Reptile & Amphibian Forums

hey to all the ppl who have been doing this a lot longer than me, i plan to build a cage w/ hole cut in the floor for a UTH then covered w/ expanded pvc, (thanks chris harper!!!) the demensions will be 36" length, 18" depth, 12" H (inside, false top for non heating light, again, thanks chris harper)the false top will provide the ventilation, what would be a recomended size Under Tank Heater, and what type of thermostat or other similar device would/could/should be used??? the plan is for corns and other colubrids, any advice would be apriciated
thanks in advance,

I'm not as experienced as others are when it comes to deciding which size UTH, etc. to use. If your room is cold in the winter and/or the cage will be near an exterior wall/window it can't hurt to go with a larger size and control it accordingly.

But I do have a question about your cage. Are you saying the 12" height is the inside height or the total height? Either way, 12" is a bit low to allow for proper viewing.

I'm sure you've seen this before, but below is a pic of my bearded dragon cage. The cage is 27.5" tall. With the 6" upper and lower lips, the 3/4" floor and "ceiling", and the glass track there is only 13" of viewing area.

In my opinion this is about a minimum for a do it yourself cage unless space savings is a primary concern. But if space savings is a concern the false ceiling idea is probably not the best idea to begin with.

the demisions will be aprox.... 3" for the bottom lip, where the UTH will go, the frame for the glass, or 1/4" plexiglass doors(whole nother question there)will be out of 1 1/4th wood, (1/4th routed)the hight from the inside of the floor to the false top will be aprox. 15" for a total hight of 26". the room temp averages 70-75 degrees (except when this durn nebraska weather goes from 90 one day and sixty the next) does that help? or are other modifications in order?

I'm in Lincoln at the moment. Will be for the next couple of weeks or so.

But I digress...

I think I understand your dimensions and it sounds fine with the shorter lips.

I do recommend the upper and lower lips are the same height. As you're building the cage experiment with different dimensions for the lips and see what you like.

born and raised here, anyway that is the plan for the moment, sure it will change as i go, also plan to build a stacked and a side by side duo cage based on the same plans, hope that will work, i have an outlet set up where i can possibly sell what i dont use. and if they dont sell, then i guess i will fill them myself

I am in Omaha I would be more than able to help.

Shoot me a msg. I will call you.