[Pumilo]

I have been asked to come up with some measurements for constructing an 18" x 18" x 24" viv by a young member of our board.

The constructions techniques he will be using follow this thread. http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/pa...tructing-euopean-type-vivarium-step-step.html Special thanks to Darryl Le Grange for supplying such great plans to the hobby! There will be a couple of slight modifications that I have seen used on other designs. These modifications will be outlined in my notes.

Again, the overall, outside dimensions will be 18" x 18" x 24" tall. This dimensions are a little bigger than what the other guy was going to build because it is NOT being designed to fit a bakers rack. I will try to use the same terminology for the pieces as Darryl used in his thread.

All glass used for this build and these measurements will be 1/4" thick. Obviously, changing the thickness will mean changing most or all of the measurements.

1 piece -- Base -- 17 1/2" wide x 17 3/4" front to back
1 piece -- Back -- 17 1/2 x wide x 23 3/4" tall
1 piece -- Left Side -- 18" front to back x 23 3/4" tall
1 piece -- Right Side -- 18" front to back x 23 3/4" tall
1 piece -- Inside Retaining Lip -- 17 7/16" wide x 6" tall

NOTES: I deliberately made this piece 1/16" short so it will fit properly. If it is a tiny bit too wide, your sides will not seal up properly. It should be very easy to fill in the tiny gap you may have because of this. Of course you would seal it with Silicone.
In Darryl's pictures, it looks like his Inside Retaining Lip is only about 2 inches tall. I like to build with enough space for a false bottom, substrate, and still have enough room for a couple of inches of leaf litter, so I have gone with a 6 inch tall Inside Retaining Lip similar to some American made Euro style vivs I have seen.

1 piece -- Door Strut -- 17 7/16" wide x 6" tall -- NOTE: See attached diagram

NOTES: This piece is also sized to match the Inside Retaining Lip for the same reasons.
NOTES: Darryl states that his Inside Retaining Lip is mounted 45 cm from the front edge of the glass. We are changing this to 2" because I don't do metric.

 

[Pumilo]

The next pieces to be cut are NOT part of Darryl's original design, but I have seen them on another brand of viv. They look like they would add a good bit of support on the delicate looking Door Strut and Inside Retaining Lip. We will call them "Door Strut Reinforcements"

2 pieces -- Door Strut Reinforcements -- 1 3/4" front to back x 6" tall.

These pieces are siliconed in place between the Door Strut and the Inside Retaining Lip. They should be placed approximately 6" from either end. Here is a photo to better show you what these pieces do. You can see one of them quite clearly. The other one is blocked by my tape measure.

 

[Pumilo]

1 piece -- Top "Back" -- 18" wide x 2 1/2" front to back
1 piece -- Top "Front" -- 18" wide x 13 1/2" front to back

NOTES: These two top pieces leaves a 2" gap for the stainless steel screen mesh. It will have a 2" vent strip.

2 pieces -- Top Vent Retainer Strips -- 5/8" wide x 17 7/16" long

NOTES: Bottom Track/Bottom Vent modification. On Darryls model, he uses two "L" profile pieces of plastic extrusion to hold down and cover the sharp edges of the stainless steel screen mesh. We are going to replace the front strip of "L" extrusion with a piece of glass as I have seen on other vivs. This will give us a more level and stable foundation for the lower door track. We will call this piece the Door Track Foundation. This piece will go on top of and at the very front edge of the Door Strut. Again, it replaces the front "L" profile extrusion.

1 piece -- Door Track Foundation -- 5/8" front to back x 17 7/16" wide

 

[Pumilo]

Now we are going to need to find the door track. It can be found at Outwater Plastics, here. Outwater Plastics 2011 Catalog - page 44 You want profile 180- If you follow the link and click on the 180- it will take you to pricing and color choices.
The length of these pieces should be 17 7/16" each. The height of the optional side channels (use them, it is a good option) should be measured when you get to that point in construction. The side channels should be fabricated from the same profile as the Top Channel.

Now we need a source for the "L" profile plastic extrusion. We will get that at the same place we found the tracks. Follow the link Outwater Plastics 2011 Catalog - page 41 and click on 1919- This will take you to pricing and color choice.

That is everything but the doors.
IMPORTANT NOTE: The doors are made of 1/8" thick glass instead of the 1/4" that the rest of the viv is made of.
The doors should really be cut after you have constructed the rest of the viv. Darryl gives crystal clear instructions on how to measure for them. Even the thickness of the stainless steel screen that you choose will affect the measurements of the doors so we will not measure yet. I will give you some door measurements that should be extremely close to what you need but remember, build yours first and THEN get your door measurements.

2 pieces -- Doors -- Width is 9". The height is what may vary but should be very close to 16 13/16"

I would also like to add a nice link for how to make the doors fruit fly proof. Google Translate

 

[curlykid]

thanks Doug. i bookmarked the German instructions page.

 

[Pumilo]

This is NOT my design, it is Darryl's. I have NOT built one but I am very familiar with building with glass. I will try to answer questions but Please! No questions without fully reading Darryl's thread. My thread is absolutely NOT a stand alone thread and you will NOT be able to build this without reading Darryl's thread.
If anyone has already built one of these, or is just really good with numbers, double checking my measurements would be appreciated.
Oh, a couple more links that will come in handy for this. http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/parts-construction/58594-how-drill-your-glass.html
I also found Kaity's thread very informative on taping your glass for cleaner silicone lines. http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/parts-construction/63870-building-glass-vivarium.html
Here is an alternative way of building screen vents. http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/parts-construction/63781-screen-vent-construction-how.html

 

[curlykid]

i'm also going to be doing a build thread to show you guys the steps in real life, high resolution photos. and hopefully i can get it stickied for others to enjoy for a long time!

