Here are some plans to build a cage that is 4X2X2 here is a cut list. 2 24X24 (Sides) 2 24X46.5 (Tops and Bottom) 1 22.5X446.5 (back) 1 3X48 for the bottom lip aka substrate dam. Take the pieces and put them together, by mounting the side to the outside, not the top on top of the side pieces. it is easier to get the top, bottom, and sides together then put the back in to square it off. predrill all the holes to make sure the screws go in straight and and dont crack the wood. after the cage is built i use tub and tiule silicone caulk to sela the inside of the cage. i let it sit outside in the sun fro a couple of hours or put a heat light in it to cure the caulk. then i cut the vent in the back. usually a 3X25 inch hole centered will do the trick and cover it by any means you see fit ie...hardware cloth screen or whatever. dont cover it right away if you hard wire the ligths inside the cage like i did for my beardies, cause you can run the wires out of the vent. For the door i used 2X3/4 inch strips with a mitre cut and assemsbled them like a picture frame. put a bead of caulk on it and put a sheet af plexi glass over it cut to size of course, and let dry for a couple of hours. i find this works alot better than screwing the glass on. then all you do is put the door on with some hinges, and throw some lock on it, add all the decor you want test the temps and put them in there and you are good to go. there are a few thing i do different for snakes though, without a vent on back iw ill cut out two holes on top and vober them with screen to add basking lights to the tank cause i havent figured how to mnake a bulb guard yet, i am working on that. and i will cut a hole on the bottom and put a piece of plexi over it to mount a heating pad. well thats all i got if you have any questions just ask, and i hope this helps. ken
i just built an anole cage and i used plexi glass. it worked great and i just clipped the heat lamp to a desk so that it was about 8 ion form the glass. also the heat pads will probably melt the plexi glass that u have in the bottom. i would either buy a sheet of glass for the bottom or just go with somthing differant. or even puts some substrate down then more substarte over top of the heater.
not they wont i have been building them like that for years as a matter of fact i have one that has had the heat pad on it the glass for 3 years and it hasnt melted. it takes alot more than 98 degrees to melt plexiglass
Ken~ Thanks for the instructions on your set-up. I had shown my boyfriend the instructions, and he'll probably be the one to construct it...he's much better at building things than I am. :wink: I had heard the same thing from someone who had thought that the UTH pad would melt their plastic cage. And someone else had said the same thing as you. The pad doesn't get much warmer than our body temps, and no matter how hard we'd try, we could never melt plastic (or plexi-glass) by holding it. Take care, Rebecca :lol:
Melt, no. Warp, yes. You put 89-92F pad on direct contact to plastic long enough, it will warp out of shape. Granted, that is for the cheaper plastic cages that you can get from walmart and the like. Heavier guage plastic will take the heat much better. But you also have to remember the substrate.. that is what is transfering/holding the heat. Heat pad + plastic + paper towel/newspaper = more heat "aubse" on the plastic than heat pad + plastic + 1" of substrate. Now, if you were going to go to metal heat tape.. then yes.. that I would not put on plastic as that can get much hotter. There are ways to prevent that, of couse.
i dont use reptile heating pads i guess i should have said this i use the human heat pads adn they work fine.
I have a reptile heat pad on the bottom of my Dumeral's cage under a false bottom made of plexiglass and it does just fine it hasn't warped or melted
