Anyone with AutoCAD or similar program

I need some assistance with getting the measurements and how much I can get out of a piece of Melamine coated MDF board.

The sheeting I am looking at is 3/4" thick and is 49"x97". I am wanting to build a 35"x23 1/2"x 46" cage for my rats out of this stuff. Home Depot says they can cut it for free, I just need the specs on what dimensions I should cut out of each huge sheet. I want to get as much out of one sheet as I can, and I plan on buying two sheets. The back of the cage will be waterproofed plywood so the cage will be lighter.

Thanks for the help, to anyone who does help :)

I can work on that for you Becky. When do you plan on going back to Home Depot?

If I were you, I would just go with 49" instead of 46".....since you will most likely not be able to use that little 3" strip anyways....Just an option :)

Those dimensions are.... 35'' wide x 23.5" tall x 46" long?

I should be able to use that 3" strip for a substrate dam. Yep kind of, 35" wide x 23.5" deep x 45 or 46" tall.


It has to be 45 or 46" tall so it will fit underneath my window sill :)

I plan on going back to Home Depot either tonight or tomorrow. I was supposed to go to Mansfield and build the cage, but that didn't work out and I'm just going to build it here, and just go up there to visit some other time.

Thanks for helping Daniel, it is very appreciated. I'm not very good at figuring this mess out, but I do know how to put it together once it is measured and cut. Anyway, thanks again :)

What do you plan on using for the front (i was not sure since the back is going to be plywood)? How will it open? ....he he...sorry for the questions :)

Oh, I will be making two doors, one for the top and one for the bottom, using the the 1"x2" pieces as a frame, and stapling powdercoated hardware cloth on the frame. It will have hinges on the right sides of both doors, so they open from the left to the right. I will have one or two small bolt locks on each door to keep them closed and secure.

Sorry becky...for some reason my drawings only appear in solid black when i save them to any format beside Autocad so that I can send them to you....

I can describe it to you though....I hope this helps. It seems to me that you can get all the big stuff out of one sheet since you are using the plywood back. You might have to get another quarter sheet for the strips needed for the front.

You will need the following pieces:

Cut out of one melamine sheet:
2- 46" x 23 1/2" Melamine board(the left and right side of the box)
2- 35" x 23 1/2'' Melamine board(the top and bottom of the box)
1- 97'' x 3" Melamine Strip

I would ask them to rip the board down to 46" inches from 49". Then cut 4- 23 1/2" strips along the 97" length. Two of these will be your 46" x 23 1/2" sides. The other two will need to be ripped down from 46" to 35". Then you have the top and bottom. I would cut the longest pieces that you need for the front out of the 3'' strip. If you need more wood, home depot usually sells 1/4 sheets of melamine board also. Check them out so you don't have to get another whole sheet.

Cut out of plywood:
1- 46" x 35" (back of box)

Sorry again for not being much help :(

remember that the blade is 1/8 of an inch so dont cut on the exact measurements.

yep the saw kerf, hopefully the guys at home depot know about that ;) it is always good to measure each piece individually (twice!) then cut each piece individually. The things you learn working construction... :)

Becky would have a few inches left on the end so the kerf should not increase the amount of wood needed.

Thanks guys. I went and got it cut last night and it took 2 sheets to get everything. I have enough left out of the extra pieces that I can make the inner shelves.

I have two sheets that are 46x24, two sheets that are 36x24, and one sheet that is 34 1/2 x 24.

This thing is going to be HEAVY! I will definately be putting it on rollers. Hopefully they sell strong rollers at Home Depot.

I will be starting on it today, and taking pictures of my progress. Hopefully it goes fairly easy :)

Good luck Becky....keep us updated. I have seen some heavy duty rollers that just screw right onto something... thats what I would look for.