[The Nothing]

lemme preface by saying this is a 1 beer job
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb01.jpg


This is very simple to do. This construction was done using 3/4" diameter PVC piping, though would have been plenty strong using 1/2" piping. I only used 3/4" pipe because I already had the pipe which i got free. Otherwise it would have cost me only $1.50 for 10 feet - more than enough for this setup. I did also buy a 10 foot length of 1/2" PVC ($1.20) so i could build a climb for my girlfriends BRB. I purchased:

10- 1/2" T fittings
10- 1/2" Elbow fittings
4- 1/2" X fittings
1- 10' 1/2" PVC pipe
3- 3/4" X fittings
10- 3/4" Elbow fittings
5- plastic closet hanger rod sockets sets

total cost= $15

equipment I already had:
saw
tape measure
hot glue gun
3/4" pvc pipe (not that it made a difference though)
propane or mapp gas torch



Now, hopefully you've already drawn out, measured, or otherwise have an idea of what you want to build for a climb setup. I did not, so i was flying by the seat of my pants.

Anyways
start by gathering all your parts
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb02.jpg

and cut your PVC pieces to length (by this time, I had an idea of what I wanted the finished product to look like. The fun part when measureing and cutting pieces is to keep in mind that all flanges and adapters you are going to add on will also add the to the length of whatever you're putting them on. Plan ahead with all your cuts and make sure you add a little extra lenth to them
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb03.jpg

now that you have the cuts done, put the pieces together. from there it's time for a test fitting. Hopefully you have cut your pieces slightly longer than you needed. If what you have assembled doesn't fit, it is now very easy at this point to cut the pieces to lengths that WILL fit.
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb04.jpg

K
now that everything is cut to the right lenth and ready to go, mark where you want to put the climb. This is an optional step. Since this climb does not touch the ground, I have 4 anchor points on the side of the cage (BRB climb will rest on the ground, so this isn't necessary) using the closet rod sockets. Put the setup where you want it, and mark the glass with a vis-a-vis or whiteboard marker.
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb05.jpg

Now, hopefully you have the hotglue warmed up. You'll need about 1 stick if you have 4 anchor points like I do. Put a good glop of glue on each section of the rod socket, and use the hole in the center to match the mark you left on the glass. it should look something like this
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb06.jpg
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb07.jpg

do this on the highest achorable posts on each side
once the glue has set (very quickly), toss your climb in and make sure it all fits and doesn't fall. Feel free to put some handpressure onto things and make sure they hold. If it falls apart at the joints, don't worry, we'll get to that later. If it doesn't reach from oneside to the next, go back to elemetry school and learn how to do addition. Hopefully you'll have enough PVC left to add a 1/2" or so to one side or another
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb08.jpg

Now for the fun part.
take your climb off the hangers and head outside. If you're a smoker, you'll be ready for a smoke break by now.
Time to burn!!
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb09.jpg

Now, this takes a lil practice. I suggest starting on the underside first so you learn how the PVC reacts to flame. Avoid the fumes. I did this in the rain (as it does in the Pac Northwest) so I got some spotting from the raindrops. It adds character in my opinion.
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb10.jpg

Once you get the underside done, its time to flip it over and continue on! And do it all! leave no white
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb11.jpg

All this does tend to expand the PVC, so the joints are going to start falling apart. Don't be afraid to stick things back together and continue on. You want to do this with everything connected so they continue to fit together. If you fire up a joint without the pipe in it, either can deform and not fit together. So, keep things together. Once you're done, its OK if they fall apart
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb12.jpg

Now it's time to take everything inside and head for the sink. Take all the pieces apart (hopefully you remember how it all went together) and scrub them all VERY well in soapy water. There is a lot of soot on all the pieces that you need to scrub off.
before scrub
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb13.jpg
after scrubbing
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb14.jpg

Now that you're done with all the washing, you should realy use a specialized PVC glue to attach everything together. Unfortunately, I thought I had some, but it turns out I did not. Follow the directions on the bottle and have fun. I'll be picking some up soon and will be removing the climb and gluing it all together. Remember when i mentioned about pieces expanding and contracting? everything doesn't hold after scorching like they did before. you will NEED glue after scorching to keep things together.

