Turning Shed!
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·this is what I would do.......
I dont know what kind of shed you have, but here is what I would do to the crappy sheds we have around here in NC. Also, the modifications I'm speaking of are to keep the room as constant a temperature as possible in the mountains, but anywhere you are if you insulate correctly the room will stay at a constant temperature.
First, make sure the roof on it is good and doesnt leak. If not, fix that first. You could always compensate for an unlevel floor by mounting a level table, but the floor needs to be stableand sturdy. There is no telling the weight it might have to hold (this hobby is addictive). Like I said, the sheds I'm familiar with are crappy.
I would then seal the thing up as tightly as I could. Insulate the walls with the pink stuff and then cover it with something (drywall, paneling...). Also at this point you would need to make sure you have all electric taken care of that you might need. Insulate the ceiling and the floor as well. I dont know this for sure, but I know the pink insulation has fibers that are an irritant to humans, so I'm assuming it will be an irritant to frogs as well, so make sure to cover all insulation in the room.
Paint the walls and ceiling with some sort of water resistant paint, since the humididty in the room will probably be of a higher percentage. Also make sure any spilled water will not ruin the floor, as you will probably be spilling water at some point. My dream animal room would have a drain in the floor.
Be sure that the windows and door are sealed tightly with no leaks or replace them with good quality double paned windows or a good door to hold the temperature. Like I said, I dont know what kind of shed it is.
Basically anything to make the shed insulated and airtight will help. Anything other than this would be your preference to better accomidate your frogs. A heater if you live in a cold climate might be required. On the other hand the lights and stuff might keep the temp up ( a backup heater is what I would have!). I would stay away from gas or oil heat since this gives off fumes that might be detrimental to frogs. I also wouldnt have it blowing directly on any tanks.
Ok, verbal vomit here. I hope that answers your question. I'm going to set up a frog room with an electric heater and a small AC unit for summer use to keep the temp around 70ish. I dont know whether I'll have a large humidifier in the room or a separate small one on a timer for each tank.
Good luck!
I dont know what kind of shed you have, but here is what I would do to the crappy sheds we have around here in NC. Also, the modifications I'm speaking of are to keep the room as constant a temperature as possible in the mountains, but anywhere you are if you insulate correctly the room will stay at a constant temperature.
First, make sure the roof on it is good and doesnt leak. If not, fix that first. You could always compensate for an unlevel floor by mounting a level table, but the floor needs to be stableand sturdy. There is no telling the weight it might have to hold (this hobby is addictive). Like I said, the sheds I'm familiar with are crappy.
I would then seal the thing up as tightly as I could. Insulate the walls with the pink stuff and then cover it with something (drywall, paneling...). Also at this point you would need to make sure you have all electric taken care of that you might need. Insulate the ceiling and the floor as well. I dont know this for sure, but I know the pink insulation has fibers that are an irritant to humans, so I'm assuming it will be an irritant to frogs as well, so make sure to cover all insulation in the room.
Paint the walls and ceiling with some sort of water resistant paint, since the humididty in the room will probably be of a higher percentage. Also make sure any spilled water will not ruin the floor, as you will probably be spilling water at some point. My dream animal room would have a drain in the floor.
Be sure that the windows and door are sealed tightly with no leaks or replace them with good quality double paned windows or a good door to hold the temperature. Like I said, I dont know what kind of shed it is.
Basically anything to make the shed insulated and airtight will help. Anything other than this would be your preference to better accomidate your frogs. A heater if you live in a cold climate might be required. On the other hand the lights and stuff might keep the temp up ( a backup heater is what I would have!). I would stay away from gas or oil heat since this gives off fumes that might be detrimental to frogs. I also wouldnt have it blowing directly on any tanks.
Ok, verbal vomit here. I hope that answers your question. I'm going to set up a frog room with an electric heater and a small AC unit for summer use to keep the temp around 70ish. I dont know whether I'll have a large humidifier in the room or a separate small one on a timer for each tank.
Good luck!
I'm contemplating the same thing here in Indiana. We have an old farm house that is pretty small, with an old farmhand bunkhouse/canning kitchen out back. It used to have a Kerosene furnace in there, but I couldn't revive the thing after taking it completely apart ('couldn't find parts for the 1940's model I had).
Anyway, I'll be stripping off the old rotting wood siding from the outside, filling between the studs with 4" high density foam (R value much higher than the pink fiberglass), and putting up new siding outside. The inside boarding is still in pretty good shape ("lapboard interior of sorts), but I'll probably put up a vapor barrier and 3/8" plywood (or other suitable cheap panelling). If I can get up into the joists on the inside, I'll either blow in foam or put in some pink stuff there (2-3 thick).
Since I have a concrete floor, I'll put down some rubber cow pads to keep the constant 50 degree temp from dragging down the temps in winter (probably not an issue with you). Finally, I'll have a window AC unit and an electric heater (a big baseboard unit) hooked up to a standard thermostat to regulate temps.
I'm also considering having the tanks built into another cabinet to keep any temp swings from being likely. Anyway, these are the current plans, but we'll see how it goes. I won't put anything outside until I take it through one full winter/summer cycle to ensure that there aren't temp swings.
Anyway, I'll be stripping off the old rotting wood siding from the outside, filling between the studs with 4" high density foam (R value much higher than the pink fiberglass), and putting up new siding outside. The inside boarding is still in pretty good shape ("lapboard interior of sorts), but I'll probably put up a vapor barrier and 3/8" plywood (or other suitable cheap panelling). If I can get up into the joists on the inside, I'll either blow in foam or put in some pink stuff there (2-3 thick).
Since I have a concrete floor, I'll put down some rubber cow pads to keep the constant 50 degree temp from dragging down the temps in winter (probably not an issue with you). Finally, I'll have a window AC unit and an electric heater (a big baseboard unit) hooked up to a standard thermostat to regulate temps.
I'm also considering having the tanks built into another cabinet to keep any temp swings from being likely. Anyway, these are the current plans, but we'll see how it goes. I won't put anything outside until I take it through one full winter/summer cycle to ensure that there aren't temp swings.
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I wish I had the room, but am thinking of something for my basement. I don't see being able to take much more room other places without my wife moving out. 
MY concern with the basement is how cool it is. I have a large room down there that is in use, but I am thinking about builing under the stairs, and making a room that would be sealed up. The question is how to heat it, cooling is not an issue. Not sure how comfortable I am with a space heater, i'm sure it would work, but everyone has heard all te abd things about them. I would guess if I did it right, it would not run but maybe a little bit at night. The lights during the day would keep it warm enough.
I can get at least 12 tanks on my current rack so for now I am ok, but I go as far as I would like to I may run out of room.
MY concern with the basement is how cool it is. I have a large room down there that is in use, but I am thinking about builing under the stairs, and making a room that would be sealed up. The question is how to heat it, cooling is not an issue. Not sure how comfortable I am with a space heater, i'm sure it would work, but everyone has heard all te abd things about them. I would guess if I did it right, it would not run but maybe a little bit at night. The lights during the day would keep it warm enough.
I can get at least 12 tanks on my current rack so for now I am ok, but I go as far as I would like to I may run out of room.
Homer said:
Kyle,
An electric base board heater is safer than the typical space heaters. You might want to check that out. I don't know what the prices are on new ones, but I have an old one that was given to me. It's not super fast at heating, but it puts out an even heat and does not get up to temps that worry me.
An electric base board heater is safer than the typical space heaters. You might want to check that out. I don't know what the prices are on new ones, but I have an old one that was given to me. It's not super fast at heating, but it puts out an even heat and does not get up to temps that worry me.
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