Fiberglass resin

[froggerboy]

I read a juornal that had epoxy coated plywood for the frame of the cage and wanted to know if the fiberglass resin could be used the same way. Its significantly cheaper and is available in town.I know it has a long cure time but thats not a concern for me. I have to build a vivarium that is ruoghly 6' H 4'W 3'D and glass is not an option except for the front.

you need to use epoxy from my understanding. the normal fiberglass resins you see for much cheaper are a polyester based. there is definalty a reason not to use the poly, but the only thing that is coming to mind is somethign to the effect of the polyester never fully curing, therefore constantly having a chemical reaction within the tank.

sorry i dont remember the exact science, but you want to use the epoxy resin.

[froggerboy]

What about spar varnish, its used for boats? the epoxy resin is just so expensive.

[StevenBonheim]

Epoxy is really your best choice. All the other resins used on boats are not recommended. A lot of marine grade epoxies, such as West Systems, are rated for use in water holding tanks, that's what you want to use. There are other options besides resins. Many people have used pond liner with good results, do a search- you'll find other options.

[froggerboy]

I want to go with what works and if mairne epoxy is the best then I have to do it.My tank is going to be too big for mistakes and has to hold about 40 gals of water

Get the 2 part fiberglass epoxy, resin stuff from an auto parts store like Advanced Auto Parts or Auto Zone. The brand I used was Bondo and it cost like $35 a gallon, but you can make several tanks with it. You also need the fiberglass cloth (about $5) to help the epoxy cover the seams in the wood. Put the cloth along the seams and then put the mixed epoxy/resin in and spread with your fingers (wear latex glaves!) You will have to do several layers to totaly waterproof it (let each layer dry out before starting the next). If done on a hot day, it dries really quick (mine dried in about an hour on an 85 degree afternoon). Just dont put the layers on too thin, and when you put a squirt of hardener catalyst in, work fast, because once it starts setting, you can't change it. If you7 have any more questions, be sure to ask. Good Luck!

i dont think its neccesary to use the fiberglass. ive built two now without and without problems. the most recent one i put some silicone in the corners to be sure, but thats it. silicone is a lot easier to work with than fiberglass, especially for some one without exp.

these tanks are much smaller than yours, but check out these journals.

in this journal there is no fiber. there is however a link to a good build site in the intro. the tank in the link is like 500 gallons
http://www.dendroboard.com/phpBB2/viewt ... ht=plywood

heres the one i did. i think i got a pretty good detail of how i used the silicone for extra leak insurance.
http://www.dendroboard.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=19366

[froggerboy]

I used fiberglass for a sand coated background for my tokays and it seemed fine but I'm gonna get the marine epoxy resin.
What problems did you run into?

[defaced]

I don't think Landon is saying it's bad to use fiberglass, just unnecessary.

^exactly

Originally Posted by froggerboy

I used fiberglass for a sand coated background for my tokays and it seemed fine but I'm gonna get the marine epoxy resin.
What problems did you run into?

are you talking about using the fiberglass resin though? most people refer to the polyester resin as fiberglass, but the "fiberglass" (as i refer to it) is the actual fiber. its usually in a mat or cloth form. i dont think its neccesary.

if you used a fiberglass resin that is poly based it may be just luck that you arent having trouble. it also could be that a tokay gecko isnt as sensative to chemicals that could leach through the skin. an amphibian would be much more delicate in these manners. im not really familiar with tokays, but most reptiles are a lot less effected by things like that. there are very few amhpibianms that you could let free roam in your home (actually none i can think of) but there are several reptiles that have no probelm doing so.