What can I do to improve this mesh lid on my new vivarium?

[MajorManny]

Hi there! It's been a while but I'm in need of some advice:

My female orchid mantis has grown up in a vivarium (a beautiful PanTerra's Box) all her life but now that she's an L6 she's starting to outgrow it. So in preparation for her next molt, I'm making my own bigger one.

I bought a Zoo Med Bugarium and put in two different plants (that Sarah from PanterraPets suggested to lower the chance of my mantis getting eggbound) a with great substrate and some microfauna. Everything is awesome...

BUT, the lid is not. It's merely a frame with a flimsy piece of metal mesh stapled on with no structure and the 'grid' is too spaced out, which looks to me like it could do harm to her little feet. It's also too flimsy and sags since it's stretched over such a large space without any reinforcement between the frames. The pictures are at the bottom.

Anyway, it's the lid definitely needs replacing but I'm not sure what would be the best replacement and how to:

1. Make sure it's sturdy
   
2. Make sure it won't trap or potentially damage any part of my mantis
   
3. Have it ventilated enough for her and few live plants
   
4. Have it be affordable 
   
5. Have it be something that a novice with shaky hands can do.
   

Could I get some suggestions on which material(s) I should use and how to attach them? That would be really helpful. Otherwise I'm not comfortable putting her in there. I've read the pinned post and know all the options but don't know what I should do in this case.

Thank you all so much! Here are the pictures:

This is how large the holes are:



And I can't find a way to get a picture to give you an idea, but when I put the penny on it, the center dips since the material is too pliant to be stretched over a space that large:



Then this is what the underside looks like:



EDIT: I'm NOT using the substrate that comes with the Bugarium, don't worry!

 

[River Dane]

Hi MajorManny,

You could use a hot glue gun to cover the grid with a superior mesh net. Lift the lid, cut out a square of the new material, and hot glue it to the the bottom (the part the mantis is going to be hanging from,the inside part).

@CosbyArt has a guide for choosing materials + a better guide than I gave you just now, lol.



Good luck!

—D.E.

 

[MajorManny]

Hi MajorManny,

You could use a hot glue gun to cover the grid with a superior mesh net. Lift the lid, cut out a square of the new material, and hot glue it to the the bottom (the part the mantis is going to be hanging from,the inside part).

@CosbyArt has a guide for choosing materials + a better guide than I gave you just now, lol.



Good luck!

—D.E.

Thank you! I read through that, though and it seems not to have anything about as big of a space I have and I want to know specifically what type of mesh (like brand or item name) with smaller holes that's high quality and where to buy it because I'm probably buying online.

Thank you again!

EDIT:  Also there's no place to cut, the entire top is just low quality 7' x 7'ish piece of mesh stapled down to a small frame. I put a penny on it for scale.

 

[River Dane]

The products listed in the guide:

[Deleted]

Can probably be found on Amazon or on any crafts websites.

Organza

Shelf liner

Fabric+mesh

These are some products I found on Amazon that may work for you. What I meant by cutting is cutting the said materials above to fit the shape of the lid, and using a hot glue gun to attach the material onto the inside part of the lid (the part the mantis will come in contact with). 

Hope this helps!

 

[CosbyArt]

@FluffyMantid Glad to see someone has seen my guide, and a first someone recommended it besides me.

@MajorManny My DIY tutorial works on any size container, not sure how size has a bearing on it. Personally I've done 4' long tubs with the same instructions and materials for my cricket tanks and others, but I digress... The lid can be fixed to work perfectly with just a few steps. As the screen is stapled into place, and is the strength of the lid itself, I do not recommend you to replace the screen mesh as it could ruin the lid; rather, I recommend you to improve it as follows to fix the issues.

A easy fix for the screen mesh drooping/sagging/dip is to add a support to it to make it rigid. Then the mesh itself is simply overlaid with a 2nd layer of mesh (as in my guide), which organza/tulle/or similar is an ideal material. As your looking for specifics, I assume it's your first such DIY, and I'll walk you through it.

Looking at your profile I see your location and found a nearby local Michael's craft store to purchase the needed materials (5442 New Hope Commons Dr  Durham, NC 27707  (919) 490-4945); although, any such craft store or even local Walmart or such should have them as well if you find something closer. All links to items are to the store to make it easier for you to follow along.

The most common method to secure things is hot glue as it is easy, affordable, and non-toxic when dry in under a minute (or seconds in small amounts). With it being used to secure support material I recommend a high-temp glue gun though to ensure the strongest bond. Here is a basic glue gun, and glue sticks to do that if you don't have any and again is covered in my guide as well if needed and it's basic use.

