# Bigger and better



## cools2036 (Jan 30, 2012)

Hi all,

just thought i would share with you my second custom build (enclosure).
would love to get your thoughts and feedback along the way...

ok so ive pretty much completed the 'build" part of the enclosure, the total measurements are 1200 wide x 1600 high and 600 deep... i built a 2 door cabinet at the botto which is 800 high so total height is 2200 ( its a monster)

it has one side access door, the front is one peice 8mm thick laminated glass.
it was a stainless framed window i picked up from a demolition sale for $10 looks brand new.

i used a pre-slotted 12mm x 80mm cladding timber boards as the main walls for the enclosure and cabinet.
i basically built a timber frame to the desired dimensions and cut the cladding to suit around the outside.

i then cleaned all the edges by purchasing some fancy routered skirting to go around the top and bottom edges of both the cabinet and the enclosure.

I capped the cabinet and based it with 12mm marine ply, and based the enclosure with this aswell.
I used 3mm ply as the backing, I left the top open for ventilation though i think i will add vents of some sort lower in the encloser.
I cut and staples snake wire to enclose the top and i plan on installing a peice of marine ply about 100-150mm wide to mount 2 x UVB 50w downlights and 1 x infra red or night purple 40w lamp and holder to ( pictures will come as im completing it)

the glass window was dropped into pre made channels that i had put in place before skirting it. i then sealed all edges with silicon.

the plan in my head that i have is the bottom left side of the enclosure will have a running water fall into a pond ( small about 1'x1.5') which the water level will come onto the glass so you can see under the water (if that makes sense) sort of like a pool with glass walls? im going to custom make the background ( all 3 side i think) as i did in my last build but a bit different in my technique this time. then finally riddle it with plants for a nice tropical fee.

Ive done a pre installation water seal with a none toxic pond sealer to the entire inside of the enclosure ( 3 coats) this will prevent the timber obsorbing moisture and cause mould, deformation expansion etc..

thats about where im at atm

my next plan is to pre cut all the Styro, im going to be concealling all cables/electrical into grooves i will pre cut in the back of the 50mm styro sheets i picked up from the local tip for $0..

im thinking half of it will have a coil of heating cable ( opposite to water fall side) which i will cable tie in the ( never ending S pattern) with Xmas tree clips and then pour about 20mm of self leveling cement in that section. this is a method i ude many times in my job on "under Floor Heating" ( im an electrician) it gives a perfect and even distribution of heat and whats best of all it retains it. like a stone or rocks would in the sun. 

if your using some of my techniques please make sure you coat every thing at every stage with water proofing 9 water based is best) the last thing you want is te have a moisture leak after completing the job and have to dismantle everything to re-seal it!

im thinking after ive roughed the foam into the desired shapes and what not im going to cover everything in a jet black grout mix, this will save time when painting later on (as everything will already be sealed and black which meant you only need to highlight it)

the grout will also give it a realistic texture though i most likely will add a desert sand mix with the waterprrofing on final coat after iver painted to give it that extra touch. (please make sure your waterproofing is a NON-TOXIC type)

thats about it for now i think..
ill be doing more tomorrow and will have some photos for you guys

thanks heaps for all the ideas you guys post on here, makes life so much easier when you can see things right infront of you.

Matt

Ok so ive got stuck into it today and heres what i have



In this pic you can pretty much see all the enclosure bar part of the cabinet,

its been stained throughout and water proofed on the inside only, 5 coats on the base floor and 2 on the inner walls.

you can see the front glass panel i picked up for $10.. 
Iv'e roughed in the the back 50mm foam panels, i had to cut them in half just to fit it inside!


Iv'e also cut/sealed and grouted the waterfall/pond section ( ill go into more detail further on)





in this pic you can see the door/access, i simply cleanly cut a whole in the shape, size etc that i wanted it to be then used that as the door.

after staining i noticed there was a 3-5mm gap around the door, prob not big enough for anything to squeeze in or out of but it annoyed me non the less, it also swung both ways  you'll see my solution in the next pic...




i framed the door in a routed skirting which made the door sit flush, stopped it bowing and also sealed up those gaps  i can sleep easy now...









This is the open top after ive stapled the snake mesh to it, i find staples are the best. ive seen ppl use pin nails and just bend them to hold it down but they rust and its just dodgy.
galvanised staples are cheap as hold better and are pretty much flush so nothing your rep mate cant get snagged and injured on. though it is fixed on the outside.



Ok so on the inside you see that i have the first half of the backing in place and notice theres a hose sticking out, this is the outlet end of the waterfall feature, at the bottom is an inlet end ( will go into more detail further along)
I fixed the hose inplace behind the foam peice by cutting a V-Channel out and holding it in place with a bead of silicone




In the below pic you can see how ive sectioned off the pond area and also the inlet pipe for the pump (will cut to length at the end)
Its been grouted and sealed, still needs more detailed cuts and adds to give it the final texture and shape but you get the picture.












after all grouting is complete i will clean all the edges up etc, ages away tho.

so that day one of the internals will get another session done tomorrow hopefully..

cheers

matt


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## raycam01_au (Feb 1, 2012)

Epic, 
love these builds 

gr8 work


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## intoxicated88 (Feb 1, 2012)

did you build this out of and old piece of furniture or is the whole thing done custom?


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## cools2036 (Feb 1, 2012)

The whole thing was done custom, I picked the glass panel first and made the rest to suit, build the cabinet last. Cost around $150 worth of timber.


