite. I don't think the foam would be water tight, even with a sealer on it.

I built a tortoise enviro with expanda foam,painted then sealed with marine varnish because I was worried about toxicity.No problem with leakage.

Would it be possible to work with expanda foam on a vertical surface? Instead of 3d foam sheets, could you do the fake rock effect straight on the wall of the enclosure?
Or will it not stick well enough?

Robbo

sticks to glass well enough, to support the roof of the cave I used a bit of cardboard

 

[J-A-X]

Painted foam isn't strong at all, even against larger snakes, for small hides, several layers of render will strengthen the hide. For larger ones a support of some kind is recommended prior to rendering, again several layers - the larger the claws the more layers required. Sealer doesn't add strength, it just stops the surface absorbing water/urine.

 

[cools2036]

My routine for foam creations/walls is 2 coats waterproofing 7 coats of render+oxide.
This gives a 5-9mm solid coat of hard surface.
Not even full grown monitor claws will peirce it.

Use chicken wire re-inforcment prior to rendering for bigger objects.

 

[JasonMini]

Hey, just whacked this together. Cut some pipe and stuck it together with hot glue. My Coco peat is arriving tomorrow or the day after. Im going to glue the peat over the surface of the pipe, im just curious what is a safe glue to use? i was thinking like PVA glue or something similar. Any suggestions? and yes. Look sideways haha.

I have been thinking of doing something like this for my Strenuus, love how u've curved it around the tank, looks great!

 

[Reptiles4me]

Hey you could make a mould then fill with plaster or anything that sets rock hard.
1. Take a box and fill with foam or clay anything like that.
2. Make a well in the foam (before it drys).
3. Shape the well with rough edges or anything you want.
4. Coat the well (several times) with cement and sealer.
5. Add a lubricant to the mould (to prevent the plaster from sticking to the mould).
6. Poor in (slowly) plaster.
7. When set ,tip the mould upside down and tap the bottom, the rock/hide/water & food dish should just pop out.
8. Paint and seal. Can't help you with paint and sealer brands because I'm not to sure witch ones to use myself. Sorry about that.