The screen mesh opening size is easily fixed by laying a 2nd layer of mesh over it. I would recommend a organza/tulle fabric as is great for grip, and will make the tank work feeding fruit flies with other nymphs as they can not escape through it. Here is the fabric, it says online only but my store sells it (I've bought it). If needed just ask a employee for the fabric and they should find it or a acceptable replacement easily. They sell fabric by the yard like most, so just buy half a yard to ensure you have enough width to cover your lid.

Line the 2nd mesh over the lid and start to glue one entire side flat. Then keeping the mesh lightly taut and straight, glue another side. Repeat until all 4 sides are hot glued into place. Cut off the excess fabric and it should look something like this... (I used a bigger mesh to show better in your photo)



To fix the screen mesh dip/drooping/sagging a dowel rod cut to fit between the lid edges will give it plenty of support, and eliminate the problem. A 1/4" dowel rod should be more than enough support. You will need to hot glue the ends of the dowel to secure it. Then in the middle apply hot glue through the screen (other side) onto the dowel rod to secure the screen. Using your photo here is a example of that...



With the 2nd mesh layer and dowel done the problems you listed for the lid will be gone. Together the steps will look something like this...



Lastly if either layer of mesh is still a bit sagging you can simply add hot glue at places on the mesh as needed (gluing both pieces of mesh together). That is nothing more than small globs of glue and would look like this...

 

[MajorManny]

@FluffyMantid Glad to see someone has seen my guide, and a first someone recommended it besides me.

@MajorManny My DIY tutorial works on any size container, not sure how size has a bearing on it. Personally I've done 4' long tubs with the same instructions and materials for my cricket tanks and others, but I digress... The lid can be fixed to work perfectly with just a few steps. As the screen is stapled into place, and is the strength of the lid itself, I do not recommend you to replace the screen mesh as it could ruin the lid; rather, I recommend you to improve it as follows to fix the issues.

A easy fix for the screen mesh drooping/sagging/dip is to add a support to it to make it rigid. Then the mesh itself is simply overlaid with a 2nd layer of mesh (as in my guide), which organza/tulle/or similar is an ideal material. As your looking for specifics, I assume it's your first such DIY, and I'll walk you through it.

Looking at your profile I see your location and found a nearby local Michael's craft store to purchase the needed materials (5442 New Hope Commons Dr  Durham, NC 27707  (919) 490-4945); although, any such craft store or even local Walmart or such should have them as well if you find something closer. All links to items are to the store to make it easier for you to follow along.

The most common method to secure things is hot glue as it is easy, affordable, and non-toxic when dry in under a minute (or seconds in small amounts). With it being used to secure support material I recommend a high-temp glue gun though to ensure the strongest bond. Here is a basic glue gun, and glue sticks to do that if you don't have any and again is covered in my guide as well if needed and it's basic use.

The screen mesh opening size is easily fixed by laying a 2nd layer of mesh over it. I would recommend a organza/tulle fabric as is great for grip, and will make the tank work feeding fruit flies with other nymphs as they can not escape through it. Here is the fabric, it says online only but my store sells it (I've bought it). If needed just ask a employee for the fabric and they should find it or a acceptable replacement easily. They sell fabric by the yard like most, so just buy half a yard to ensure you have enough width to cover your lid.

Line the 2nd mesh over the lid and start to glue one entire side flat. Then keeping the mesh lightly taut and straight, glue another side. Repeat until all 4 sides are hot glued into place. Cut off the excess fabric and it should look something like this... (I used a bigger mesh to show better in your photo)

To fix the screen mesh dip/drooping/sagging a dowel rod cut to fit between the lid edges will give it plenty of support, and eliminate the problem. A 1/4" dowel rod should be more than enough support. You will need to hot glue the ends of the dowel to secure it. Then in the middle apply hot glue through the screen (other side) onto the dowel rod to secure the screen. Using your photo here is a example of that...

With the 2nd mesh layer and dowel done the problems you listed for the lid will be gone. Together the steps will look something like this...

Lastly if either layer of mesh is still a bit sagging you can simply add hot glue at places on the mesh as needed (gluing both pieces of mesh together). That is nothing more than small globs of glue and would look like this...

You are an absolute lifesaver. Thank you so much for taking all that time to help me out, it means a lot. Daisy will appreciate it.  

 

[CosbyArt]

You are an absolute lifesaver. Thank you so much for taking all that time to help me out, it means a lot. Daisy will appreciate it.  

Your more than welcome. I had some time and figured it would be the most help. Best of luck on your project, and let me know how it turns out for Daisy.