Staining Methods

[reptilelove]

Hi There,
I am new to the forum so hi and thanks in advance for any help given...
I make reptile enclosures for myself and have sold about 2 of them to friends.. My question is I need help on the best method of applying stain and what the best brand is... In the past when I apply it to the Ply (Thats all I use at this stage) it is blotchy and doesnt look professional.. If anyone can give me some tips on applying and brands that would be great..
Thanks a lot...

[Barry_White]

Hi RL

I'm no expert but one thing I have learned is that it is better not to use a combined stain and varnish because it will come out blotchy.

I find it is better to use a straight stain first and then coat it with a clear Estapol over the stain.

The only stain that I have used is Wattyl and I don't think there is much difference in any of the brands.

BTW welcome to the forum.

[ubeaut]

You could be doing harm to the reptiles you intend to enclose if you stain using most common stains especially if you don't seal the stain with a finish of some sort.

We have nontoxic water dye that you can use and has been used in the past for such enclosures as well as for bird cages and toys for birds, rodents, etc.

Same with the finish most will initially give off toxic fumes for a fair period of time that won't be too good for the animals. You could safely use dewaxed White Shellac as a finish over the water dye if you wish as it is also non toxic.

Cheers - Neil

[MacS]

You may want to consider using Shellac flakes with color, this way you will coloring and coating with each application that you apply to your work.

Check out the colors of flake Shellac.

If you use ethyl alcohol instead of the commonly used denatured alcohol it will be less toxic.

Shellac is considered food safe and a non -toxic coating.

Do a search, and read up on Shellac, its a good option for your reptiles.

MacS