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04-06-2008, 03:32 PM
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just a note u can get ur round vents from b&q £4 for a four pack and u need a 70mm hole saw to put them in b&q do these but there expensive look around tool shops there chaeper also for your wood try a timmber yard as its cheaper and b&q charge 50p after the first 2 cuts (and they carnt cut it right) also dont nail it together get proper conti board screws much better and cheaper check aquatic plases for runners sealent some stock it handles can be bought from som rep shops if your stuck i can get em £2 posted
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1.2 hypo crawl cays 1.1 salmon boas 1 stb mack 
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04-06-2008, 11:45 PM
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Yeah I went and had a look at the contiboard at B&Q. It was more expensive than I thought it would be but it'll do. The white is half the price of the maple so I might go with that because it looks very clean and would save me a bundle (which could go towards equipment).
B&Q have a brilliant deal on right now on this other stuff though, fibrewood or something. It's just as thick. Has anyone used it and know what it's like? If it's strong enough, I'd love to get it and paint it because it would be great value for money.
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05-06-2008, 12:02 AM
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fiberwood is MDF and a lot of people use it and seal it with yacht varnish.
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 I gots 1.0.0 Royal python (Snakiei wakieri) - 1.0.0 Staffy cross (mutii doggii) - 0.1.0 Northern inuit (wolfi likii) 0.0.5 tropical fish (fishii wishii) - 0.1.0 Angel Pants (fittii birdii) I wants 0.1.0 CWD (chinkii winkii dragonii) - 0.0.?? tropical fish (fishii wishiis)
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05-06-2008, 09:47 AM
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Quote:
Name: -Medium Density Fibreboard (MDF) Sources: -MDF is a type of hardboard, which is made from wood fibres glued under heat and pressure. Advantages: -There are a number of reasons why MDF may be used instead of plywood or chipboard. It is dense, flat, stiff, has no knots and is easily machined. Because it is made up of fine particles it does not have an easily recognisable surface grain. MDF can be painted to produce a smooth quality surface. Because MDF has no grain it can be cut, drilled, machined and filed without damaging the surface. MDF may be dowelled together and traditional woodwork joints may even be cut. MDF may be glued together with PVA wood glue. Oil, water-based paints and varnishes may be used on MDF. Veneers and laminates may also be used to finish MDF Disadvantages: -MDF can be dangerous to use if the correct safety precautions are not taken. MDF contains a substance called urea formaldehyde, which may be released from the material through cutting and sanding. Urea formaldehyde may cause irritation to the eyes and lungs. Proper ventilation is required when using it and facemasks are needed when sanding or cutting MDF with machinery. The dust produced when machining MDF is very dangerous. Masks and goggles should always be worn at all times. Due to the fact that MDF contains a great deal of glue the cutting edges of your tools will blunt very quickly. MDF can be fixed together with screws and nails but the material may split if care is not taken. If you are screwing, the screws should not be any further than 25mm in from the edge. When using screws always use pilot holes. Urea formaldehyde is always being slowly released from the surface of MDF. When painting it is good idea to coat the whole of the product in order to seal in the urea formaldehyde. Wax and oil finishes may be used as finishes but they are less effective at sealing in the urea formaldehyde Uses: -It may be used to make display cabinets, wall-panels and storage units. I'll either be going for that if it's safe (and painting it something interesting) or the white contiboard.
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05-06-2008, 07:12 PM
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yep just use MDF and paint with a few layers of yacht varnish
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I gots 1.0.0 Royal python (Snakiei wakieri) - 1.0.0 Staffy cross (mutii doggii) - 0.1.0 Northern inuit (wolfi likii) 0.0.5 tropical fish (fishii wishii) - 0.1.0 Angel Pants (fittii birdii) I wants 0.1.0 CWD (chinkii winkii dragonii) - 0.0.?? tropical fish (fishii wishiis)
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05-06-2008, 07:45 PM
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MDF can look really tacky at times though.
Marina  P.S you don't need to necessarily seal a viv to prevent moisture from seeping it it also stops sand and debris from getting in to the cracks of the joined wood. Marina
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 Hold on to your hopes and dreams Hold on to who you are Give in Take the journey.
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06-06-2008, 12:48 AM
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Ok, believe it or not I think my plans are pretty much finished. Been working it out all day, and I'm very confident about all the measurements. I've even been to B&Q and took note of all the different sizes they do so I can get the best deal. Because the contiboard does look good and won't need to be painted in the first place, I've decided to use the white contiboard for the whole thing except the back. The back only need to be partially painted anyway and it has to be a very large piece (if I want things to be easy) so I'm using MDF for the back. They didn't have contiboard that was big enough for the back. I could have sued a couple of pieces together but it would be cheaper using the MDF. So I've worked it all out including the cutting and the getting the wood cut and ready is almost exactly £50. Pretty good huh? Took a while to get it to that number. Had to play around with what sizes I would be buying and cutting and managed to get it from £75 to £50 just be being efficient.
I'm going to work on the frame this this week. Thanks once again for all the info. I'll try and get my hands on some yacht varnish and get that done soon (and painted as well). I'll start taking photos too and keep the thread up to date incase it's useful for others.
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08-06-2008, 07:07 PM
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Well, it has begun. Got the floor, sides and top together now. Nice to finally see the potential size of it in front of me. Next purchase is the shelf (floor of second viv) and all the front pieces that the glass will meet. Oh and a piece to section off a burrowing area in the bottom viv. That's all part 2. Some time after that, I'll be getting on with the runners, vents and glass and then the very last part will be getting the equipment connected!
As I said earlier, I suck at DIY. So I had a bit of a nightmare and a piece of wood I was using fell over and pulled screws out and snapped some wood. It happened because I was careless. But I learned from the mistake and it's not looking too bad at all. Quite chuffed with it considering my lack of craftsman skills! Already, many of the tips in this thread have been very useful!
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09-06-2008, 10:40 PM
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just a thought for you i was reading about stacks the other day and it advised when building a stack to dblup on the shelves to prevent the upper vivs for over heating as heat rises the temps can be hard to maintain on the upper vivs this could cause problems depending on what you will be keeping in them
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10-06-2008, 09:47 AM
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BEst of luck with the vivs
make sure you get some piccies and dimensions    
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9.5 Heterodon Nasicus 1.1 Eryx colubrinus 1.1 Elaphe obsoleta linheimeri leaucistic 1.1.1 Varanus acanthurus 0.1 Python Regius 1.1 Morelia spilota cheynei 1.1 Epicrates cenchria alvarezi 0.0.8 varanus acanthurus eggs. 
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