Rocket Engineer... vivarium?

[Daphne's_Reef]

This might be a bit of a niche question. My crested gecko really needs an upgraded viv (and the hognose snake is in an appropriate size, but I'm sure he wouldn't mind having more space). I know the standard if I'm building my own is to use pretty thick plywood then seal it. And the proper animal-safe sealants have gotten SO expensive lately.... 2x4s ARE still pretty cheap, though. My crestie does run around and jump on things, but he's not big, nor is he incredibly strong. Would using something like this work inside, not out, of a Rocket Engineer sort of stand if I was careful to silicone the everloving daylights out of the holes where I screwed it into the frame and the corners where the board meets? I was thinking of doing it 1 foot deep, 4 feet wide, and 3 feet tall. Since it is so thin, would I need to/want to put a couple extra support boards on the longer sides and the bottom so the MDF doesn't warp over time? It would mostly just need to hold some plants, whatever light I put on it, and the substrate for a tropical animal that needs a fair bit of humidity.

 

[Fish Fan]

What you linked is a product made from Medium Density Fiberboard, or MDF. That's more or less a type of particle board, and really won't hold up to any moisture.

What have you looked into for waterproofing something like regular plywood? Most polyurethane and shellacs and nasty when being applied, but once fully cured they are fairly non-toxic (they can tank a long time to funny cure, in some cases).

 

[Daphne's_Reef]

What you like is a product made from Medium Density Fiberboard, or MDF. That's more or less a type of particle board, and really won't hold up to any moisture.

What have you looked into for waterproofing something like regular plywood? Most polyurethane and shellacs and nasty when being applied, but once fully cured they are fairly non-toxic (they can tank a long time to funny cure, in some cases).

Most people seem to say drylok is the best, but it's also pretty costly. At least twice what the plywood would cost, and it seems most of the other stuff starts around that price, too. It'd weigh a ton, and cost probably more than I'd want to pay for it. That's why I was wondering if there's a way to seal the edges on the MDF. I was planning to cover most of the inside (aside from the bottom where there'd be some moisture constantly) with coco husk for the plants/gecko, so he's not going to be running on it all the time. I was more worried about the plant roots digging into the silicone eventually. If there's not a good way to do it, though, I'll look into plywood again.

 

[commod0re]

Melamine paint is a common way to seal MDF

Myself I would use a spar urethane, I usually use varathane ultimate spar urethane or minwax helmsman. You can get spar urethane at any hardware store

 

[BeanAnimal]

There are better choices for the task.

You can cover a backer with FRP.
Possible choices:
luan
3/16 plyood
vinyl floor underlayment (smooth whitewood similar to luan)

You can uses a masonite based panel product.
They are supplied with waterproof or water resistant coatings, either painted on or adhered on and often used as bathroom paneling.

 

[Fish Fan]

Most people seem to say drylok is the best, but it's also pretty costly. At least twice what the plywood would cost, and it seems most of the other stuff starts around that price, too. It'd weigh a ton, and cost probably more than I'd want to pay for it. That's why I was wondering if there's a way to seal the edges on the MDF. I was planning to cover most of the inside (aside from the bottom where there'd be some moisture constantly) with coco husk for the plants/gecko, so he's not going to be running on it all the time. I was more worried about the plant roots digging into the silicone eventually. If there's not a good way to do it, though, I'll look into plywood again.

I've not heard of using Drylock in reptile cages, but I'm not nearly as into reptiles now as I was some years ago

For the cage floor, maybe try some stick-on vinyl floor tiles.

 

[Fish Fan]

Another option for treating regular woods is MinnWax Polycrylic. This is a water based, very low VOC clear coat that I've used on both fresh and salt water tank stands and it's held up to moisture well. I did a quick search, and it does seem to be reptile safe, with many members of this forum having used it on their enclosures:

Polycrylic safe to use?

Hey folks, I'm building an indoor enclosure to replace the setup that I'm currently using. I'm using 1/2" plywood for the actual enclosure and am contemplating my options when it comes to waterproofing/sealing. I'm planning on lining the bottom 8" of the enclosure with polyethylene sheeting, but...

tortoiseforum.org

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Minwax-Polycrylic-8-fl-oz-Satin-Water-based-Polyurethane/999914423?user=shopping&feed=yes?store=2668&cm_mmc=shp-_-c-_-prd-_-pnt-_-ggl-_-PMAX_PNT_000_Priority_Item_Omni-_-999914423-_-local-_-22872915046-_-&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=23531995346&gbraid=0AAAAAD2B2W-EIIKYRDPZOJUtkOwlFbv4A&gclid=Cj0KCQjwoMXQBhDcARIsAH-eEtutCafDJfJS799mrzezLJCpGCoHTpTS2QMoHeemWXSJY6C3bBd7TykaAsHGEALw_wcB

My only concern is that Polycrylic would make wood more or less "water resistant" and not "water proof", so if your Crested is being kept it daily high humidity, the Polycrylic may at some point fail.