Tank:
I cleaned the tank really well and checked for cracks and leaks. I got sand from Home Depot and washed it for what I felt like was FOREVER (it was somewhat difficult in the middle of winter in Pennsylvania, but I managed to use a garden hose). It took the sand about 15 hours to finally settle.
I used drift wood that I had gotten at a pet store. I soaked it in water for about a week to make it sink. One of the pieces is fully sunken…the other not as much but I’m hoping eventually it will sink on its own. I also added a bubble wand, some plants and a background.
Basking Area:
After some careful consideration I decided on using acrylic sheets that were 1/8’’ thick. I had originally intended on using wood but the sheets are much lighter and surprisingly no more expensive. To cut them I tried the score and crack method…yeah right! In the end my boyfriend took them to the machine shop on campus and used a band saw (I’m lucky he is an engineer or I would have never finished this project
). Once the pieces were cut we used acrylic cement and silicon sealant to glue them all together. 
To hold the base on we affixed small squares to better support the weight. This will also allow us some room to mount lights later.
For the ramp we screwed a piece of scrap acrylic sheet to the back of a piece of cork. Then to mount it to the base we used an acrylic hinge which had been glued in the correct angle.
The tank was 36’’ wide and the ATBA was only 24’’ so to cover the remaining tank area and prevent escape, a scrap piece of acrylic sheet was attached with another hinge to the side of the ATBA.
Once the structure was built I added a few plant, a piece of cork and a terrarium liner. The light hood was secured and the tank was done!
I hope you like it, and if you have any more questions about construction please let me know.
