Reptile & Amphibian Forums

hi i am looking for info on everyones opinions on the best premade cage i know most people prefer to build your own but im not the best at building things lol so if anyone can give me there opinions on the best cages and where i can get them at a good price i am housing a veild thanks all replies are appreciated thanks

I am very happy with my Reptarium. (Also known as Flexarium in Canada)
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1.1 Bearded Dragons
1.2 Maroantsetra Panther Chameleons
1.0 Long Tailed Grass Lizard
500 Escaped Crickets

yea i heard that you cant set the heat lamps directly on the nylon mesh i wanted something more like the esu brand screen cage has anyone heard of any other companys sellin the same type of cage just cheaper i also saw some on blue beast but i want people opinions thanks

You shouldn't set heat lamps directly on ANY mesh/wire cages. It will immediately burn, sear and scar the feet and stomachs of the reptiles.

You can buy wire lamp covers that raise the heat lights 3" off the mesh. You can sit those on the mesh.
Also, you shouldn't be using bulbs that are large enough to poke out from the edgr of the lamp housing. Those are too high of a wattage for most chameleons.
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1.1 Bearded Dragons
1.2 Maroantsetra Panther Chameleons
1.0 Long Tailed Grass Lizard
500 Escaped Crickets

I had a Reptarium, but I wasn't completely happy with it. I ordered a cage off Blue Beast and I love it! It's great. It's lightweight, easy to clean and I could see my cham so much better through the mesh.

Those are very similar to the cages I use. I make them myself, and
I've never been happier. I've used all sorts of materials, and made
almost every cage possible. The all aluminum cages are the best all
round cage, with few flaws. The biggest problem is the small size
mesh. Mid sized chameleons can rip off toenails. It's not much of
an issue for small ones, and big ones HATE climbing on screen, but
for most chameleons,it's a real issue. I've never had a problem,
since my cages are high up (6 feet), and are well planted. Happy
chameleons rarely bother to move around much, and they dislike the
screen so they avoid it. I've had much worse problems with
hardware cloth. They CAN climb on it better, so they DO climb on
it more. It cuts their feet. PVC coated is the best all round, but it's
prohibitivly expensive and hard to find.

The screen cages are light, easy to assemble (if you buy a kit -
cutting frame and rolling screen is not fun), and look great - you can
see your lizards! Their lightweight makes them easy to move, and
good for indoor outdoor use.

Other cage sI've made usually centered around wood frames. The
wood (1x2's usually) is dirt cheap, and easy to cut. Problem is that
such frames have a low strength to weight ratio, and need support.
The support in the form of metal L brackets and braces gets
expensive. If you use hardware cloth, this is negated a bit, as it adds
rigidity to the cage. If you want screen, the cage must support itself.

Later wood frame cages I've made were designed to be wall
mounted. I had little space, and my chameleons needed more than I
could afford to give them - so I hung the cages several feet off the
ground, on the walls. I had to brace every corner, in both axes.
Hardware cloth was a major reason the cage was possible. It was
4'x3'x2' deep, and hangs off of one screw in a stud, with the bottom
braced on a shelf. It's been in use for over 4 years, and never fell,
despite holding several large potted plants. thing is heavy, and was
very expensive to make...took forever too.

Another thing I did was make a large, sealed off free-roam setup
formy deremensis. this was a section of the room covered in
waterproof material, and divided into stalls. It was great,as I could
observe all sorts of behaviors from the group, but it was too much
work once we had our baby. I ripped it down and put in a bunch of
the 2'x2'x3' cages, on a 3' high "shelf". They love it. And it's SO
much simpler to maintain. The screen lets me throw in some
crickets and they can hunt them down.

For group housing in the future(when I get a large, dedicated
chameleon area in a new home), I'm going to use aluminum frame
and screen to make mini screenhouses for groups of them. It'll be
cheaper than cages, and easy to alter.

In all the years I've had them, I find screen to be the best overall,
with the fewest problems. And the problems it has can be worked
around.

well i was goin to get one from blue beast what size should i get 16x16x30 or 18x18x36 there is a 20 dollar difrence and i dont think that is a big difrence in length and width or is it please reply

18x18x36
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1.1 Bearded Dragons
1.2 Maroantsetra Panther Chameleons
1.0 Long Tailed Grass Lizard
500 Escaped Crickets

Hey guy's i'm kinda new to this. What is blue beast? and do they have a website? I live in alberta so all you easterners have alot better things than us out west do.