How to Make an Acrylic Vivarium

A vivarium is any artificial environment made to serve as a temporary or permanent home for a pet. The most common of these are fish tanks, terrariums and paludariums, all of which can be made from glass or acrylic. The major advantage of acrylic is that it is far lighter than glass without losing any of its strength. This means that an acrylic set-up can be made larger and with less supporting structure than a glass one of similar size. When tanks start getting in the 300 gallon range, this becomes very important.

Things You'll Need

  • 5 24-by- 24-inch cell cast acrylic panels
  • Chemical bonding agent (weld-on)
  • Scrap wood
  • 4 quick-release clamps
  • Syringe
  • Fixed router
  • Two-flute straight-cut router bit
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Instructions

    • 1

      Bevel all of the edges of all of the acrylic pieces by running them across a router fit with a two-flute straight-cut router bit. Run them at a 45-degree angle so that when two pieces are joined they create a flush joint.

    • 2

      Place a piece of 2-by-2-foot acrylic flat in the center of your work area.

    • 3

      Butt another 2-by-2-foot piece against one of the edges of the base piece at a 90-degree angle.

    • 4

      Put scrap wood on the outside edge of each piece and clamp them together with a quick-release clamp.

    • 5

      Draw the acrylic chemical bonding agent into the syringe by inserting the needle into the can and pulling the plunger back.

    • 6

      Place the syringe at a 45-degree angle against the inside edge of the pieces to be joined.

    • 7

      Press down on the plunger slowly to release a consistent bead of the chemical bonding agent into the joint. This will cause a chemical reaction that liquefies the acrylic. Within 10 minutes of application, the two pieces will be joined, but it is still advisable not to move the joined piece for at least three hours.

    • 8

      Repeat Step 2 through 5 until you have four walls and a bottom for the vivarium.

    • 9

      Seal the side joints of the tank two at a time. Lay the tank on its side and run a bead of chemical bonding agent down the seams where the sides come together. You will not have to clamp the area because the side panels are already held in place by the base.

    • 10

      Remove the protective covering from the acrylic pieces to reveal the crystal-clear 2-foot vivarium cube you have created.