sorry, the one on the right or the one on the left?
the one on the left is thinking
"who is this primate mimicking me,
if he keeps it up much longer i will jump at him and observe his reaction
i hope he brought a change of pants"
that thickness of plywood would work ?
depending on size of tank? and being screwed and glued
personally i would use 4 x 2's and ply
it is better to over design than under design
i didn't know beardies had a nest to leave
sometimes when they are in their brumating period they can be left alone for a few weeks
remember they are your worries not the beardies
having treid this before i agree with mincie
doesn't take much to upset the system and cause a wet floor
syphon can be upset by micro bubbles in water and build up in the syphon which can restrict flow
so long as you are aware of this it can work, my 2metre reef is on syphon ststem