Cage Building

[Parsimony]

Hey, I am looking into build a 4x2x30-36" enclosure soon, and I just had a couple questions. What material should I use, I can pretty much get any type of wood or other material for free from the shop. What should I use to seal it? And for door designs, I have a couple ideas but I'm not sure what would work best for ease of access. The cage design itself is not limited by diffuculty, I have access to a shop that is used for custom stairs and railings, my dad works there as well as myself for quite a few years now, any input or tips would be very much appreciated :) thanks in advance!

[buffcoat]

Most DIY folks use 3/4" Melamine. Any high grade plywood will make a nice enclosure as well. I've read, but not tried, even pine plywood will do if its sealed. Most everyone uses radiant heat panels or flexwatt for heating. LED or low intensity flouresent bulbs for lighting. Dimmers and timers and thermostats for the RHP/flexwatt.

I've not yet built my enclosure yet so please don't take my word as gospel.

[Kratos]

Im in the making stages of my custome viv. What I have come to notice the best and easist ways to get in and out of your cage is to make the whole front section a door. Will make life easy when cleaning and when u want to take him or her out. As for the bottom portion of the cage use a thick piece of acrylic sheeting which isnt chep. Its what I am using so when he goes to use the bathroom his pee wont soak into the wood and then start to smell, mold, and bactiria. I learnd this from doing it to my burm python viv.

[Parsimony]

Well it would be fora trio of ackies, so it needs to hold 12 inches of sand/soil, so the whole front can't be doors, and the bottom would have a low chance of being deficated on. The light, I'm thinking of just cutting a circle, using mesh to hold a fixture.

[jarich]

If its for monitors, then you want the light in the enclosure, not on top. No screen tops as all your heat and humidity will escape that way. You'll want to use plywood that is sealed with polyurethane. Melamine is ok for awhile but if any humidity gets through it will fall apart quickly. With all that dirt in the botttom, the plywood will need to be reinforced with 2x4s every 16 inches or so.

The top part of the front can be one big window, or two, whichever is easiest for you. I just used a house window, as its sealed and glazed so very little heat or humidity leaks out that way.

[Parsimony]

Since I don't know how high I can make it, I wasn't going to do a full screen top, just enough for the dish to sit on? And also I've read a lot on these monitors, and uvb, some people love it some don't, some even say they saw an improvement in colour and activity, does anyone have experience with that?

[jarich]

It's always best to have it as sealed as possible. No screen is best, and you only need about 18" height above the substrate for that. 24" is better but not essential. The light should only be about 12" above the basking spot.

As for UVB, I've heard of no problems without but I usually recommend it if possible. I don't think I've observed any different behaviour, but I've heard others say so.

[Parsimony]

Well, I'll see how I want to set it up, but I was gonna throw in Rete's Stack in there, so I dunno if a bulb would fit?

[hellosugaree]

Hey, I am looking into build a 4x2x30-36" enclosure soon, and I just had a couple questions. What material should I use, I can pretty much get any type of wood or other material for free from the shop. What should I use to seal it? And for door designs, I have a couple ideas but I'm not sure what would work best for ease of access. The cage design itself is not limited by diffuculty, I have access to a shop that is used for custom stairs and railings, my dad works there as well as myself for quite a few years now, any input or tips would be very much appreciated :) thanks in advance!

Melamine is cheap and common, but it is heavy and prone to chipping if you don't have the right tools. Plywood is fine but not as nice looking and must be sealed. HDPE or foamed PVC board would be best if you have access to the materials and the tools to work with them. There are a ton of options and each has their own advantages and disadvantages.

[Parsimony]

Well I would prefer to stick with a wood enclosure as that what I have access to for basically free. So would plywood be the sturdiest? Sealing is possible if I have too, I just would prefer it to last :p

[Gungirl]

Well I would prefer to stick with a wood enclosure as that what I have access to for basically free. So would plywood be the sturdiest? Sealing is possible if I have too, I just would prefer it to last :p

Yes Wood would be the sturdiest as long as you build it properly. Also sealing is a must do. If you do not seal it you will have mold and other issues fast. You Have to put several coats of a good sealer on it if you want it to last.

[jarich]

Again, if you are going to build it to last then make it big enough to have the light inside. Having a screen top and the light outside is always going to be a problem for you in trying to keep the humidity and warmth inside. No matter how small the hole is for the light, that hot air rising from the light will always rise and always draw the moist air up out of the enclosure. Really cant stress how important it is and how much easier it will make your life when trying to control heat and humidity.

[Parsimony]

Sorry for the inactivity on this thread, I took your advice and made room for the light inside, in the designs, how do you feel about oak? I have the access to white or red, probably quarter cut. It won't be harmful for the monitors right?

[SidewaysAt100]

Sorry for the inactivity on this thread, I took your advice and made room for the light inside, in the designs, how do you feel about oak? I have the access to white or red, probably quarter cut. It won't be harmful for the monitors right?

Here is a picture below of my enclosure for a snake if it helps, I made it out of 1/2 inch melamine and it's nice and light I think, but still strong and sturdy. I choose melamine because it's sealed and moisture resistant, doesn't require staining, sealing or painting of any kind after which is just one more step, then you have to worry if you choose a safe product to seal, plus it's more work looking around to find something safe to seal or paint it. If you're worried about the melamine not being resistant enough you can put a vinyl dish/liner in the bottom of the melamine enclosure. I used pine timber on the front for the substrate damn and top piece, then used contact on the backsides of the wood, contact is the stuff you line drawers and shelves with, the whole door starts where the substrate damn ends. I made the whole door/window one piece instead of putting in a two piece sliding door/window and I'm very happy I took the one piece hinged door approach with a lower substrate damn over the sliding doors, so much better in my mind.

If you have any questions about my enclosure feel free to ask. Hope I have been of help, this is just one way of doing it, this was my first enclosure.

http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa467/2000SubaruImpreza25RS/4%20foot%20by%20two%20foot%20cage/87f78ded.jpg

[Wildside]

I know a guy who uses bedliner to seal his custom cages. Works great!

[beardeds4life]

it doesnt really matter what you use to seal it because after it dries and airs out it is fine. Its basically plastic.