# How to make this on a smaller scale??



## Simon17 (Nov 8, 2012)

I've fell in love with this enclosure I found on the net, and it's really good as they show you the step by step in making this enclosure.

I wanna do something very similar to this and need help on how I can make this or sum-thing very similar to this.

Check this link out and then tell what you think?

Cheers guy's

Zoological Fabrication


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## Shaggz (Nov 8, 2012)

Some awesome looking work they have done there, i'd love to be able to some of that myself.


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## buffcoat (Nov 8, 2012)

Basic carpentry skills. build a square, frame in the walls. Spray expanding foam, chisel, grout, acrylic paint, sealer, add reptile.


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## mudgudgeon (Nov 8, 2012)

Spend some time reading through DIY threads here, the collect some materials and start experimenting.
Start with an existing cabinet (tv cabinet etc) will save a lot of work, the you can concentrate your efforts on being creative.
I've made some little bits and prices just to experiment with techniques before taking on a full scale project.

This was done as a temporary home for a hatchy EWD, used it as an experiment on techniques and materials


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## Justdragons (Nov 8, 2012)

mudgudgeon said:


>



looks fantastic


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## Cypher69 (Nov 8, 2012)

I swear there should be a The Block version on reptile renovations.
That would be a killer tv series!


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## mudgudgeon (Nov 8, 2012)

Cheers, I was pretty happy with the outcome. Cost me about $50 in materials for the rock feature, I used polystyrene packaging I scabbed from a bin. Spent money on glue, render, oxides and dealer, and had plenty left for probably three more similar sized projects.

I spent maybe 6hr total building that one.

I've just given this one away to a member here as I no longer need it.


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## Raymonde (Nov 8, 2012)

Cypher69 said:


> I swear there should be a The Block version on reptile renovations.
> That would be a killer tv series!



now that is a renovating show i would love to watch, far more interesting then remaking all the current renovation shows, i bet even non reptile lovers would watch out of curiosity


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## Simon17 (Nov 9, 2012)

buffcoat said:


> Basic carpentry skills. build a square, frame in the walls. Spray expanding foam, chisel, grout, acrylic paint, sealer, add reptile.



It's not the frame I'm looking to build, Its the theme enclosure part im looking to do, I already have a large viv that its going into.lol


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## Jaws07 (Nov 9, 2012)

Cypher69 said:


> I swear there should be a The Block version on reptile renovations.
> That would be a killer tv series!


Don't know about reptile conversions, but I watch an awesome show about fish tank builds, it's called tanked and on animal planet I think.


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## buffcoat (Nov 9, 2012)

Experiment. A can of foam, maybe some chicken wire to get the shape, exato blades and some carving tools...start spraying. When yer done with the shape ya want, paint it and seal it. 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using Tapatalk 2


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## mad_at_arms (Nov 9, 2012)

The key element is to have a go.
Must be a million* how to vids floating around the interwebz.
Start small and once you find your technique, go from there.




*maybe not a million


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## Simon17 (Nov 9, 2012)

Jaws07 said:


> Don't know about reptile conversions, but I watch an awesome show about fish tank builds, it's called tanked and on animal planet I think.



Yeah I watch tanked that awesome work them guy's do!! Yeah I love to see one bout reptiles think that would be a killer tv series aswell!!


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## Cypher69 (Nov 9, 2012)

Simon17 said:


> It's not the frame I'm looking to build, Its the theme enclosure part im looking to do, I already have a large viv that its going into.lol



Mate, you haven't mentioned what you want to keep in the enclosure. The species natural environment usually dictates or gives you a direction to the theme.

That Zoological Fab link looks like it's for primates.

Are you keeping miniature monkeys & where can I get some?


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## Simon17 (Nov 10, 2012)

Lmao no not keeping monkeys haha, the zoo fab link is for there python enclosure for a retic. I want to sum thing like that for either my carpet or boa! 

Tho the girlfriend is a monkey!! Lol


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## borntobnude (Nov 10, 2012)

thats a very intereting site with some top ideas . i know we keep some large herps in smallish containers but the snake in the small jobs looks way too big for its new home


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## The_Geeza (Nov 10, 2012)

Simon17 said:


> Lmao no not keeping monkeys haha, the zoo fab link is for there python enclosure for a retic. I want to sum thing like that for either my carpet or boa!
> 
> Tho the girlfriend is a monkey!! Lol


Where u from then Simon?


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## cathy1986 (Nov 10, 2012)

Simon17 said:


> Yeah I watch tanked that awesome work them guy's do!! Yeah I love to see one bout reptiles think that would be a killer tv series aswell!!



yeah something like PIMP MY CAR but for reptile enclosures or a whole collection room ;-)

Cathy


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## Simon17 (Nov 10, 2012)

Ozimid

Dude I'm from Northern Ireland uk. It's the wee tiny country at the top of Ireland lol. Where you from yourself??


