Habitat - Indoor :: Buillding small basking dock... need help ion ideas

[Ozzyy]

ive been trying to build a custon basking dock for paco but, i dont know what materials to use that i could make a floatiing dock inside his 20 galllong tank...... i would have bought an acrylic dock... but those are really big and paco is only 1.5 inches long. can somebody help me wiht some ideas.

[SpotsMama]

If you want floating, you could use cork bark. Most people make their custom platforms with PVC but they don't float. Try searching on those two terms.

[grey goose]

You have to keep in mind that little Paco is not going to be "little" for very long.....If you buy or make a basking area that fits him now, in a few months he'll be hanging off it! If you can afford it, get a bigger tank now, and experiment with different materials while Paco is still in the small tank. This way when he gets too big for that habitat (and he definitely will), you'll be ready.....

[cute is what we aim for]

lil paco is going to grow, get somethng big =]

[grey goose]

sebastianmillhouse is working on a pvc basking area, look here:
http://www.redearslider.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=7071

[Ozzyy]

woa thanks...
paco is in a 20n gal now.. so hes ogt a while.. il still make it a good size 4 him tho big enough 4 him to grow into

[Ozzyy]

where would i get cork bark though?

[spot_skater]

Here's what I made for Jamal:




It's two levels... The middle level is kind of angled, the top is flat. Both are made of lexan and screwed into PVC pipes.

For the ramp I used a ceramic tile, used some sealer to keep the other pieces stuck to the top of the tile, so he kind of has something to grip on to. I drilled through the tile and used zip ties to hold it to one of the pipes on the upper level, until it angled nicely. I would say it is about 8-10" high, 6" wide, and 6-7" long. The middle piece of lexan is 5"x5", and the top piece is 7.5"x7.5"

Total cost was $12. And about 3-4 hours worth of time. Most of which was spent going back and forth to the store cause I forgot stuff, and letting the sealer harden. As well as drilling through ceramic... big PITA.

Hope it helps.

James

[SpotsMama]

Where to get cork bark......I don't know. Why don't you google it? If you go that route you'll have to be sure you find some that isn't chemically treated.

If you want a floating dock, Zoo Med makes a really good one. It comes in three sizes. Speaking from experience, the small one fits in a 20 gallon tank just fine.