# I finally tried my hand at making an enclosure from scratch.  Great turn out!



## TomM (Oct 6, 2012)

So I was bored today and felt like a DIY project so I went to Home Depot.  I got six 8" x 10" Lexan Polycarbonate clear sheets, two small brass hinges, and a brass hasp lock.  I cut two of the sheets down to 8" x 8" for the top and bottom and cut one sheet into two rectangle pieces: 8" x 3.5" and 8" x 6.5" for the front door.  I glued the pieces together and everything came together snug.  I glued the hinges and hasp on the front door, added some coco fiber, decorations, and a temporary inhabitant for the photo and voilà! 

(I will be using it for my female H. maculata after I get some ventilation on it and add some bark to climb on.)

Reactions: Like 2


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## RabidWombat (Oct 6, 2012)

Looks good, but what did you use to secure the pieces together?  It looks like silicone.  If so, you probably want to redo it.  Silicon doesn't bond well to acrylic. As such, the joints could separate.  You'll want to use acrylic cement.  There's a product called Weld-On Acrylic Cement that works well.  Acrylic cement basically melts the two pieces together.


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## TomM (Oct 6, 2012)

I used hot glue.  I tried it on a few scrap pieces first and it worked fine, hopefully it holds up in the future.


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## macbaffo (Oct 7, 2012)

Poor little T in such high terrarium!

Maybe you should have done vent holes or grids before assembling it...


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## MarkmD (Oct 7, 2012)

It looks good, I would say it's a little tall I would be worried if your T falls from the top.


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## poisoned (Oct 7, 2012)

Hot glue creates really strong bond. Comparable to solvent welded joints. Solvent welded joints are harder to make, but they look better. I'd put an arboreal inside, or lean the enclosure on side.


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## le-thomas (Oct 7, 2012)

MarkmD said:


> It looks good, I would say it's a little tall I would be worried if your T falls from the top.





poisoned said:


> I'd put an arboreal inside, or lean the enclosure on side.


Heteroscodra maculata is a semi-arboreal species. I don't think a fall will be a problem.
Enclosure looks good, though I can't comment on how well hot glue will work. Good luck!

Reactions: Like 1


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## poisoned (Oct 7, 2012)

le-thomas said:


> Heteroscodra maculata is a semi-arboreal species. I don't think a fall will be a problem.
> Enclosure looks good, though I can't comment on how well hot glue will work. Good luck!


Huh, I wasn't reading very well and I don't really know a lot about H mac. Sorry for that.


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## TomM (Oct 7, 2012)

le-thomas said:


> Heteroscodra maculata is a semi-arboreal species. I don't think a fall will be a problem.
> Enclosure looks good, though I can't comment on how well hot glue will work. Good luck!


Thank you!  I'm assuming everyone just skipped the text and when right to the pictures.

As I've stated before, I just threw the A. hentzi (and crappy decorations) to get a good picture of it.  Haven't finished the ventilation and I still need to find a good piece of bark since *I will be using this for my Heteroscodra maculata*, a tarantula that will make use of the height.

Reactions: Like 1


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## le-thomas (Oct 7, 2012)

TomM said:


> a tarantula that will make use of the height.


If you're lucky. Mine are all burrower-type-things


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## MarkmD (Oct 7, 2012)

Then am sure the finnished enclosure will be good, yeah some cork-bark will look grate and give your T something to climb on.


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## TomM (Oct 7, 2012)

le-thomas said:


> If you're lucky. Mine are all burrower-type-things


I've had mine since it was a .5" sling.  She's now almost 4 inches and uses almost every inch of her enclosure.  While she still makes a shallow "burrow" under the bark (it's mostly just web), her webs reach the top of her enclosure and is on a different side of the tank almost every time I check on her.



MarkmD said:


> Then am sure the finnished enclosure will be good, yeah some cork-bark will look grate and give your T something to climb on.


I think I might even make a background for the enclosure, but I'm sure a good piece of bark and some more plants (real or fake) will make it look pretty darn good, for us and the tarantula.


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## Peter Parker (Oct 11, 2012)

Very Nice sir. I like the door opening from the side rather than the top. Can slam it closed faster if you need to and I'm sure you will with the H. MAC


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## TomM (Oct 11, 2012)

ConcreteWeb said:


> Very Nice sir. I like the door opening from the side rather than the top. Can slam it closed faster if you need to and I'm sure you will with the H. MAC


That was my exact reasoning for the side-opening door.  My H. mac is currently in a tupperware container that has a lid (on the top obviously) and any time she get startled or decides to bolt she heads straight upwards.  I knew as soon as I decide to make my own enclosure that there would _not_ be a lid and the door would most definitely not open from the top.  She is basically Satan with eight legs.


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## arachnofab (Oct 13, 2012)

Looks great! How much did materials for the enclosure itself cost you? I was sticking to thrift stores figuring sheets would cost too much brand new but I really want to start on mine this weekend and if they're open tomorrow I think I'll be doing just that.


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## TomM (Oct 14, 2012)

Total came to around $25.


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