King snake Vivarium project has begun.

[bcr226]

After seeing the rock wall viv thread, I showed it to my daughter who wants to do a canyon viv for her Mexican black king snake.

Today, I pulled some birch lumber I put back and started the project. Bear in mind that this is going to take some time as this is my first attempt and a project that my daughter and I will be doing together. I fully expect it to take most of the summer. I'll update as I go along but bear with me.

The foot print of the entire enclosure is going to be 36" x 36". The height of the walls are 24". Using a 2 inch hole saw, I cut three vents in the upper back panel as seen in the pics below. I also cut one 2 inch hole in each side panel down low towards the front and installed louvered covers. I'm not sure if this will be sufficient ventilation or not so any input on this from you guys is greatly appreciated.

I'm looking at options for heating the enclosure. I intend on using sliding glass or plexiglass doors on the front. We're looking at using LED's for the lighting and a heat panel or pad on the bottom or underneath. I need guidance on this part as well guys.

I'm also going to install the temp and humidity monitoring systems in the "rock" face to make it look better.

The doors will be 18" high and elevated off the floor with a bracing panel that will hold the track.

Here is what we have so far...

[rmfsnakes32]

It looks good so far

[Sophia'sSophia]

Looking forward to the updates!

[jarich]

That ventilation should be absolutely fine. Snakes use very little oxygen anyway, especially when they arent digesting.

As for the heating, have you considered an RHP (radiant heat panel)? It would be mounted to the top and would therefore be largely unseen, without the hassle of a UTH or other types of floor mounted heating units. They are a little more expensive, but make up for it in lack of hassle. Plus they are infrared, so do not dry the air out.

[bcr226]

Hmmm. Got a link? I'd be interested in that.

[jarich]

You can get them at most reptile supply places online and there are multiple brands. I got mine from Reptile Basics because I liked their design the best. Their link is here:

RBI Radiant Heat Panels

[bcr226]

Awesome. I like those. They look nice too. Appreciate the heads up on those!

[-MARWOLAETH-]

Crackin viv so far! Looking forward to seeing it setup I bet your king will appreciate all the space.

[bcr226]

We started on the first level with a rough cut and an idea to cut a recess for the water dish that will be put on the bottom. We're thinking of putting a couple of smaller water "holes" along the canyon walls higher up too. Once the layers are roughed, we'll do final cutting and detailing.

[Hurrok]

I'm excited to see the finished project. I have a feeling it is going to look really good! Thanks for sharing this with us

[bcr226]

My daughter and I worked on it a bit yesterday. Couldn't get the pics loaded off of the camera until tonight.

We added the second level and put in an overhang and are working on a hide on the back left side.





Here, we've sculpted a bit around the water dish area just to get a feel for how it should look and to test our cutting method.



Here is more of an overview of what we've done so far...



I've deliberately left the cuts rough and uneven for a more natural look to the layers. I'll leave them this way until the piece is mocked together and ready for gluing. I'm trying to figure out how to make parts of the display come apart to allow easier access to hides and such without leaving largely visible seams.

[bcr226]

We've done some more...

[erichillkeast]

That is looking good!

I am excited to see where this goes!

[KORBIN5895]

Wow! I like it. That will be one spoiled bmk.

[guyabano]

Woah. Dude, that is going to be one AWESOME vivarium. Can't wait to see how it turns out.