# Building My First Hide Tomorrow



## saximus (Jul 19, 2011)

I've finally finished with all of my internship and working interstate stuff so I'm going to get stuck into making (attempting) my first hide. I've read quite a few threads (including my own sticky in this forum) so from that I'm going to put the steps I intend to follow below. If someone could comment on my steps and let me know where the probable issues will arise (or if I should be doing anything different) I'd be very appreciative.

1. Make mould/base out of aviary mesh for strength and stability
2. Coat mesh in expand foam (wearing gloves and careful not to get it on me)
3. Paint on a few coats of grout making the mixture thicker as I add each new coat
4. Sprinkle some sand on final coat for texture
5. Coat a few times with grout sealer or pondtite - will depend on people's recommendations and what I can find at Bunnings

Before someone mentions it these will be for snakes so I don't need to worry about claws - hence my use of grout instead of cement. 
Hopefully the mesh will provide enough strength to counteract the brittle nature of the expand foam. Other than that I'm hoping these are the correct steps.
I'll make sure I take lots of photos of the work/disaster as it progresses...


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## J-A-X (Jul 19, 2011)

Good luck and have fun


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## saximus (Jul 19, 2011)

Thanks Jax. Does that mean you approve of my steps? I'll make sure I add this thread to the DIY group too. Finally I can have some meaningful input to the group


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## Snakeluvver2 (Jul 19, 2011)

Looks good dude! 
What's it for and how big?


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## saximus (Jul 19, 2011)

Thanks man . The first one will be for a Mac then if it's successful I'll go bigger for my Jungle


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## Snakeluvver2 (Jul 19, 2011)

Awesome, make sure to post some pics soon and cut up the expanda foam, it looks more much natural with a mixture of flat ridges and curves.


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## Laghairt (Jul 19, 2011)

If I were you I'd use a polyester resin like builders bog instead of expanda foam. It will work out about the same price, be stronger and easier to work with. I would also consider using an epoxy resin rather than pondtite. With the resin you can paint it on and then just press sand into it. It will look a lot more authentic be just as waterproof and will dry a lot faster. Here's a pic of a Background I made from epoxy resin and red desert sand on the weekend. 

There is also a product called liquid sandstone that will work a lot better than grout. It has an acrylic in it so you just paint it on and looks really authentic. You can buy a litre for $27 from bunnings and that will be enough for many hides. I wouldn't bother with gorut/cement mixes as they generally look crap.


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## saximus (Jul 19, 2011)

I definitely will J man.
Hmm thanks Rondo I'll have a look at the prices and see. Can you get the epoxy resin from typical hardware places?


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## Laghairt (Jul 19, 2011)

You can get a number of brands from Bunnings but I get it from a local boat builder very cheap. It is an expensive product but far superior to anything else out there for making fake rocks and you won't need much at all so you could buy a small tin. Your finished product will be strong, light and completely waterproof.

Alternatively, just use the liquid sandstone and the sealer made by the same company that has a natural (low gloss) finish. That will probably be cheaper.

This is the brand I use and they have it at bunnings:

Liquid Sandstone - Product Catalogue - Mega Treat 2000 - Quality Suppliers of Liquid Terracotta, Liquid Sandstone and Liquid Limestone


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## saximus (Jul 19, 2011)

Oh man now you're throwing too many options into the mix .
That stuff looks interesting though


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## Laghairt (Jul 19, 2011)

I used the Desert Gold colour and it's great. It will look better than any grout mix. The epoxy resin will be superior to all other options though.


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## Snakeluvver2 (Jul 19, 2011)

Generally, how much is a 1L or 2L of builders Bog?


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## Laghairt (Jul 19, 2011)

I think it's around $30/L but it gets cheaper for larger tins.


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## Snakeluvver2 (Jul 19, 2011)

Cool and how much could you build from say 2L? 
Cover a 3ft enclosure?


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## cadwallader (Jul 20, 2011)

whats the weight like in comparison to concrete?


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## Laghairt (Jul 20, 2011)

Polyester resin is much lighter but also a lot more expensive. Not sure how much it would take to cover 3ft. For something that big you would probably be better of using polyurethane foam to make a mould and then painting on epoxy resin and sand.


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## Snakeluvver2 (Jul 20, 2011)

Thanks for that.


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## Laghairt (Jul 20, 2011)

No probs. It's actually really easy to make great looking backgrounds/hides.