 

[Pumilo]

Excellent Nick! After studying Darryl's thread and putting this together, I look forward to seeing the fruits of my labor!

 

[curlykid]

Hey Doug, all the glass except the doors is 1/4" right?

 

[Pumilo]

Exactly Nick. All glass except the doors is 1/4" thick annealed glass. Annealed simply means standard glass, NOT tempered and NOT heat strengthened. The doors are 1/8" thick or DS (double strength) annealed glass.

 

[curlykid]

i will be ordering the glass tomorrow so expect a build thread in the next week or so.

 

[jayshaz]

i have been making these vivariums now for ten years and in all that time i have never used anything but 4mm float glass, by having the glass toughend just adds alot to the price. ok you do have the safety aspect but i have never broke a viv while its been sat on a rack.

 

[curlykid]

safety, noise reduction, insulation, i could go on and on.

 

[jayshaz]

saftey maybe but like i said i dont know of anyone who has had problems over in GB with the 4mm euro style viv and most over here are just 4mm float as for noise reduction or insulation this wouldnt make a diffrence if the glass was toughend or not i have spent at least 20years of my life in the glass industry and in all those years i have had one bad cut and that was from a shower screen

 

[curlykid]

i'm good with 1/4 inch. there's definitely no cons to it. and yes thicker glass will greatly reduce noise both going in and out of the enclosure, it's been said many times.

 

[Pumilo]

i have been making these vivariums now for ten years and in all that time i have never used anything but 4mm float glass, by having the glass toughend just adds alot to the price. ok you do have the safety aspect but i have never broke a viv while its been sat on a rack.

saftey maybe but like i said i dont know of anyone who has had problems over in GB with the 4mm euro style viv and most over here are just 4mm float as for noise reduction or insulation this wouldnt make a diffrence if the glass was toughend or not i have spent at least 20years of my life in the glass industry and in all those years i have had one bad cut and that was from a shower screen

I have built vivs out of 1/8" DS glass too but you do have to be more careful with it. Nick requested glass in 1/4", built to similar specs as other, American made Euro vivs. I'm unclear as to what you are saying about toughened glass. Toughening, tempering, or heat strengthing the glass is unnecessary. The plans state that they are made with standard, annealed glass. If you are suggesting going with thinner glass, but toughening it, this would easily double the price of the build. Especially considering that you would lose the option of drilling the glass yourself. It would now have to be drilled by the manufacturer before the strengthening process.

 

[jayshaz]

i think its abit of lost in translation its called float glass over here it comes in a standerd of 4mm 6mm or 10mm however because there is no internal pressure as there would be in an aquarium you can get away with thiner glass most are made with 4mm. sorry if i have jumped in on the subject and not understod what it is you were trying to do , however these vivs are so easy to make and put together people tend to over complicate things. i would post a pic of the small one i have in my living room but not sure how to lol

 

[EvilLost]

@jayshaz: I agree with you 4mm is likely sufficient (although I prefer thicker still). However if I understood this thread, it was meant for a younger member to build his viv....as such safety, lack of experience, etc must also be considered.


what is "float" glass exactly? from Float glass - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia it sounds like a method of making annealed glass?

 

[jayshaz]

thats it over here its called float glass or if its a safety issue then we would use toughend ..... thats heat treated, or laminated thats two pieces of glass with a plastic laminate between them. as it happens the company i worked for was Pilkington. i think because the glass forms a box with right angles that makes it even stronger. i did make a viv a few years ago it was 4ft x 3ft x 6ft all 6mm glass . annealed glass i think is the same but having talked to my dad who spent 40 year in the trade i think its somthing to do with the metal in the glass when its made. maybe someone knows the answer, would be very interested to find out.

 

[Pumilo]

I have owned and operated a glass business for the last 20+ years doing residential window repair.
Float glass is a term describing how today's glass is made. Molten glass is "floated" on a bed of molten or liquified metal. Different metals have been used over the years. At one point, mercury was used pretty widely but I'm really not sure what metals are being used today.
Annealed glass refers to the type of glass that most of us think of. It is the easily broken glass that is typically used in most vivs, fish tanks, and house windows. The annealing process is basically just letting it cool slowly from its molten state to its solid state. This makes it stronger than quickly cooling it.
Tempered glass is float glass that has been fully heat strengthened. If broken, it will break into a thousand pieced, each piece being too small to cause serious injury. It is used in the side and rear windows of automobiles and also used in some home application where there is a danger of injury, such as in doors, in bath and shower enclosures, and close to floors.
Heat strengthened is basically partially tempered glass.
Neither tempered nor heat strengthened glass can be cut or drilled after it has been tempered.
Toughened is not a word that has been used at any of my manufacturers or suppliers so is probably just not really used in the USA. I am assuming it is referring to toughened and/or tempered.
I do agree that this viv could be made thinner if made for your own use. I have made bigger, slope front vivs, using DS 1/8" glass. You would have to be more careful with it. I would NOT go thinner if you were manufacturing and selling vivs.