Custom Plexiglass Aquarium Lid

Making a plexi glass top for your cage is an easy and inexpensive thing to do.

You will need:
2 sheets of plexi glass
Aluminum screening
Silicone adhesive
Drawer pull
Circular hole saw
Sand paper
Masking tape
Heavy books

Start off by measuring the inside lip of your cage. You can get your plexiglass (black or opaque will look the best) cut for you at most local lumber or hardware stores. You will need 2 sheets of the same size. The larger the cage the thicker the plexi you will need (¼ or 3/8 inches thick will work and look the best). You will also need to buy a roll of thin aluminum window screening. Once you have your plexi cut you need to temporarily tape them together on top of each other. Determine where you want your vent holes and where your lights will be (if you are using overhead lighting) using a circular hole saw carefully cut your holes (let the saw do its own work, if you push too hard it will crack the plexi. If you get a rough edge a little light sanding will clean it up.

Once this is done roughly cut your screening to be just larger than your plexi. Silicone around the holes and the edges of one piece of plexi (make sure you leave about ½ between the silicone and the edges of the plexi to allow it to spread) and dab some in the open area of the plexi as well for proper adhesion. Stick the screening down onto the silicone. Go back and silicone over the screening following the previous beads as best as possible. Sandwich the other piece of plexi on top making sure to line up all the holes and the edges. Once your sure everything is even lined up weight it down with a few heavy books and let it cure for at least 24 hours. Don't worry the smell will fade!

When its dry and cured go back and carefully trim the excess screening from around the edges. Last but not least add a Drawer pull to the top for easy removal and your done!