Our First Rack

[nightwolfsnow]

Please note that I am not mechanical minded at all. I can look at something simple and figure out how to put it together if I have the pieces pre made, but that's about it lol. My fiance is the one who knows how to do all this stuff. I'm just taking the pictures and making weird faces whenever he starts talking in maths(Radiohead reference). Just posting the supplies, where I got them and the prices for now. I will post the building steps in the comments.

The dimensions we decided on were 54" tall x 74" wide x 24" deep. I've seen most racks tall instead of wide, but I'm only 5'3" and I'd like to be able to see what I'm doing lol. We went back and forth on the number of shelves and spacing. I think he's doing 6 shelves with 8" spacing because we only got enough lumber for 6 shelves.

We got the lumber at Lowe's because that's where I work so I get a 10% discount. I will list the prices before my discount. I will also put the item numbers. If you have ever worked in retail, you know item numbers are the easiest way to find something. If you go to any Lowe's they can tell you whether they carry this item and how many they have. Prices may be slightly different, I'm in the eastern va/nc area. You should also be able to find these items on lowes.com.

#40551 Thermostat OSB Roof and Wall Sheathing 7/16 CAT PS2-10 (Common: 7/16"x4'x8', Actual: 0.418"x47.875"x95.875") qt. 6 $12.25 ($73.50) Its essentially particle board with aluminum foil on it. This is used in the roof to reflect outside head and reduce cooling costs. We're using it to hold heat in. After we got home my fiance said he probably just could have used it for the bottom, top, sides, and back and still hold in heat just as well. But we already got it so we're going to use it for the shelves too.

#7013 Kiln-Dried Whitewood Stud (Common: 2"x4"x104 5/8"; Actual: 1 1/2"x3 1/2"x 104 5/8") qt. 7 $2.62 ($18.34)

#4513 Spruce-Pine-Fir Furring Strip (Common: 2"x2"x8'; Actual: 1.5"x1.5"x96") qt.8 $1.92 ($15.36)

#606771 Fas-n-rite 1b 6x2" Coarse Thread Drywall Screws qt.1 box $6.58

#228989 Gatehouse 2-pack 2 1/4"x1 1/2" Aged Bronze Surface Self-Closing Cabinet Hinges qt. 2 $2.18 ($4.36) He's going to make a door for the t-stat.

Subtotal: $118.14

The tubs I got at Wal-mart because the ones at Lowe's weren't proportioned well for snakes . Though there are some Christmas 15 qt tubs that would work great. I'm going to wait until they go on sell at the end of the season and snag what's left. Each shelf should be able to hold 8 7qts, 5 15qts, 2 34qts lengthwise, and 2 41qts lengthwise. So at the least 12 tubs and at the most 48. Right now I'm going to have 1 shelf of 7qts, 1 of 15qts, 3 of 34qts, and 1 of 41qts. All of my snakes are 200 grams or less presently, so in the future I'll probably have two shelves of 15qts. The only ones I couldn't find with locking lids were the 41qts, I will have to get some of those luggage straps that I've seen used.

#7314992204 7qt Sterilite Latch Box (6"hx8 1/4"wx14 3/8"l) qt.8 $1.96 ($15.84)
#7314909730 15qt Sterilite Latch Box (6 5/8"x13"x16 1/2") qt.5 $3.97 ($19.85)
#7314992604 34qt Sterilite Latch Box (6 5/8"x16"x26 1/2") qt.6 $5.87 ($35.22)
#7314918608 41qt Sterilite Underbed Box (5 7/8"x16 3/4"x35 3/8") qt.2 $9.57 ($19.14)

Subtotal: $90.05

I went to pangeareptile.com for the heat tape because shipping is only $4.99.

THG Heat Tape 4" qt.37ft $2.10 per foot ($77.70)
THG Heat Wire/Clip/Insulator Set qt.6 $4.00 ($24)

Subtotal: $106.69

The way the wire sets come we're wiring each shelf and plugging the 6 cords into one powerstrip and the powerstrip into the t-stat. I read that that was fine since they're all going to be the same. I'm going to use one of my Hydrofarms for now, and then get a Herpstat or VE electronics when I get paid again. I already had foil tape and electrical tape.

So the total is $314.88, and then your choice of t-stat. I think that's pretty good considering the amount of tubs it can fit.

[Jayare]

Kewl, Can't wait to see the pics when you get it done.

I like the idea of being able to have different size tubs in the same rack because we all have different size/age snakes and as they get bigger you can just move them to the next size up tub. Two of my 4 racks can accommodate 2 different size tubs but I would like to have my next one be able to hold 3 different size tubs.

Jayare

[nightwolfsnow]

A severe migraine impeded the process on Sunday, almost finished tonight and then the drill died. I've been assured it will be finished by the time I get home tomorrow night. Then I'm sure I'll be doing temp checks all night. Can't wait to move the snakes in.

Here are some pictures from the past few days.



Cat tested and approved.