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## cools2036 (Feb 6, 2012)

Ok so ive roughed in the heating cable



Ive started to shape out the pieces ill need for the waterfall and pools







Coming together nicely

still tossing up weather or not to heave real or silk plants, the whole maintenance and snakes crushing them makes me lean towards silk, they look just like the real thing too..


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## aussiesport (Feb 7, 2012)

thats awsome mate looking forward to seeing it finished , very similiar to one im building 6'x4'x2'with slidning window front and ply everywhere else in a steel frame with castors , hoping to finish it soon


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## cools2036 (Feb 7, 2012)

aussiesport said:


> thats awsome mate looking forward to seeing it finished , very similiar to one im building 6'x4'x2'with slidning window front and ply everywhere else in a steel frame with castors , hoping to finish it soon



Thanks mate, taking my time planning out everything is the best move. Can't wait too it's finished.
You should post your build blog up I'd love to see it!


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## Jarden (Feb 7, 2012)

What are you housing in it , Looks awesome .


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## cools2036 (Feb 7, 2012)

Jarden said:


> What are you housing in it , Looks awesome .



I'll either have albino Darwin's or high yellow diamonds. Seeing as I want it to be semi tropical and planted I think diamonds. Was thinking gtps but due to the open top it wont hold the humidity required for them.


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## cools2036 (Feb 13, 2012)

Ok sorry for the lateness in between updates!

I have finished cutting and shaping all peices and parts for the new setup,

as pictured below you can see some that have just been cut/shaped and others that have had their final coating of Grout.
the next stage is sealing with Pondite or other waterbased non-toxic sealant, then on with the liquid sandstone.









More to come soon.

cheers


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## cools2036 (Feb 19, 2012)

Here is what im up to so far,
as you ca see the background and peices are pretty much fully pre-coated and waiting finishing.


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## Bedella (Feb 19, 2012)

lookin very good so far!


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## cools2036 (Feb 22, 2012)

Ok so finally some progress....

Ive started final coating the whole inside of the enclosure,
Ive made up my own mix which is mould retardent, waterproof and Non-toxic.
Ive mixed a bit of dark brown oxide into it to give it a natural looking colour before the stone layer goes on.
this will give it good colour depth and make the multi tones and cracks looks real.
Ive posted before and after shots....

Before


After


...............................................................
Before


After


........................................................
Before


After



As you can see its coming along nicely, taken a month with work etc but well worth it.

Now on to the underefloor heating
Ive made a mix of white cement, brown oxide and a few other ingredients for the filling to submerge the heating cable.

Before


After


This will be covered in a mix of fine/course critter crumble.




Now all thats left is to complete with the stone finish and then fitout with plants/vines etc.

once all thats complete ill run through my lighting/cycling arrangement

Thanks

Matt


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## browny (Feb 22, 2012)

wow just wow


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## Kc_read (Feb 22, 2012)

really can't wait to see the finished product, you've really done an amazing job mate. Congrats


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## disintegratus (Feb 22, 2012)

*turns an awful shade of green with envy*
That looks incredible!

This is what things look like in my head, but then somehow they turn into these horrible mutant things that don't deserve to exist because i'm constructionally challenged.


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## Jake007 (Feb 23, 2012)

After ya done just pop around to mi house and wax one up for us  
(wishing hard)

Haha that's just wow mate well done can't wait till its all done love the little pond ya got there ... How will u change the water ?


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## cools2036 (Feb 23, 2012)

Thanks for all the kind words everyone, I'll see how this final project goes and I may start doing it for ppl.
Im planning to run a small filter in with the pump, put some of that aquarium cycle into it so it should last a good few months before cleaning. As the natural bacteria breaks everything down.


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## Gruni (Feb 25, 2012)

Looking great Cools, I finally got a chance to check it out. I only skimmed so far and will have a proper read later but can you easily remove the front glass or do you have to do all the work via the side door?


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## cools2036 (Feb 25, 2012)

Gruni said:


> Looking great Cools, I finally got a chance to check it out. I only skimmed so far and will have a proper read later but can you easily remove the front glass or do you have to do all the work via the side door?



In the initial build the glass panel slides out of the top. Now everything has to be done inside, but that's ok it's big enough to go inside.


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## cools2036 (Feb 29, 2012)

partially completed 










cant wait for the greenery just got the pond light to illuminate under the waterfall!
updates soon

Matt


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## thepythonguy (Feb 29, 2012)

Wow that's awesome mate very good work


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## dneti (Feb 29, 2012)

Looks great so far! Maybe if I didnt have two left feet for hands I could do this too. 
Looking forward to seeing the finished product with the addition of greenery.


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## Jande (Feb 29, 2012)

Looking great. Keep the pics coming!


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## cools2036 (Mar 1, 2012)

OK everyone i think its safe to say its actually looking like a habitat!
it was worrying me for a while there, but after adding most of the greenery im definately satisfied with the outcome.

so all thats left is to finish the second half of the rock wall with the stone finish, drape the vines, and find a small green vine to hang off the edge of the waterfall.

then im done and dusted!

spewing the glare from the glass ruined a few shots...



















so im hoping the next update i make is of it completed and with its new inhabitants...

matt


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## Gruni (Mar 1, 2012)

Keep it up Matt and Stein will be knocking on your door with a job offer! 8)


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