Arcylic Parts and How to Use Them

Many frog keepers (and herpers, for that matter) have a do-it-yourself spirit. In line with this, Josh's Frogs offers a variety of acrylic parts that help in the DIY construction of enclosures. We'll show what we've used the different acrylic parts for, and how we've attached them to different materials in tank construction.Josh's Frogs sells three different acrylic hinges:

1-3/4' X 1-1/2' Acrylic Clear Plasti-Hinge - A couple of these are a great option for a vertical tank, or to act as hinges on a top. Use at least 2 of these in construction.
6"" clear acrylic piano hinge - This simple hinge is great for spanning distances up to 6"". Use as the lower or side hinge in a front or top opening tank. This hinge can be cut to length.
12' Clear Acrylic Piano Hinge - Same as the 6"" piano hinge, but longer! This hinge can be used on openings up to 12"" in length.

Josh's Frogs also carries a variety of acrylic door handles/hardware:

Acrylic Knob - This acrylic knob measures 1"" top diam x 1/2"" base diam x 3/4"" long. It's great as a knob for drawers or top opening tanks. For front opening or sliding doors, we recommend acrylic pulls or acrylic handles.
Acrylic Handle - This acrylic handle measures 4"" long and about 5/8"" deep. Perfect for top opening tanks or front opening sliding doors. This particular handle is great for adhering to glass, as it's wide base provides plenty of surface area for firm adhesion.
Clear Acrylic Pull - This acrylic pull measures about 1 3/4"" long and 3/8"" deep. It's sleek design allows the contents of the enclosure to be the focus of attention, and not the door hardware.

Lastly, we supply 2 different means of securing your tanks:

Acrylic Hasp - The acrylic hasp measures 2 1/4"" by 1"" and is a great way to secure a vertical or top opening door. The acrylic hasp can be oriented on a flat surface or corner (as illustrated). A small lock, such as the Exo Terra Terrarium Lock, can be used to secure the tank from uninvited guests.
Acrylic Door Catch - The acrylic door catch measures 5/8"" x 1-5/16"" x 7/16"", and is great to front opening doors against inhabitants that could otherwise push their way out!

How you adhere your acrylic parts to your enclosure largely depends on the material you'll be attaching the acrylic to. Here's our recommendations on 3 common surfaces:

Glass - Bonding acrylic to glass is a tricky task. Acrylic and glass do not like to bond to each other, but there is a technique that's worked well for us for a number of years. First, rough up the acrylic surface to be bonded with a low grit sandpaper. Then, clean the acrylic and glass surface with rubbing alcohol and allow to dry. Finally, use aquarium silicone to bond the two surfaces together. Make sure to allow the silicone ample time to cure - this typically takes 24 to 48 hours.
Acrylic - Bonding acrylic to acrylic is a breeze - it just requires a specialized acrylic solvent (such as Weld-on) or acrylic cement. We recommend cleaning the acrylic surfaces to be bonded with rubbing alcohol prior to adhesion, then just follow the instructions on the acrylic bonding product.
Wood - Wood enclosures, including those constructed out of melamine, have recently gained quite a lot of popularity as an economical construction material. Luckily, attaching the acrylic parts to wood is a breeze, as most commonly available construction adhesives, such as liquid nails, work great. We do recommend roughing up the acrylic surface to be adhered with a low grit sandpaper prior to adhesion. Cleaning the acrylic with rubbing alcohol and allowing it to dry is a great idea. Then, just follow the recommended dry time give on the tube or bottle of adhesive, and you'll be good to go.

Josh's Frogs