DIY Hicat® Adaptation

For customers who want to shorten a Hicat® for themselves there are basically two options available depending on the unit type - the first is to cut the excess height from the top of the unit & refit the top cap, the second is to take a section from the middle of the unit & make up an MDF disc assembly to join the two sections together

Option One or Two?

The first option will always apply to Polecat but Tomcat & Fatcat adaptions will depend on how Access Hole Compartments are positioned on the unit - typically if there is an Access Hole at the top of the unit the second option will apply, where a section is removed below this Access Hole.

Polecat

Shortening a Polecat is relatively straight forward depending on the way you finish the top end cap after making the adaptation - you can either make a single cut then refit the top cap with an exposed end cap showing (this is the easy version) or two cuts that will enable you to dress the end cap with a wrapped end detail (more difficult).

The calculation for the new unit length (excluding feet) is your new ceiling height minus 52mm.

If you intend to carry out the easy adaptation then simply make the cut by marking up the the tube with masking tape on the section that is going to be discarded.

The cut is best made with a fine saw, either hand or jigsaw, & if using a jigsaw you can drill a small pilot hole on the cut line to get you started. You can also cut around the mark-up line with a Stanley blade before making the cut as this will help to stop strands fraying & pulling.

Making this cut is the tricky bit so double check your measuring up & make sure you’re marking up as accurately as possible - a common mistake is measuring from the coir edge rather than end cap so it’s important to use using a tape measure with a large end L-return to make sure you are measuring from the MDF face & not the coir edge.

Once the cut is made clean up the coir on the tube edge with secateurs.

Carefully strip back the coir from the top end cap using a flat headed screwdriver to prise the coir away from the inside edge of the end cap, pulling coir in small sections while you work around the disc - the coir will come away with a layer or two of the MDF stuck to it, which is normal, but the trick is to lever the coir away with as little MDF stuck to it as possible just in case you want to re-wrap the end cap as described later.

There will also be 3-4 staples that need to be released from the end cap - use a small flat headed screwdriver to prise the staples & then remove fully with needle nose pliers if you have a pair.

Clean up the end cap & then glue it onto the tube making sure that the 5mm rebate that runs around the edge of the end cap is fully engaged into the tube - if you have a stapler you can also peel back the coir slightly around the edge & staple through to the inside edge of the end cap.

This completes the easy adaptation but you can use coir fibres made from the off coir off-cut to dress the edge around the end cap if you like & build up the height of this edge so that gap at the top of the unit & ceiling is reduced - cut the coir from the off-cut into 3-4mm long fibres & apply a bead of glue around the end cap edge then sprinkle the fibres on to the glue dabbing on fibres to form a neat detail around the edge of the end cap.

A hot melt glue gun is best for finishing the end cap as you can build up the edge with a number of separate beads & work the fibres into shape more easily than with contact or modelling adhesive.

If you want to adapt the unit with a more difficult wrapped end detail you will need to first make a cut at the same height as the new ceiling height so there is 50mm of excess coir material to wrap the around the end cap - once the cut is made carefully release & strip back the coir from the cardboard to make a final cut to the new unit length (excluding feet), which again will be your new ceiling height minus 52mm.

You will then be all set to carry out the wrapped end detail as illustrated on our DIY Polecat page.

Tomcat & Fatcat

If you are able to shorten the unit by removing a section on the top of the unit then the Polecat instructions above will apply noting that the new unit length (excluding feet) is your new ceiling height minus 57mm, instead of 52mm & there will be more staples to remove from the end cap.

Because Tomcat & Fatcat units have internal surfaces finishes these will need to be trimmed back after the cut has been made to allow the end cap to be fitted whether you are carrying out the easy or more difficult wrapped end cap adaptation.

If you are not able to shorten the unit at the top because of Access Hole positioning you will have to carry out the second adaptation option, which is to remove a section of the unit & fabricate an MDF disc to join the halves together - the section that needs to be removed is best between the third & fourth Access Hole where layout permits but can also be lower on the unit.

You will end up with a join but this can finished with fibres to make it presentable or you can dress it with a Hicatch Toy band, which is what we recommend using on two piece units to cover the join. 

The section that needs to be removed equates to the new ceiling height minus 40mm for feet & connector clearance plus the thickness of the MDF disc that you are going to use to join the sections.  

For example a 2500mm long unit (excluding feet) adapted to a 2300mm high ceiling using 12mm thick MDF to form the disc to join the sections would be like this: 

2300mm high ceiling

minus 40mm for feet & connector gaps,

minus 12mm for MDF disc,

equals 2248mm new unit length,

existing 2500mm unit length minus 2248mm new length equals a 252mm section cut out. 

