# drylok



## Guest (Nov 30, 2010)

i need help with drylok. this enclosure is actually for my retic but i cant find anyone in the snake trade whos used drylok and the requirements for retics and tegus arnt that far off, so im curious how it works.

i bought furniture grade smooth oak plywood (which is heavier then fart) and plan on applying a few layers of drylock and then painting a forest scene and putting a poly coat over that to finish the seal. would this work? the enclosure is gonna be 72x30x20 and i plan on stainin the outside to make it a real furniture looking piece. i know this is a tegu enclosure thread but i really need some help cause all the info im getting says it wont work right, is that true? or will it work i want to get it tinted mint green hopefully.

i really appriciate the help


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## chelvis (Nov 30, 2010)

LOL you came to the right place, as long as your not asking about snake behvior alot of people on here are great about answering building questions. 

I used drylok on my first tegu cage and it stood up well to the abuse of a young tegu and to the warping that the wood went through (i did not seal the outside so it was able to swell a bit). Just give it lots of dry time, it doesnt have too bad of voc to it but just let it dry for about a week or so. It has a rough texture to it (great for helping file down lizard nails) so im not sure how a paint job on top will do, but as far as protecting the wood: five stars!


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## Guest (Nov 30, 2010)

thats awesome cause im loosing my mind lol... got the thing almost built and now i gotta figure out how to seal it

now when u say rough do u mean like sandpaper rough or porus rough? cause retics pee alot.. lol so thats why im thinking of putting a coat of poly over the drylok to give it a nice smooth surface that would just require a nice wipedown.


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## chelvis (Nov 30, 2010)

I mean like sand paper rough, nothing can get through it but adding a top poly coat might smooth it out to the style you want. You can also cover the bottom with laminate flooring, they sell it off the roll so it would be one large piece. Would make clean up easy.


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## Guest (Nov 30, 2010)

yeah i think ima go with a tile on the bottem so i dont have to worry about it, i mean if i do 6'' up the top i really shouldent have a problem. looks like ima give drylok a choice


one question tho do you just wipe it down when u clean? how do u go about cleaning it? i know how to clean the tile obviously lol


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## Guest (Nov 30, 2010)

The best way to clean up a mess is not to make one .. Feed your Tegu in a separate area . Also bath your Tegu in the sink tub whatever and you will find he will relieve himself in it saving a mess he will also relieve himself in his water bowl . To clean up the messes he does make take a hand full of mulch with it ... Doing that cleaning the enclosure should be an infrequent affair .Then when you do you take every thing out and bleach .


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## Toby_H (Nov 30, 2010)

Montana, his enclosure is for a retic, not a Tegu 

I've used Drylok on both animal enclosures as well as it's intended use of sealing concrete. It's great stuff...

It dries rough like sandpaper, or more accurately, like concrete.

I've used it to seal a basement wall that was leaking as well as a retaining wall that was leaching water. It exceeded my expectations on both projects.

I know two people first hand that used it to seal home made fish tanks. It's held up for several years for both of them.

I've used it to seal both my 4' and my 8' Tegu enclosures and it's worked marvelously. I've also used it to cover countless styrofoam inserts for fish tanks as well as reptile and amphibian enclosures/vivariums. 

It really is great stuff...


One of it's intended uses is to seal fish ponds, thus deeming it "animal safe" when cured. Per the manufacturer it is cured in 24 hours. I like to wait a bit longer than that before introducing an animal to it. 


You can add typical paint pigments to Drylok to alter the color. Doing so does void the manufacturers warranty, so large chain department stores like Home Depot or Lowes may not add pigments for you. But I've found smaller chains like Ace or Aco to be willing to do so. 

You will need to add more pigment to white Drylok than you would white paint to acheive the same result. Based on my experience tinting Drylok I suggest doubling the amount of pigment suggested for paint. 


Applying Drylok to lumber or plywood is also not covered by the manufacturer's warranty. But it works great. I suggest making the first coat very thin and then each successive coat to be thicker. The manufacturer recommends 3 hours between coats and I agree with this. Less time between coats causes issues, more time between coats has no ill effects. 


I've never used a clear coat on top of Drylok but I see no reason it wouldn't work. Though keep in mind Drylok is 100% water/urine proof. The rough surface will chew up a paper towel quickly, but it will still clean up easily. Having kept snakes as well, I wouldn't hesitate to use Drylok to seal a snakes enclosure. As a matter of fact I have several Drylok coated inserts in my snakes vivariums. 


For others considering Drylok for Tegus or other clawed reptiles, I have been plesantly surprised at how well it stands up to my adult Tegus claws. He has recently found a place beneath his water dish that he is determined to dig through. He spends on average 1~2 hours per day for 1.5~2 months clawing at the same spot and hasn't done a bit of damage. Though his claws are more rounded than ever before. 








The back and sides are 'forest green' and the shelves, uprights and ceiling supports are brown. I talked the clerk at Ace Hardware to putting enough pigment for one gallon of forest green into a small sealable cup and enough brown pigment for 1/2 gallon in a similar cup then mixed it at home as needed (this is where I learned to double the quantity of pigment).

The water dish to the left is made of plywood and 2x6's then sealed with Drylok. It has held water marvelously and has stood up to quite a bit of abuse from both me and my Tegu. 


Drylok really is great stuff.....


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## Guest (Nov 30, 2010)

thanks so much! thats exactly what i wanted to hear, first hand experience and that doubling the pigment thing im deff gonna have to see if i can convince the hardware guy to do it. cause im looking for a more forest green like u have. looks like tommorow im goin to the hardware store and getting this thing started!


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## james.w (Dec 4, 2010)

Do they make a Drylok specifically for wood or is the masonry one all they have? I was at Home Depot today and all they had was Drylok for masonry.


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## tora (Dec 4, 2010)

Nope that's the only one, but people have no problem using it on wood.


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## Toby_H (Dec 4, 2010)

It's made for masonry...

When using it on wood, it is important to make the first coat thin. If the first coat is too thick then it can/will peel.


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## james.w (Dec 4, 2010)

Thank you


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## Edward Santos (Nov 16, 2019)

Hey everyone I just built my young tegu enclosure and I used drylok extreme and I just want to know how many coats should I be applying and about how long I should wait to introduce him into his new home


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