Step-by-Step Enclosure Page (DUW) WORTH IT!

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Z Trip

Fire Eel
MFK Member
Aug 15, 2006
1,924
7
68
Canada
Ok everyone, this is how you build a cage. I decided to post this because alot of people are not as gifted as I am when it comes to buildn' cages.

Here are some of the tools you will need for this project:
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If you don't want to buy a new brush every time, you will need to by some turpentine(paint thinner) to clean your brushes.
If you want to glue it together, it actually works to. I glued it together so that I got an idea of what I was working with and it stick better then I would have thought. It stood up to 60 pounds on Myth Busters
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To start, you need your plans. I thought this one up in first period religion class.

Next, go out and buy some wood. Since I wasn't sure it would work, I started with the frame. (And yes, thats an exhaust tip on my bike!:D )
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Next, I cut the wood and peiced it together.
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My supervizor
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Next, I went to Rona and bought some WaferBoard. I got them to cut it at the size I wanted. Once I got home, I laid everything out for their coatings.(Their are peices of wood that are not componets of the cage in this pic)
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"This is mine":grinno:
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Now to fit the board to the 2x4's.
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Incase you didn't notice, I added an "s" at the end of my iguana in my signature. Same day, I got some glasses and a hair cut. Their goes $40;)
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When screwing the wood together, don't forget the heat pad.
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Mid term inspection.
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Here is an idea on how big it is.
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Next, attach the hinges onto the bottom part of the cage. take a spare peice of left over 2x4 and place in the back to mark it. (This will be reducing stress to the plexi glass.
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Pre-drill holes in plexi glass. Do this slowly. Its hard to see the holes.
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Screw together and your door is almost complete.(I used 2 hinges on my first cage, I will use 3 next time, to play it safe)
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Next, install the locking mechanism
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All done. I will take a few days to air it out. I used a fan to speed up this process.
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Whats this? My friend calls the day I complete my cage and asks me if I could babysit his boa. So I guess my Macklots will need to saty in his Rubbermade for a another week while I make the next one.
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Here is the "baby" I'm taking care of for a few months.YEAH!:WHOA:
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Total Cost(For one cage): 118.96

Polyurethane: 39.88 (tax inc)
Waferboard: 2 @ 4.77 = 9.54
Hinges: 1.75 X 3 = 5.25
Screws: 100 @ 5.25 (1 3/4 inch)
Brushes: 5-10
Locks:3.30 X 3 = 9.90
2X4's: 5 @ 2.37 = 11.85
2X4 plexi glass: $20 ish

I hope this thread helps everyone with their cage building projects.:headbang2
 
dude that is awesome.........makes me wanna do my own........

One question though, are you just heating it with the heat pad??

Great job though! :headbang2 :headbang2 :headbang2
 
There need to be more DIY projects for herp cages here. I would post mine if I had pictures of my projects.

Too bad there is no substitute for a specialized thermostat or rheostat.
 
Thanks for the responces people! Keep em coming!

So far I am only using 1 heat pad. Its a large exo terra pads directly pluged into the wall. I wrap it in news paper so the snake canot directly come into contact with it. As long as it gets hot enough on the one side I don't realy worry about the rest. And remember, all prices are Canadien.

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Z
 
thats definetly a dope looking enclosure.......also meant to ask, how are you keeping it ventilated??
 
I do not know how I am going to ventilate it. I asked around but with no luck. Does anyone have any better ideas then drilling a whle bunch of random holes in it?

Z
 
If you don't want damage from nose-rubbing you can always replace one of the panel with a pegboard or go down to a hardware stores and get a vent.

A wire mesh or screen would work, but I have seen nose damage resulting from being rubbed upon them.
 
Go to the store and buy just regular vent covers and do it that way. That is going to be the best ventilation you are going to get really. IMHO I think you should have sanded the 2x4s down really good first and also I think you should have used plywood instead of particle board. Particle board doesn't hold up to moisture one bit. If you didn't coat it well enough you may have problems. Also idk about that plexi. It looks too thin and there is no frame to keep it from flexing...

Chad
 
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