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I am very interested to build a rack system for my boas . rack system and plastic cages will more easy to clean and hardy , it'a all better then wood made or glass cages . Therefore , more of my boas are adults and I am wander if boas are adaption to keep in rack system with plastic boxes ? They are very large , powerful and hardy . As I know , rack system is better for smaller snakes , like colubrid snakes .

Do you know any breeder or boa fan keeps his/her large adult boas in rack system with plastic boxes ?

thanks .

there are many comercially available rack systems which many large breeders use. these tend to be fairly expensive. additionally i know there are sterilite containers that provide about 6 square feet. these could be used to house male boas in a rack system. i have not seen tubs available that would be a good size for large females however.
if you intend to have large females in a rack system, i suggest looking into the comerically avaiable rack systems for boas.

Thanks for your reply . Actually , I live in Taiwan , here has no company or dealer about reptile rack system supply . The only way to built my rack system is DIY . I will go to find some large plastic boxes tomorrow and maybe I will find some which are ideal for my large boa rack system .

The biggest problem with large boxes in rack systems is twofold. First is that the large boxes don't slide as well whether setup in a typical rack or in a rack where the boxes slide on rails. This is why you see commericial drawer slides in commerical boa racks.

Second is material usage is not all building materials lend themselves to building large racks. This may not apply to you in China, I don't know.

All in all the advantages of racks tend to diminish as you go up to larger and larger boxes. Make sure you're getting what you want. If you simply want a large version of what is typically used for colubrids, you may be disapointed.

Good luck and let us know what you decide.

Hummm .... I have bo idae about this rack degign now ...

As you said , latger plastic boxes in rack will be difficult to slide in and out . Probably you are correct , I can imagining the tabs will been heavy with a large water bowl and a large boa inside .

You said the rack system design is an open shelf , unlike book shelf . I want to know what's the differents between "Open design" and "Closed design" ?

Closed design will keeps warm in the rack tabs will I guess it's will be better for keeps the coldblood animals .

I will trying to search some data about rack design in net and maybe I can get the best idae for me in these days .

Thanks a lot for your recommends .

(By the way , the full name of Taiwan is "Republic of China - Taiwan" ; and another is "People Republic of China." . They are different . That's ok .... it's not the point of this topic .. )
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4.5.0 Boa constrcitor
1.0.0 Morelia amethistina
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1.1.0 Candoia aspera
0.0.1 Cylindrophis ruffus
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Life with scales ! Scale Style !

i have included a link to a post with pictures of an open rack like i was speaking about. the sides of the tubs are what is open. it is probably not as good for holding heat, but depending on the room the rack will be in, it may not matter and you will nto have to use so much material.
Link

(By the way , the full name of Taiwan is "Republic of China - Taiwan" ; and another is "People Republic of China." . They are different . That's ok .... it's not the point of this topic ..

Actually, I knew that. I just totally misread your post. I have not had much sleep recently.

There are no significant disadvantages to an open rack other than a greater difficulty of assembly. The heating issues are easily taken care of with insulation.

The biggest issues you'll have is finding a box big enough and getting it to function well in a rack. I think you need to decide what you really want to achieve with this project and then decide if it's something you can do.

Like I believe I said before, the advantages of a rack tend to diminish when you go up in size.

i was unable to locate the pictures of what i am talking about but as far as material usage ...
you might want to look into the rack designs that are not like a book shelf. the design where it is more or less shevles connected by 2x4s. i believe it is called an open rack system. if this works temperature wise for you, it might be a better option when dealing with the material usage issue.

I have spent a lot time to serching for large plastic boxes , Therefore , I found nothing finally . You are correct , the biggest problem of this rack design is that I can't find any large plastic boxes for my rack system design . The largest size I can find here is about 85 cm x 45 cm x 16 cm , for adult boas , it's still too small .

I think maybe I need to give up this rack plan .

Besides rack , do you know any good method to house the large adult boas ? It sould be easy to clean , convenient and economical .

How do the boa breeders house their large boas ?

thanks .
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4.5.0 Boa constrcitor
1.0.0 Morelia amethistina
0.1.0 Python breitensteini
1.1.0 Candoia aspera
0.0.1 Cylindrophis ruffus
0.0.1 Eryx miliaris
0.1.0 Iguana iguana
0.1.0 Brachypelma emilia

Life with scales ! Scale Style !

