Could I make my own viv using this dish cabinet?

So, I can remove the middle piece of wood, the doors, and the pieces of wood holding it above the bottom piece, and have it lay flat.

Then I can somehow add melamine or some other material inside to protect the wood and make the vivs easy to clean.

Then I would make sure the back is secure and there is no other way to escape, and seal everything up.

Next add acrylic or something to enclose it, and have them either open downward or slide to open.

Is this plausible do you think?

I would say it is doable!

I'm thinking what for heat???
You don't need to add melamine to protect the wood, just coat the wood with polyurethane. Add wood to the shelf in the cabinet so it hits the door. Install a piece of wood on top of that, across the shelf for a dam to hold back the aspen. And come up with a go locking system for the doors and leave the center piece but the heating unit....Hmmm

Hmm.

Not simply to protect the wood, but also to make it easy to clean. Something that I can just wipe down with disinfectant or something to clean it out. Doesn't have to be melamine, but I don't know much about construction materials.

And I really don't plan on keeping the doors. With a locking mechanism, they could work. But I don't like the way it'd look. I think I'd rather have glass or acrylic or something across the top and bottom, enclosing each viv.

And yeah, the substrate dam was something I was going to add, if I do end up using aspen.

As far as heating, I'm really not sure. I have a UTH right now, but that wouldn't work here I think.

This is what I made. Its painted plywood with water base poly for a finish.
You can see the poly shinning.
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=49658a

You might be able to put a thin strip of wood (thickness of your uth or more) on the "floor" and cover it with plexiglass.
Looking at you door better you might be able to remove the glass and inside "frame" so it won't be a four pane door but a one pane door.

You mean, like put a piece of plexiglass inside, and then the UTH on it, and then a piece of plexiglass on top of that?

Or put a piece of wood on the floor and the UTH on top of that and then plexiglass on top of that?

Kazarus said:

You mean, like put a piece of plexiglass inside, and then the UTH on it, and then a piece of plexiglass on top of that?

Or put a piece of wood on the floor and the UTH on top of that and then plexiglass on top of that?

Click to expand...

My flexwatt is touching the plywood in my cage. I notch out a cavity in the plywood so that the whole unit plus plexiglass is flush with top of the floor.
So.... you already have a wood floor. you just need to rise part of it up with 'trim", to handle the thickness of your unit and cape it with plexiglass. Seal it up with silicone. And put the hide on top of that. The uth should only reach temp of 85 -90 degrees. Not enought to burn anything.