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## Sofoula88 (Jul 20, 2011)

I know ur moulding it rather than making it entirely out of foam but here's some pics of mine I made a while back out of styro..I also used grout to get it hard n stable..dunno if uve made it yet but yeh def dnt make the first couple of coats of grout to thick..ull find if u put a layer on too thick it will crack..another tip I can give u is if u want really smooth lines not rough n ragged in certain areas grout with a thick layer and then go over while it's drying n smooth it out with a very runny almost water mix..works greatanyway here are the pics =]. http://i820.photobucket.com/albums/...ucket.com/albums/zz121/sofoula88/b20280ac.jpg


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## 1woma (Jul 20, 2011)

Rondo- id love to see pics of how you did that.... i have no experience with any of those products but am interested.... i think it mite be to expensive though for lg walls

Sax- dont forget pva glue in the first couple layers there have been a couple threads using liquid sandstone, it seems a little bit expensive to me, it doesnt go as far as the clear pondtite. i dont use sand either, on the last layer of remder i just dod the brush all over it to hide any brush strokes. this makes the surface kind of rough..... i even watched one of my snakes use my rockwall to shed the other day soooooo COOOLLLLL!!!!!!!


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## J-A-X (Jul 20, 2011)

saximus said:


> Thanks Jax. Does that mean you approve of my steps? I'll make sure I add this thread to the DIY group too. Finally I can have some meaningful input to the group



LOL, since when do you need my approval !!! theres always more than one way to get the end result, if this works for you and your happy with it then go for it.
but its looking ok so far.

I'll have to look into the resin 'thing' once I get some time. it sounds promising. I love experimenting with different products and seeing what results can be acheived


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## saximus (Jul 20, 2011)

Haha Jax everyone knows you're the DIY Queen so your approval is important 
I went to Bunnings but couldn't find the liquid sandstone stuff so just bought some grout. I also decided on pondtite as the sealer just because it was the first one I saw. I also decided to stick with expand foam just because the builder's bog was a bit too expensive for my needs.
So this is where it's at so far:
The mould for stretching and shaping the mesh:





The aviary mesh skeleton:




The lump of poo with the foam covering:




Now I am just waiting for it to dry and I will start with the grout


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## abnrmal91 (Jul 20, 2011)

I tried making one out of expanding foam and it just need up liking like a large dog crap lol I gave up on that idea after that. I tried using the plaster they use for broken bones (handy having you mum as a nurse). It worked well I used a bowl as a mould. Unfortunately by the time I actually had a chance to make it the snakes then didn't fit in the hide. Haven't had a chance to make a new one yet. The plaster was really strong as it is a mesh in plaster sheets.


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## J-A-X (Jul 20, 2011)

saximus said:


> Haha Jax everyone knows you're the DIY Queen so your approval is important
> I went to Bunnings but couldn't find the liquid sandstone stuff so just bought some grout. I also decided on pondtite as the sealer just because it was the first one I saw. I also decided to stick with expand foam just because the builder's bog was a bit too expensive for my needs.
> So this is where it's at so far:
> The mould for stretching and shaping the mesh:
> ...



aw shucks, you almost made me blush (not an easy feat) i'm SOOO going to have to get a cap with DIY GURU (see other thread LOL) stamped on it, i'm not much of a 'tiara' type of girl. 

I knew there was a reason i keep a stack of lego at my place, heaven knows it only encourages people to bring their kids when they visit ~shudder~ so I might have to move it to the shed.
and ..... I call that chicken wire, aviary mesh is square (at least here in SA.)



abnrmal91 said:


> I tried making one out of expanding foam and it just need up liking like a large dog crap lol I gave up on that idea after that. I tried using the plaster they use for broken bones (handy having you mum as a nurse). It worked well I used a bowl as a mould. Unfortunately by the time I actually had a chance to make it the snakes then didn't fit in the hide. Haven't had a chance to make a new one yet. The plaster was really strong as it is a mesh in plaster sheets.



the plaster cloth is available from artist / craft suppliers, although not as cheap as 'mum' rates  and Yes, i've tried it as well. there's actually some in the soon to be shown in public current project. !


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## saximus (Jul 20, 2011)

Haha oh how exciting. Yeah this stuff has expanded much more than I would have liked. What do you use to cut this stuff? If it easier to use a hack saw once it's dry?


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## J-A-X (Jul 20, 2011)

let it dry, wet its just messy !

And you'll notice i've made an addition under my username, .... they wont let me put DIY tragic/guru/queen..... its to long


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## saximus (Jul 20, 2011)

lol you're a funny one. 
I just coated my second "skeleton". It went a lot smoother this time.

Oh also this is much smaller than what I would normally call chicken wire but you're probably right it's not actually aviary mesh. The official name on the thingy is Bird Netting


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## abnrmal91 (Jul 20, 2011)

Thanks jaxrtfm I didn't know you could get the plaster stuff from an art shop. I am happy to pay for it. Any idea what size the sheets come in? The stuff I have is on a narrow roll. 

Plus I love your new title lol


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## J-A-X (Jul 20, 2011)

I'll get some details when I get to the shed. There are times I hate working. It Takes up time I could be in the shed ! If only xlotto would pay up


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## 1woma (Jul 22, 2011)

how is it going Sax?????


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