Reptile & Amphibian Forums

So I've also been needing help designing a perm enclosure for my Burm. I've asked a few forums onto where I can find blue prints or a design for a enclosure but to no avail.

I have ZERO carpentry skills. Not because I'm terrible but I never tried.

I need something that's about 72" long by 36" wide by maybe 36" tall. I also would like tempered sliding glass doors in the front.

If you know of any step by step instructions or plans I would really appreciate it. Everything I find online requires money for instructions

i'm a bit of a newbie to this subject i've never built an enclosure that large and i'm no expert on the subject but heres my 2 cents

Sorry not step by step, just some ideas

for somthing that size it might be a good idea to build a frame out of 2x4s ? or use some sort of metal brackets for support

the front opening would be 72' by 33' inches because you'll need something to contain substrate so go to your local glass shop and tell them you need tempered sliding glass doors (showcase style) for a 33x72 opening and they should order the track for you and finger pulls for the glass.

Tempered glass can take up to 3 weeks to get it because the glass has to be tempered after it is cut. for tempered doors that size you're looking at a price upwards of 150 (at my local glass shop anyway) A cheaper alternative is laminated glass but its same strength at normal glass, just cracks not shatters

just my opinion feel free to correct me if im wrong
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Matt W.
"Judge me all you want...just don't share the verdict"

There are cage design plans all over the internet. ARBRetptiles.com has some as does AlbinoBurmese.com.

I do want to mention a couple of things.

Years ago I had to build a bunch of cages and racks in a short period of time and decided to have a cabinet company do all of the cuts for me. I also bought the material from them.

Long story short, every cut and panel was perfect and the labor cost was minimal. I don't do this anymore but do recommend it.

So don't overlook this if you're uncomfortable.

Next I want to comment on your dimensions. A cage that size won't fit into many homes. If it's assembled in the home it probably won't make it out. My house is handicap accessible and I doubt I could fit that cage in my home. Maybe in one dimension was 35" I could.

On the same note, a cage that tall will almost certainly have to be stood upright to fit through a doorway. I feel strongly for a species like a burm you should go ahead and make the cage length just a bit under a standard doorway.

And for a burm you really don't want to be reaching into the cage and expose your torso to a prey response bite. With a taller cage you can get away with more depth, but in general 30" is considered to about the limit safety-wise, unless you are building a walk-in cage.

Regarding glass, I would use safety glass instead of tempered. If you use standard sliding door track the safety glass can have a smoother beveled edge for sliding in the track.
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Currently keeping a small collection of various Gonyosoma. Both G. janseni and G. oxycephala.

I second what Chris said. I had a cabinet shop build a large cage carcass for me. They even had the glass tracks there in the shop and put those on as well. For the money and quality, I couldn't have done it myself that well. And they use good plywood.
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Mark