Exo Terra 24x18x24 Mod

[anderson405]

I have been looking at getting another 4 RETF and I couldnt fit them in the tank i have now. I did the math and the tank i have now which is 24x18x24 is around 44 gallons. I have 4 frogs in their right now so what do I do? Well for all of you Exo Terra users out their I have came up with a solution. I didnt want to build a new tank so I am going to mod my tank. I will be making it into a 89 gallon tank. It will stand about 48inch tall. I am not sure how I will support the front piece but I will have to come up with something. I was thinking of a flat bar expoyed to the glass to support the front bar. The strip above the doors is very flimsy so someone give me some ideas. Maybe a piece of Plexiglass glued to the glass.. Im not sure but I have to think about that one.

I am then going to buy a sheet of plexiglass 48"inch by 96" which I will have cut to size. I have thought about this for a while. If I do this out of Plexiglass I could use 1/8th inch thick plexiglass which would support it. The Plexiglass sheet will be cut into 4 pieces. I only want to make my tank 48" tall. My plexiglass is 48" so If I cut it at 18 inches I will have just enough to cut it in half and have my two sides and then cut the 2 front pieces out. Remember my tank is 24 inchs tall so I will only need to make my pieces 24 inchs....Now the best part to this is that my exo terra which I think all have is the top that snaps off. This is how I planned it to work.. I will build this plexiglass box then I will be able to set the box ontop of my tank and it will sit on the lip of the old screen thing (their is a lip about 1/2inch) Go look at your exo terra and tell me if you think it will work...... If this works I will have made my tank double it size without really moding my tank at all. I can also add vent holes to the top of the plexiglass and put the vent screens in their. I will then also install a computer fan that will move air and what now. This will be a project due to the plexiglass prices but I think it could possibly be a great add on. I will go scan my drawings and upload them to see what yall think. I want to hear what yall have to say.. All of the cons and pros you can think of. If you think the plexiglass will be to heavy or if something wont work please tell me before I jump into this.. JOSH

[anderson405]

Come on guys/gals give me your feedback.. Tell me what you think. I am interested in hearing what yall have to say. Should I just go through with this project and show yall the pros and cons? Has anyone ever done this to their Exo Terra?

[UncleChester]

This seems overly complicated to me. Since you're planning on buying a 48"x96" piece of plexi anyway, if you were to buy another small 24"x24" sheet for a bottom piece you could make a standalone 24"x24"x48" tank and use your existing exo terra as a quarantine tank for your new addition, then sell it afterwards if you really have no use for it (or get another species of frog).

I don't have any experience working with plexiglass tanks though, I do understand it can warp if you aren't careful with heat sources so I'd probably just make the larger tank out of glass but it would be pretty heavy.

[tommyboy]

I have worked with plexiglass. it is very brittle and flimsy and does warp. you would be happier with 3/16" acrylic. a sheet of that costs about $100 from a plastics distributor. Then you have to join the cut pieces together with a bonding solvent and make sure it is perfectly square. In your case, I would just look at a larger Exoterra tank. they make them as large as 36x36x18. that should be large enough. They cost about $400. plus it will look a whole lot nicer than a mod job. I have also seen larger tanks for less that were not Exoterra and still very nice. good luck

[anderson405]

Thanks guys for the feedback. I have come to realize I could do the 3/16 acrylic and actually make a 24x24x48 tank by itself. This makes more sense to me since i can use the exo terra as a Rain chamber.... Perfect Idea guys.. The 48x96 acrylic would only need to be cut 3 times to make 4 pieces of 24x48. This would work out perfect.. Now all I need to do is figure out the door and the hood section... I was also thinking this would be great because I can add plumbing to the bottom of the acrylic.... I would make the bottom piece about 3-5 inches above the bottom so i can run a drain tube underneath the tank.. This sounds perfect and Im very excited about starting it.... Thanks agian Josh

[anderson405]

Ya I would like a bigger tank but width is not important to me.. i want a tall tank since I have a Red eyed tree frogs. They love to climb.