Now...
Place the finished producted into the cage. You will now be able to line up and install any other side anchors you need (such as the lower pieces in my setup)
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb15.jpg

Yay
bet you're feeling good now. Just the finishing touches left. Vines, substrate, waterdish, etc.
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb16.jpg

What snake wouldn't LOVE that setup!!
wait
speaking of snake
time to add that now.
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb17.jpg
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb18.jpg
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb19.jpg
http://www.isaac-online.com/foto/albums/userpics/10001/climb20.jpg

hope ya enjoyed
this whole thing only took a couple hours and $15 to do....

There are TONS of variations on this you can do. Sky's the limit. Use your own imagination

[Damiano]

woooooooow

[The Nothing]

I have more work to do to it today

The holders are come out and will be re-affixed with silicone. I'm also getting end-caps for the couple pipes with exposed ends so he doesn't get the idea to try to squeeze himself in....

[stage1]

nice but if you are going to show what wine you drink , you should have pick a better vino,just kidding! :scowl: :wacko: B)

[The Nothing]

not wine :D

[ShadowSpider]

Very cool Issac! I could see that being quite the conversational piece.
"OMG, why do you have that rusty piping in there with that snake?!?! Poor snake, you're going to kill it! What would posess a person...."

SMACK!!! "shut up, it's plastic.". :lol:

[KUJordan]

Nothing-

I thought I already replied to this, but I guess not....anyway, that is definitely unique and very well done!

[BrentS]

very nice! i've been thinking about doing something like that.


Brent S.

[LongDucDong]

Im impressed! Very impressed! Who woulda thought?!?! I dont have any arboreals, but if I did, this would be the example to follow! I love the look you achieved by burning the PVC...very cool! When I first saw this I thought you spraypainted it, but that was before you showed the whole build-up! Well done Isaac!!!!

[SCORPY1]

Very Nice Issac :D
Thats is very creative and just shows how we can use almost any material
to make our pets enclosure look better :)
Thanks for sharing :D

[:wumpscut:]

great idea isaac, i'd only suggest a heat gun instead of flame and I'll them coat it with a putty resin, shape form or skin, paint and that way it looks like real vine or tree. you can also cover it with a fine, medium and larger grain size sawdust and marine resin with some coloring added. this way, it will blend in with the back ground easier and not look so pipe like. the resin i use is like peanut butter and it was used to make the trees and vines in the Congo Exhibit|Bronx Zoo. just my idea. great photos.

[Beardo]

This brought back memories lol....I used to do this for the arboreal snakes I used to keep (ATBs, Carpet Pythons, etc)....scorching the PVC is definitely something that takes practice (and ventilation)lol.

This post has been edited by Beardo: 19 June 2006 - 09:40 PM

[Drapion]

The Nothing, on Mar 1 2006, 12:42 PM, said:

not wine :D

thats just damn good beer!!!!!!!!!!!!

[H. cyaneus]

Actually, I think it's ale. :unsure:

Mike

[RaZeDaHeLL]

WOW thats an amazing set up. Looks really complicated to make. I would love to try something like this for my corn snake.

[Rehab Ralphy]

How'd the hydrogen chloride smell when you started to burn that pvc? Just thought I should mention, be carefull with to much heat on that PVC inside of a cage. Your animal is prone to respritory problems (and eventually death) with any exposure to that gas.

[:wumpscut:]

yeah, but i'm sure he washed it well...besides, with all the polutions machines like bank of america and such i'm sure most critters...lmao...just kidding.
anyway, i use either a skin and mortar or waterbase epoxy resin like what you'd see at the bronx zoo. just coat a rope in a sense.

[ProjectHooligan]

ok ok , you said it was only a one beer project ... then later mentioned that it should only take a couple hours . In the time it would take me to contsruct this step for step (and I AM mechanically apt) I'd be wrecked LMAO :lol:

[TheDill]

very nice setup...