building a rack

[N1T24M]

thought id share, something that can save lots of $$$$
usually a rack to house the larger reptiles can set you back anywhere from 500 to 1500 bucks, i built one in a little over 200 (including heat and tubs).
i didnt build mine the conventional way, with the tubs sliding through the front, but sideways. i made this decision simply because of the space i wanted to put the rack in, was ideal for this setup. some pics!
http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss197/nitramartin/DSCF1460.jpg

http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss197/nitramartin/DSCF1462.jpg
http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss197/nitramartin/DSCF1463.jpg
http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss197/nitramartin/DSCF1464.jpg
http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss197/nitramartin/DSCF1465.jpg
the material used was 1/4" expandible pvc foam. the material is light, resistant to water/heat, does not warp, does not crack when drilled.
i used up 2 4'x8'x1/4" sheets, at about 90 bucks each, the manufacturer cut them to my dimensions.
the tubs are approx. 3'x1.5'x.75' and are pretty awesome for my subadult boas. i mostly keep males in them, the males housed in them now are from 4.5'-5' and have enough room for a good stretch.
if interested in building your own rack, start with the tub size and work your way up. add about 1/8" to the tub height so they can breathe and so the tubs slide out easily.
last but not least a couple of pics with the animals in there.
http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss197/nitramartin/DSC05686.jpg
http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss197/nitramartin/IMG_0454.jpg
this yearling female is about 3.5' and as you can see fits perfectly.
http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss197/nitramartin/IMG_0206.jpg
these pics are all over a year old, i made the rack about 2 years ago and most of its residents still have not outgrown the tubs.
dont overpay for stuff you can make yourself!

[Snakefood]

that's awsome!!

[mykee]

Nice build, how do you heat them though?

[Jenn_06]

Looks great, I need up date my wood racks with PVC just need to find a place that sells it.

[N1T24M]

Nice build, how do you heat them though?
i use 11" flexwatt. about 2' per tub.

[Coffee Black]

That rack looks great! Very nice.


Looks great, I need up date my wood racks with PVC just need to find a place that sells it.

A lot of glass/plexiglass specialty shops have it. That being said, a lot of them don't . Most can get it, though. I inquired at a place near me and they could get it but it was beyond my wallet. Wanted $6 a cut, too! I'm looking into square pvc tubing now. Might be cheaper to build a frame out of it and attach use 1/4 underlayment for the sides. Still figuring the math though.

[N1T24M]

A lot of glass/plexiglass specialty shops have it. That being said, a lot of them don't . Most can get it, though. I inquired at a place near me and they could get it but it was beyond my wallet. Wanted $6 a cut, too! I'm looking into square pvc tubing now. Might be cheaper to build a frame out of it and attach use 1/4 underlayment for the sides. Still figuring the math though.
i get my expandible pvc foam from a plastics distributor. if you pay 100-120 per 4'x8'x1/4" sheet (which is way expensive btw) you're still saving a bundle. my plastics distributor cut the whole thing (18 pieces if i remember correctly) for 5 bucks per sheet, so 10 bucks total.
you want to use like a spreadsheet to work out your layout, get as many pieces per sheet as possible with the least amount of waste possible.
the distributor had me authorize a little change in my plans, as i wasnt considering space for cutting, but everything ended up well. took the pieces home, cleaned the dust off (from the saw) and drilled it all together... best part is it doesnt split when drilled into.
also for a better part of a year i had a few boaphile cages stacked on top of it, and the thing is still in use no problem, like new! good quality stuff.

[marvelfreak]

Sweet looking rack. You did a great job.

[UwabamiReptiles]

Very nice rack setup!

[takagari]

Looks good. and the pvc is awesome to use :)

Have you had any sagging yet?
The reason most people slide them in the other was is due to the sagging from that wide a span.

Noticed any yet?

[Nismo89]

Do you have the build plans for this you could put up? I'm looking into building my own rack to save $$

[takagari]

You cut your shleves a bit bigger than the bin tops and screw them to the sides based off the height of the tubs.

Plans are going to be hard because those tubs cant be counted on for being th same size everywhere

[N1T24M]

no sagging, no warping, no splittting, after a little over 2 years since i built it. thing is still tip top. for a while i had a stack of boaphiles on top of the rack with no ill effects.
i dont have the plans anymore, its basically like takagari said, get the tubs first, and build around them.

[takagari]

Ah cool. I guess mine went crap because I left a few empty for a while. if you always have all the slots loaded, would work better.

[DeesBalls]

That is some what like my rack is. i wanted it to be built so the tubs go in long ways, (like your) but mine is 4ft high and holds 7 racks, so its taller, but very nice looking rack!