Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I made these new enclosures from ply wood drops from where I work.

They look great, but the devil is in the details.

The two larger ones are 24 L X 16 D X 9 H.The smaller one is the same highth and depth,but 20" long.I don't know the technical name for the grade of wood,but it is a 5/8" plywood with a coating on one side that is used for concrete forming.I put the coated side to the inside and painted the outside,and caulked the inside corners.The 3/16" plexi glass came from our front entrance door that I recently replaced,and rides in 1/4" grooves cut into the front of the boxes.

Did you seal the insides of the cages to insure that the wood does not absorb waste fluids and start to smell bad? How long have you had animals living in them? What are you doing for heat, lighting and ventilation? As I said, they look great in your photos.

One side of the plywood is plastic coated.I put that on the inside,and caulked all corners.As far as heat and light,I heat the entire room(during daylight hours) and my rat snakes are doing great that way.Same with lights.I just turn on the room light in the morning and shut it off after 10-12 hours.
I don't have anything hooked up to fancy timers to turn on and off.I just do it manualy, L.O.L.
I made these a few weeks ago and let them air out a while until the slight smell from the caulk was gone.I put my snakes in them this weekend and they all fed yesterday,so they are not bothered by the change.As for ventilation,there are holes drilled in the top of each unit.My first try at cage building and I see a few things that I would change the next time.But still better than dealing with fish tanks.

Sounds like you put some thought into it. They should work great for you. I heat my cages the same way that you do. (I keep the room warm.) If they work out well for you, maybe you can post some basic plans and exactly what you used for the plywood.

Thanks,

Rick