Melamine Sag?

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Originally Posted by Joe_Compel

4 feet does sound wide and aweful permanent. A smaller rack (or several smaller racks) will cut the sag issue. A four foot by four foot rack is going to be tough to get though most doorways depending on how deep it is. Even if you build it in the room, at some point in time you may decide to move it. Melamine racks don't go through the break down/reassemble process too well.

I used melamine racks for years.....made all my own. To date, they are among my favorite type of racks. But they are heavy....borderline ridiculous heavy. They don't travel well (as in moving to a new house). Once the open ends of the melamine sheets get wet, they swell. Once they swell, bins get stuck. So be sure to cap them or seal them with the iron-on seam stuff. Melamine is super strong in certain directions but really weak in others. For all those reasons, I have done away with almost all of my melamine racks. Still, you can make an awesome rack out of the stuff if you do it right.....and my ball pythons seemed to love those racks.

Like Satanic mentioned, build your rack around the tubs you decide to work with but don't be afraid to spend a little more on melamine to make two or more smaller racks rather than one big one.

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TRUST ME. We took the door size into consideration. It's going to be 2 feet deep.
I know this thing is going to be heavy.. but for my first rack (and this place where I want it is permanent) I can deal with something being heavy.

My carpenter friend says he also has a lot of extra plywood lying around that we could use for dividers and we could also use leftover melamine pieces. :]

I do know that melamine doesn't mix well with water, what is this iron on seam stuff? Where can I get it?

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Originally Posted by blackcrystal22

I do know that melamine doesn't mix well with water, what is this iron on seam stuff? Where can I get it?

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It is sold in Home Depot or Lowe's. Usually right next to the sheets of melamine. The iron-on stuff is relatively cheap and a roll should cover most exposed ends of your rack. It is not the cure to swelling but does offer limited protection and makes the rack look nicer. I have also seen plastic end capping that gets tacked or glued on but was never able to find it in my local hardware stores way back when.

My adult rack is 3 meters wide. I fixed the sag with some melamin deviders in the middle. Works perfekt!

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...s/IMG_7962.jpg

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Originally Posted by Mikkla

My adult rack is 3 meters wide. I fixed the sag with some melamin deviders in the middle. Works perfekt!

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...s/IMG_7962.jpg

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FABULOUS.
That assures me that it can be fixed with dividers. Thanks for the picture!

Remember to predrill, predrill, predrill. If you don't, you will have alot of stripped screw holes and cracking particle board(or melamine).

I just reassembled my 41qt rack, replacing the melamine sides with 2x4s. It's such a hissy, pissy material to work with, LOL. I am assured now that it hates me with the passion of a thousand hearts(or so my friend Shawnna says).

I do not like Melamine. It's just sawdust covered with a thin layer of plastic. I also like having racks with three or four tubs across on each level. (Longer flex-watt runs and fewer connections) I have had great success without Melamine or plywood. I just use 2X3 lumber and frame the rack like the Freedom Breeders racks. Nice long runs and no sag.