Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I need to install a Helix RHP in my melamine enclosure. It needs to be really secure because it will be in a Red Tail Boa cage. Have you guys ever had any experience with installing one in a melamine cage? Helix panel has a nice sized lip, so I'm sure they can apply a good amount of pressure on this thing.

thanks
-----
Symatic

"You can't appreciate Shakespeare until you've read him in the original Klingon."

just use a corse thread screw. if your melamine is 3/4" thick (standard), use a 3/4" screw - it shouldnt go all the way through just because of the fact about 1/8" of an inch will be taken up by the mounting bracket. that should be sturdy enough. If you get really obsessed, you could drill out a recess on the top side to hide a nut and bolt it through.
-----
-Chris

The reason mainstream thought is thought of as a stream is because it's so shallow. -George Carlin

A fool doesn't learn. A smart man learns from his mistakes. A wise man learns from the mistakes of others. Which one are you?

My Website
N. American Rat/Corn snake care sheet I wrote
Information on substrates

Current snakes:
0.1 Licorice Stick Black Rat (Lola)
1.0 Black Rat (Frankie)
0.1 Texas Bairdi (Rosa)
0.1 Blue Beauty (Brunhilde)
1.0 Green Tree Python (Monty)

>>I need to install a Helix RHP in my melamine enclosure. It needs to be really secure because it will be in a Red Tail Boa cage. Have you guys ever had any experience with installing one in a melamine cage? Helix panel has a nice sized lip, so I'm sure they can apply a good amount of pressure on this thing.

I built nine melamine enclosures and equipped them all with Helix radiant heat panels. Here's what I did:

I bought a bunch of bolts that were similar in thickness to #10 wood screws. I forget the length; basically measure the height of the RHP the thickness of the cage material and buy something close.

I drilled pilot holes for the #10through each of the four corners of the RHP. Don't worry, this is what Helix tells you to do if you're using the RHP with snakes!

Next, I placed the RHP on the top of the cage and positioned it where I wanted. Then I used the holes in the RHP as guides to drill pilot holes through the top of the cage. I used a countersink, so that when the bolts were placed in the holes they'd sit below the top of the wood. This was necessary so I could stack the cages.

Drop four bolts into the four holes you've just drilled in the top of the cage. Probably isn't a bad idea to put washers on the bolts; it well help prevent them from pulling through the melamine if a lot of force is exerted on the bolt (e.g. because you tried to tighten it too much). Put the RHP inside the cage and mount it to the bolts. Put nuts on the ends of the bolts to keep the RHP from falling off.

If you don't like the look of bare bolts, you can cover the shafts with heat shrink tape in a color of your choice. Just leave enough bare thread to attach the nuts.

...
-----
Symatic

"You can't appreciate Shakespeare until you've read him in the original Klingon."