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## Cypher69 (Nov 10, 2012)

Simon17 said:


> Lmao no not keeping monkeys haha, the zoo fab link is for there python enclosure for a retic. I want to sum thing like that for either my carpet or boa!
> 
> Tho the girlfriend is a monkey!! Lol




HA ha my bad. Every time I clicked on the link it would show me the bobcat enclosure...thus my confusion on why you wanted to duplicate a smaller version...


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## Simon17 (Nov 12, 2012)

Haha tho wouldn't mind a bobcat or a tiger in my back yard at some stage in the future. Tho don't think feeding it would be easy, unless the postie messed up. Lol


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## J-A-X (Nov 19, 2012)

at the risk of sounding like a nutcase. it wouldnt be that hard ! everything on that site you can do yourself with the same technique that is popular with most of us here, - - foam and render ! just literally on a smaller scale. 
i noticed in one of the shots they have got reference pictures taped to the front of the enclosure, its a great idea and stops you getting side tracked. just make your enclosure the size you want and make the 'furnishings' the right size to fit  

if you do go ahead make sure you post up pics


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## Simon17 (Nov 23, 2012)

Jaxrtfm said:


> at the risk of sounding like a nutcase. it wouldnt be that hard ! everything on that site you can do yourself with the same technique that is popular with most of us here, - - foam and render ! just literally on a smaller scale.
> i noticed in one of the shots they have got reference pictures taped to the front of the enclosure, its a great idea and stops you getting side tracked. just make your enclosure the size you want and make the 'furnishings' the right size to fit
> 
> if you do go ahead make sure you post up pics



See i was thinking of making the theme part outside the enclosure inside a wooden frame so once its ready i can just slide the whole thing into my vivarium that i already have. ( So the box frame will be 2mm boards put together to make a box ) so its a perfect fit inside the inner walls of the viv.

Yeah i'm making my own references up to combine a few ideas into the one design. Tho as i live in a flat my space to do things are quiet limited,lol but once I get all the things that I need, i will be making a start..might take me a while but ill get there lol

Of course ill put pics up of my project  

So was thinking styrofoam and expanding foam, cover the lot in wall plaster and sand down cover in grout then paint the whole thing and cover in a sealant????


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## mudgudgeon (Nov 24, 2012)

Skip the plaster, it won't achieve anything and could cause adhesion problems with grout. 
Acrylic render is cheap, easy to mix and apply, gives a strong coating, you get good coverage with one coat, a second to touch up thin areas and use the second coat to finish in a texture that suits. You can leave it rough and grainy, or smooth it as it dries to give a quite smooth finish. You can add texture and features with some imagination and basic household items.

You can add waterproof agents to acrylic render as you mix it, or use a liquid sealer later

If you want a smooth, fine texture, I'd consider using grout over acrylic render.


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## Simon17 (Nov 24, 2012)

mudgudgeon said:


> Skip the plaster, it won't achieve anything and could cause adhesion problems with grout.
> Acrylic render is cheap, easy to mix and apply, gives a strong coating, you get good coverage with one coat, a second to touch up thin areas and use the second coat to finish in a texture that suits. You can leave it rough and grainy, or smooth it as it dries to give a quite smooth finish. You can add texture and features with some imagination and basic household items.
> 
> You can add waterproof agents to acrylic render as you mix it, or use a liquid sealer later
> ...




Cheers mate for your advise and tip there, see as im a complete newbie to the whole building a theme idea its good just to throw out the idea of materials i was going to use for it, and to see what you guy's use!  

What is acrylic render anyway? is it like a cement or sumthing? Coz for the smooth bits i want i can use a texture roller of tree bark to make the effects that i want ( im the type of doing it right first time lol )


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## mudgudgeon (Nov 25, 2012)

Yeah, It's a cement based product. Comes as a dry powder, mix with water. Follow directions on the bag, but just mix a small tub full at a time (1kg ??)

Easiest way to apply it is to use a sponge and wipe it onto your Styrofoam base.
Use a paint brush to get into any small crevices etc.

It's cheap, so do some experiments on scraps of Styrofoam

A few ways you can change the finished texture

As it dries, use a peice of a thick plastic shopping bag, smooth the surface to give a 'granite' texture. Wait until It's quite firm to touch

Use a paint brush to brush away small grainy lumps and sandy bits as it dries for a sandstone texture. You can add some texture this way to make lines in the surface to look like layers.

Use a soft dust brush to dab the surface while wet to give a rougher texture. You can smooth any Sharp pointy bits off as it is drying with a paint brush, and smooth with plastic bag again, but gently so you keep the base texture

To create a creased slate look, scrunch up a plastic shopping bag and smooth it into wet, fresh render with a sponge, let the render dry then carefully pull the plastic out. This leaves random creases, and a quite smooth surface. Be careful not to bury creased bag to deeply into the render, it can get trapped in the render and be hard to remove.

You can also stick pebbles or rocks into the wet render.


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