Vision cages...

[RandyRhoads420]

How does everyone feel about them? Pros and cons? I have one and it seems to be the ,easiest,(and only for me) way to regulate temps. With terrariums i can't find a good way to set up heat lamps. Either set it on the screen....where most of the heat escapes out the top....or clamp it on the support brace in the middle. Not much room for experimentation on those or am I doing it wrong? Should i sell all my glass and invest in a bunch more Vision cages?

[Lankyrob]

I think the trend in the UK is to have a wooden/plastic vivarium with sliding glass doors on the front. This makes it easy to place heat lamps etc as you have a solid "ceiling" to the vivarium. It also help keep the temperatures up within it.

[RandyRhoads420]

So they're custom or is it a brand name cage? What do you mean solid ceiling? Does it have crosbeams or something to clamp the heat lamps on?

[Lankyrob]

Because the tops of the vivariums are solid wood or plastic the heat lamps can be screwed into the top of the cage - they dont tend to "clamp" on - they are fixed directly into the top of the vivarium

[marvelfreak]

Do you have snakes or lizards? For my snakes i have Boaphile cages with under cage heat pads. With a 8 inch florescent light mounted at the top front of cage. Vision cage are nice, but there are cheaper one out there. That are just as nice. Check out kingsnake.com they have all kinds of cages on there.Kingsnake.com Classifieds > Cages, Aquariums, & Terrariums (http://market.kingsnake.com/index.php?cat=22) Check out some of the company they can custom make cages to.

[RandyRhoads420]

Thanks for the info cheaper would be nice. I have snakes and I love my vision cage but getting a bunch would be expensive. Does anyone know if you need special heat lamps for vision cages because the heat lamp on mine melted the plastic and nearly ruined the whole cage.

And the neodesha cages look like a good deal but I can't see where you could put a heat lamp on them.

[marvelfreak]

And the neodesha cages look like a good deal but I can't see where you could put a heat lamp on them.
[/QUOTE] They have a cut out sceen top. You just set your heat light on. If your light melted the plastic you have way to strong of a light. Go with a lower wattage.

[Will0W783]

Vision cages are good, but very expensive. I tend to prefer the Boaphile style cages. If you go to PmHerps.com they have some very nice high-density plastic cages that are very affordable!

[infernalis]

What ever happened to buying some wood and glass then building what you need?

[Lankyrob]

What ever happened to buying some wood and glass then building what you need?

Is tempting but not sure my skills would come up with a snakeproof result!!

[Will0W783]

My current cages are homemade from melamine and plexi and they are ok, but heavy as heck and really not that nice-looking. They were $25 apiece though. My fiance and I are planning to move when I get my Ph.D. in about 2-3 years, so I want to replace everything with plastic cages in the new place.

[marvelfreak]

That why i love my Boaphile cages they're so light weight. I can pick up two at a time an move them by myself. My big jungle weighs as much as her cage. About 9 lbs each.

[bighog85]

I thought about buying cages and if I were to go with like the boaphile 421D's it wouldn't be to bad price wise. Except that I hate only having a 12" tall cage, you can't hardly see your animals in them, not to mention that every one of my snakes no matter the species will climb if given the opportunity. To buy one that is only a few inches taller somehow adds at least $100 to the pricetag which is just to much. Go to this link: Herpers toolbox (http://www.arbreptiles.com/cages/cages.shtml)
He gives really simple step by step instructions for building really nice wood cages. I am not a carpenter by any means and I have been able to build some really nice cages for a fraction of the price of buying even the cheapest plastic cages. If money is not an issue then by all means go and buy. But these look really nice, you can build to whatever dimensions you want, and the sense of satisfaction you get from building these to house your animals is a huge bonus.

[infernalis]

Since I have a reptile room, mobility is of no interest.

Have even contemplated installing a glass door on the closet and using the whole closet for an arboreal snake.

http://www.danceswithreptiles.com/PG1/images/1roomlabeled.jpg

http://www.danceswithreptiles.com/PG1/images/2roomlabel.jpg

[Coffee Black]

nice reptile room, infernalis. My girlfriend and I are looking at apartments with a den or an affordable two bedroom for a similar purpose. I'd love to have a 3 bedroom where her silly cats could stay in a room and leave me be...

[dragunov.762]

Awesome Room. Someday i will have a house with a spare room to turn into a reptile room. first i need the degree then a job then a loan and then maybe i will have the space lol.

[Will0W783]

Once you get yourself more space, you will end up using it all up very quickly and fining you need still more space, and then using that up, etc. It's an addiction..lol. I have taken over my poor fiance's house. It was a 3-bedroom townhouse when I met him...now it's a 1-bedroom, 1 snake room, and 1 office/arboreal snake room house. Guests have to sleep on the couch, although with the number of snakes, scorpions, spiders, other creepy crawlies, overnight guests are few and far between (not necessarily a bad thing)..lol.

[dragunov.762]

ooh yea i need the snakes too. one Mexican black king snake will hardly take up a whole room. i have 2 kids, fish, 2 rats, and a cat. room is a scare commodity around here but there is always room for one more...

[infernalis]

This house had a 12x18 spare room, it's already too small.

Building some more shelving, and tower type racks, I have stinking cages on the floor, and that bugs me.

2 cages in the hallway on the floor too.

[Will0W783]

I think that is what size the snake room in my house is too, Wayne. And they rapidly become too small!

[Lankyrob]

We are looking to move too - and on the list is an additional room to take the snakes that we are wanting to get!

Currently in a 3 bedroom house we have 2 adults, 1 child, 1 dog, 3 cats, 2 guinea pigs, 1 hamster and a tank full of fish.

Definitely need to get more room!!

[RandyRhoads420]

I have cages taking up every room including the hallway and I'm a bachelor in a 3 bedroom house lol

[Will0W783]

Wow, how many reptiles do you have Randy?

[RandyRhoads420]

10. And they pretty much all have their own stand (or makeshift) stand.

[Will0W783]

Cool. I'd love to see pictures of your snake cages.

[RandyRhoads420]

Heres most of them. Nothing special.

[RandyRhoads420]

FWC , Red tail and ball python.