A Viv

[RNelson]

Looking to make a 6ft high, 4ft wide, 3ft depth viv for my CWD

But what's best to make it out of and how much should I be looking to spend?

[Jim2109]

its probably easier to make it from proper wood rather than Contiboard. i made mine from Sterling board. its kinda like plywood, but made from layers of chipped up wood rather than proper sheets. its plenty strong enough (substantially stronger than MDF) for the purpose, but not particularly attractive. but if you paint it then what does it matter. here is the frame of my viv...


my viv cost me £100 in wood and i had a carpenter friend cut it for me and slipped him £20 beer money. mine is 5 x 3 x 7.

alternatively youve got plywood, but that costs a lot more, but looks way nicer.

or you could probably use moisture resistant MDF so long as you seal it all up properly. the dust is highly toxic, but the actual fibreboard is fine once its sealed. id want it sealed inside and out with yacht varnish though as a very minimum. plus if it isnt sealed water contact will make it swell up.

personally id go with Sterling board (also known as "Oriented Strand Board", or OSB)

[pmcnaught]

must entirely disagree with the above,
go with contiboard a seal it with silacone on the interior of the viv to stop any moisture get in between the wood,
if your using contiboard be prepared to spend around 150-200 in wood and make sure you use 18mm thick stuff as the 15mm is just crap hope this helps
paul,

p.s. i made a beardie viv outa ply and wish so bad i used conti

[Jim2109]

firstly, Contiboard is expensive when youre building a very large vivarium, and is harder to get hold of in very large sizes. its also fairly weak wood, its just chipboard with a plastic coating. youd end up needing to support large panels or they will sag over time. Sterling board and Plywood are substantially stronger materials.

secondly, why did you wish you used Contiboard instead of Ply? Plywood looks excellent when its properly finished, and is incredibly easy to work with. i cant see any reason why anyone would use Contiboard over Ply aside from cost. and Sterling board is cheaper than both, and not much weaker than Plywood. it just looks fairly ugly unless you paint it.

[RNelson]

I Just need dimensions now of what to get cut lol and Jim how did you fit alltogether?

[RNelson]

Also Sterling Board or Contiboard? And where can I get it in big sizes?

[Jim2109]

mine is all held together by screws. i would have glued it as well but i was assembling it on my own and as you can see the wood sheets are fairly substantial in size. trying to position them at the same time as applying glue and then screwing them together would have been a nightmare, so i just used screws as it made it easier to position the sheets together. its absolute solid though.

get prices on Sterling and Conti Board in the sizes you require and then make your decision. i have a feeling Contiboard is going to cost about 50-100% more for what you need, plus its nowhere near as strong. not sure where youll get it from in large sizes, most of the DIY stores only sell it in small sizes.

Sterling board comes in 2440 x 1220mm standard sized sheets from any decent timber supplier. or large B&Q stores sell it and can home deliver it too. Wickes sell it at most of their stores but im not sure if they do home delivery. unless youve got a large van youll never get the sheets home otherwise! most timber suppliers will have delivery services if youre spending enough money. £100+ on wood probably constitutes that.