Rack help??

I am considering a rack. I want more pythons and do not have any more tanks. Therefore I am in the market but do not want to spend alot of money. So need some help with some questions to ask.

- I am planning on going to the Daytona Expo in August (I live in Florida). Are rack prices at the expo's much cheaper? So should I get by with a do it yourself cheapo until then?

- I like the AP Economy racks, Will the temp fluctuate to much in these. My house day time temp is around 76 F and night time with AC is 67-68 F.

- Is it worth spending around $200 dollars on a nice DIY rack with melamine, when you can buy a professional rack for an extra $100?

Thanx for the help, I can't buy anymore morphs until I figure this out and I'm not sure what to do and don't want to buy more glass aquariums.
Thanks!!!

usually racks at Expos are only SHIPPING COST cheaper.

always cheaper to DIY. my rack holds 8 Adults and 20 Hatchlings. cost me 109 in wood and 45 in flexwatt i soldered my self.

Rich is correct....shipping is about all that you will save if buying at a show...you said for 200 dollars for a DIY, you could spend an extra 100 and get a professionally made one....My question is this...rich for example spent about 110 on his, and it holds 8 adults plus room for hatchlings...Mine cost about 160ish with 7 tubs. How many tubs are in these 300 pro made racks? My guess is probably not as many....Just something to keep in mind...

This cost me around $125 to build including the tubs,

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u...nakes/rack.jpg

If the room your racks are in tends to have big temperature fluctuations you'll want a closed in style rack. The open design racks are more for breeders with dedicated and very controlled snake rooms.

Personally as much as I love the one professionally built rack that we have, I did love building the other three racks and ended up with a lot lower cost per tub then I would have with a "store bought" rack. We have some amazing rack designs on this site. I'm in awe of how handy some of our membership is when it comes to inventing new rack ideas. The one we used from this site didn't even require one cut done as it used pre-cut melamine shelves from Home Depot. :)

Professionally built racks are great, because they last much longer than wood DIY racks, and they sell easy if you ever want to sell them. DIY racks are nice because they are cheap, but do not last as long. I built a snake rack, used it for a year, and then sold it. The wood was already starting to separate, and the some of the tubs would stick when I was trying to pull them out, which in turn would spill the water. I decided to go with the professionally build racks. I have six Reptile Basics racks, and a Freedom Breeder style rack. I like both, but both have pros and cons. The Reptile Basics racks hold humidity really well, but do take up more space per tub than the Freedom Breeder style rack. I am always fighting with humidity with the Freedom Breeder style rack, but it saves on space, and I love the metal construction.

I suggest looking into the newly designed Freedom Breeder racks. They are much cheaper now than the original style, which is the type that I have. They are now designed to humidity better too.

Hope this helps.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by llovelace

This cost me around $125 to build including the tubs,

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u...nakes/rack.jpg

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whoa do you need a step ladder to reach the top ones or you just really tall?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by llovelace

This cost me around $125 to build including the tubs,

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u...nakes/rack.jpg

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I was wondering how you heat the rack?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Wh00h0069

I was wondering how you heat the rack?

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My tubs they are filled have belly heat, I am still trying to decide if I want to use back heat or not.

Doesn't hurt to check Craig's List and your local paper too. I got thousands of dollars worth of Freedom Breeder racks for a few hundred bucks. Hey Ed, I found a great trick for keeping the humidity in those old style FB racks. Just lay a piece of plexi right on top of the stretch plate of each level. Just be sure there is an inch or two at the front and at the back of each tub that is not covered. This worked great for me until I went with room humidity.