Reptile & Amphibian Forums

So i've welded some racks together (I'll send pictures as soon as they're assembled) and I want to paint them but I'm concerned about the mice eating the paint. As the rumor mill goes any lead will hurt the snakes eventutally, which rules out anything at Home Depot. Best I can tell Powder Coating is the best way to go. however I have never applied a powder coating.

Has anyone used powder coating before? Could you give me some beginner tips? I would hate to ruin these racks on the last step.

Thanks, Jeremy
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I've used powder coating many times. And it is not as simple as you may think.
If we are talking about the same thing.
To use a powder paint, the metal must be heated so that the powder can melt, or flow on contact.
The powder must be sprayed on. And then to properly cure the finish, it needs to be baked.

That's what I understand. The metal must be soaked in a prep solution for 3-5 minutes depending on the manufactures instructions. Then it's 5-30 minutes under the heat depending on how hot you can get it. Thing is I don't have an oven big enough to accommodate the racks. I have seen the uv curing lamps but I have no idea how well they work and what size it would take to do the job. They are mighty expensive to screw up and buy the wrong one. The other thing was whether or not this process needed a special room or if it could be done in say a tarp enclosure and cured outside (provided it's not windy.)

Finally the whole setup would cost about $408.00 but I have 8 racks to do today and more in the future. Would it be cost effictive to start with the powder or search for a paint alternative.

jeremy
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I thought it was illegal to sell any paint that contained lead, within in the U.S., and that this has been the law for many years. I really doubt that you could find paint with lead in it, even if you were specifically looking for it-- because you wanted higher durability.

Rodney

(sigh) I don't know. I thought so too, but I have been informed by friends that there is still trace amounts that could hurt animals. As to the truth of that statement...(sigh) I don't know. I think personnaly that if any paint did contain lead it would be a very small amount and since I'm not spray painting the feed the mice would not be injesting enough to ever make a difference. Like getting cancer from eating apples.

More to the point I had the chance to look and touch a rack from freedom Breeder and I was told that powder is the type coating they use. The way I figure it I will do what they do until I make enough money to buy their racks. Alas I am poor and must cut metal and do sloppy welding so these rodents can live better than I do.

So...Paint or Powder??? I'm still undecided.
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Did you say it would cost over $400 to powder coat the racks? Thats kinda spendy. Yes FB's racks are powder coated and are nice but way out of my budget also. I would maybe try a good paint with a hardener added to it to make it tougher. Or maybe a garage/basement floor epoxy paint that is tough.

Could you send me an email and maybe a few pics of your racks? I was thinking of welding some cages also but was not too sure what size tubing I was gonna used or what the mesh is called that you put on top. Just curious how you did and what you used. You can email me at markncrys@hotmail.com

Thanks
MarkSd

408 was the total amount. $99 for the gun, $188 for the heat lamp, $75 for 10lbs of powder, $46 for the pretreat. Only the pretreat and the powder are consumable.

I would love to send pictures, but it's not built yet. It's finals week so I had to put everything on hold till the weekend. I intend to post pictures and details as soon as I have them. I can tell you that tubing is way to expensive. I'm using 1" carbon steel angle iron 1/8" thickness, 1/2" carbon angle 1/8 thick, and 1/2" expanded metal on top. That's the name of the grate stuff. I got a chop saw from HD ($149) and a MIG 100 welder from harbourfreight($120.) To get the steel I called every metal shop in the phone book and asked if they could get me 1" angle. Most couldn't (or wouldn't) but I found one that did. I don't know what their mark up is but they charged me $7 for a stick of 1" $6.40 for the 1/2" $44.70 for the 3/4" 4'x8' expanded metal (for rats) and $32.16 for the 1/2" 4'x8' expanded metal. Those prices are per unit. I worked all the math out for 4 racks and it came to $1200. Although I will have to buy more steel because the 1/2" is to small for the pans to slide on. I have to find thinner metal or use 3/4"

Well looks like I put some specs down I didn't mean to. hmmm. I should have a rack together this weekend and I will make a point to post some pictures.
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