There are freedom breeder cage sized racks (very expensive and shipping is expensive even for us here in the U.S.)

Theres some of the Vision cages. Their #400 cage is 4'x26"x14" high. Very sturdy and a lot of space I think for the money.
They also carry some other larger sizes for reasonable prices.

Both sites can be found under cages and suplies section.

Good luck.

i dont know if you can order sterilite over there, but it may be possible. if so, they have under bed storage containers which should be a fairly good size for atleast the males.

as far as cages, i think your best bet would be to build some. the method i use for wood cages costs about $100-150 a cage depending on how much you put in it. fairly simple box cages can be made fairly cheap.
the cages i make for my boas are not heavy and have held my 180lb tv. i would imagine you cuold stack them at least four high.
if i can help you with building cages just ask (other people like chris are always more then willing to help also).

Thanks for your suggest . I think it's the best way to house all of my large boas (It seems to be the only way too ...).

Well , about the wood made cages . I keeping my boas in 3' wood made cages now. Of course , 3' cage is too small for large adult boas . I have read a book that written by Bob Clark and prhlished by 2 languages ENG and JPN . He written that adult boas may need a enclosure which the sieze is 6' x 2' x 2' . It's really too large for me . Another guy on boa forum has replied me that he keeps his adult females in 4' cage . Is 4' cage enough for house an adult boa ?

Some adult boas are large and others are medium . I think it's depends on their growth and health .

How long is your boa and your cage's size ?

thanks.

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4.5.0 Boa constrcitor
1.0.0 Morelia amethistina
0.1.0 Python breitensteini
1.1.0 Candoia aspera
0.0.1 Cylindrophis ruffus
0.0.1 Eryx miliaris
0.1.0 Iguana iguana
0.1.0 Brachypelma emilia

Life with scales ! It's my Scale Style !

i keep males in 4'x2'x2' cages and females in 6'x2'x2' cages.
females tend to be much larger in length and girth. additionally, when breeding i put the male in the females cage where they have more room than if i put a female in a males cage.

i see you have 4.5 boas. i would make a stack of four, 4' cages for the males and a stack or two of 6' cages for the females.
i say possibly two stacks, because depending on the height of the cages five cages could get pretty high to be dealign with a large female.
when determining cage size, i normaly use the general rule of one square foot per foot of snake. so a 4'x2' cage theoretically should be good for a eight foot snake. like i said before the reason i put a female in a 6'x2' (12 square feet) cage is because they normally have more girth and seem to need more room.

I currently keep my females and males in 4'Lx2'Wx18"T cages in a 4 stack of homemade melamine cages. I will shortly be adding a 4 stack of the same cages however the length will be 6' for my females. They are getting just to big to be kept in a 4' cage.
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It's seems I sould to make several 6' cages for my females . You are correct , females are really more larger than males . As your suggests , 6' cages are necessary for larger females even for breeding . I will trying to make a good design about 6' and 4' wood making cages . If I designed and conpleted , I will post pic here and share with you .

thanks for your replies in these days .

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4.5.0 Boa constrcitor
1.0.0 Morelia amethistina
0.1.0 Python breitensteini
1.1.0 Candoia aspera
0.0.1 Cylindrophis ruffus
0.0.1 Eryx miliaris
0.1.0 Iguana iguana
0.1.0 Brachypelma emilia

Life with scales ! It's my Scale Style !

glad i could be of some help. good luck with the cages.

In Taiwan the available building materials may be better suited to a cage size other than 6'.

I suspect you have a lot of 5'x5' sheet material in which case you'll save A LOT of money by building cages with a floor area of 60" x 30", which is plenty big for even the largest female Boa constrictor.

When you have shopped for and picked out the materials you want to use let us know and we can help you with the dimensions.

Thanks for your all kindness and helpful suggests .

If I have any other questions about this cage design , I will post my qtestions on this forum again .

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4.5.0 Boa constrcitor
1.0.0 Morelia amethistina
0.1.0 Python breitensteini
1.1.0 Candoia aspera
0.0.1 Cylindrophis ruffus
0.0.1 Eryx miliaris
0.1.0 Iguana iguana
0.1.0 Brachypelma emilia

Life with scales ! It's my Scale Style !