The section to be cut out should be centred between the access holes where possible & you will need to work around the shelf position if you have one between these holes & decide if you need to cut out the shelf completely or can work around it, which is preferred as it will be stronger after the adaptation.  

Typically a shelf will sit 200mm below the centre of the Access Hole above it & you need to make sure that after making the cut you have enough room to form rebates up to the shelf – see below. 

As per the Polecat instructions, once you’ve worked out your dimensions you can use masking tape to mark-up the position of the cuts noting that it’s best to place the tape over the section to be cut out, not on the body of the unit, as when you remove the tape you may fray the coir fibres when pulling it off. 

The cuts are best made with a fine saw, either hand or jigsaw, & if using a jigsaw you can drill a small pilot hole on the cut line to get you started - using a blade to cut around the line before making the cut will also help stop the weaved strands fraying & pulling.

Making this cut is the tricky bit so double check your measuring up & make sure you’re marking up as accurately as possible - a common mistake is measuring from the coir edge rather than end cap so it’s important to use a tape measure with a large end L-return to make sure you’re measuring from the MDF face & not the coir edge.

Once you’ve made the cuts clean up the coir edges on the two halves with secateurs but hang on to the off-cuts for later. 

Now you need to make up an MDF connecting disc that is the same size as the exposed cardboard external diameter i.e. 317mm for Tomcat & 412mm for Fatcat.

Again, the thickness of this MDF disc relates to the height calculation so working on the example above let’s say you are using 12mm MDF - an easy way to get the diameter marked up is to take a long strip of MDF scrap & drill a pilot hole, 158mm or 206mm depending on unit type, from one end then put a screw or nail through the pilot & scribe a circle with a pencil on the edge that you’ve measured from. 

You also need to make up at least two MDF rebate discs that are smaller than the internal diameter of the cardboard core i.e. 305mm for Tomcat & 400mm for Fatcat.

These discs are centred & fixed each side of the 316mm/412mm connecting disc noted above & used as collars to locate the two halves when the unit goes back together & hold the sections in place - if you want a really strong join we would suggest doubling up the rebates i.e. two 305mm or 400mm diameter 12mm discs on each side of the connecting disc.  

To check the sizing of the rebate discs cut away the internal covering from the inside edges of the cuts at least the depth of the rebate, in this case 12mm for a single rebate & 24mm for a double rebate, & see if the disc fits snugly - if not you can file down the edges until you get a good fit.   

When you’re happy with the fit apply some PVA glue between discs & the fix securely with screws.

With your cats safely located in another room assemble the two halves of the unit in its upright position to check that its plumb – if you need to tweak things you can carefully trim the cardboard edges on each section until you are happy with the alignment. 

You obviously have the option now of rotating the upper & lowered access holes in different positions but if doing this make sure you mark the position of the sections with masking tape in relation to the edge of the disc with a marker. 

At this point you can also decide whether you want to cut out an aperture in the MDF disc to make it a climb-through join – you can also paint the disc or even cover each side in fabric as long as you make sure this doesn’t interfere with the internal finish edges that have been cut away & cleaned up for the rebate discs.

When you’re ready to join the sections you need to put a generous bead of glue on the edges of the rebate discs or internal edges of the cardboard where the rebate discs locate then assemble the unit - Gorilla Glue works well but remember dampen the surfaces before applying the glue.

You may also want to add some glue under the inside edges of the internal material that’s been cut away to form the rebates as these might have been pulled away slightly from the backing when trimming them back. 

If you have a staple gun you can also fire some staples in around the edge of the tube by lifting the coir on the outside edge & stapling through to the rebate discs. As above, the larger the thickness of the rebate discs the stronger the join & the easier it is to staple as well. 

You’ll need the unit to set for at least 24 hours in a standing position so make sure that your cats are not allowed to play on it & that it’s safely secured.

While waiting you can make up some fibres to use to cover the join.

Take the off-cut & trim off the coir into 3-4mm long fibres then glue these into the cut joint - if you have a hot melt glue gun this works best as you can run a small bead of glue on to the join, sprinkle some fibres over the glue & then dab on more fibres to form a neat seam.

When doing this also make sure that any stray strands are glued into position so the seam doesn’t fray when climbed. 

We would recommend doing this even if you’re planning to wrap a Hicatch band over the joint as it will help long term to keep the unit looking nice & also help strengthen the unit, especially if you use a thick bead of glue when dabbing on the fibres - if you want a really strong joint then run a thick bead of glue into the join to prep it, let is set, then run another bead of glue of it & dab on fibres to finish it. 

Good luck with your project & if you have any questions regarding the above notes please get in touch.