Beginer getting confused

[Nicnamy]

Hi All,

Im pretty new to this whole world having only had my whites tree frogs about 6 weeks. the viv i have them in at the moment is nowhere near tall or wide enough for them to jump about or have any real space so I have started building one. the tank itself is done but i want to run a waterfall and live plants possibly and some branches. you get the idea.

I am getting realy confused over sealing thisng tho. I keep reading that this is a safe way on one page but its not on the other sooo can someone who has build a tree frog spesific viv tell me. Im fine creating the structure out of a reamovable backing, expanding foam. my problem is suitable grouting or do i skip grouting and seal with silicone and then cover in coco fibre. Im a little unsure. I have read through hundreds of different builds and things on here and other sights and cannot get my head around the best for my whites.

at one point i was going to grout, paint and then seal with clear acrylic sealer but cannot figure out how to tell if its non toxic. I realy need a bit of advice.

Cheers

Nic

[intelsuit]

My best suggestion would be aquarium grade silicone. You might want to go check out the parts and construction forum section on dendroboard.com they have a lot of good advice.

[Nicnamy]

cheers, thats a great site. just one more question, is exo terra coco huck the best to use for it?

[intelsuit]

Yes. Coco fiber or coco husk are good because they retain moisture and resist mold. The usual combination is to use coco and peat moss to retain moisture as well.k

[EvilLost]

There are TONS of ways, I think you are confused because they are getting mixed up:

#1: GS Foam -> Mixture of silicone/coco dirt (make sure the dirt is DRY, i bake mine just incase)

#2: Foam -> Grout -> (optional) Non toxic Acrylic paints ->Wait 5-6 weeks until its FULLY cured (otherwise it will affect your water pH)

#3: Foam -> Grout -> (optional) non toxic acrylic paints -> Epoxy/Sealant

#4: Clay -> done. (Some ppl love clay, I HATE it...if you do not keep it just the right moisture level it will either dry up and crack or get too wet and crumble....fastest to set up, hardest to maintain and lowest life expectancy imo)

[Nicnamy]

thats great cheers for that

Iv done GS foam and am currently waiting for th first layer of grout to cure before another coat. I have loads of acrylic paint but it says nothing about being toxic on there. how do i find out if its toxic?

Sorry for all the questions but its better to be get it right from the start

[EvilLost]

IME Acrylic paints are pretty much all non-toxic, but it should say right on the bottle "Non-toxic" or somesuch

[uraniumjoe]

Usually I hear that Greatstuff is perfectly okay after it cures, but you could always grab some aquarium-safe silicone for pretty cheap. I got some from Home Depot for around five dollars, but I don't honestly think you would need to use it if the foam is already cured.

[EvilLost]

Great stuff is perfectly safe once it dries....but it looks ugly :P

most people put a coat of silicone + coco coir on top to give it that fake dirt wall look; but the silicone isn't used as a sealer, its merely used as a permanent adhesive for the dirt to the foam

[iBytenCode]

Just make sure if you use great stuff that it cures all the way and also make sure that you let the cage air out awhile prior to putting animals in it. Lingering fumes are still very toxic.