my build in progress. 4) 36Lx24Dx12H cages plus storage!

hey everyone, i have been talking about building a bookshelf style enclosure for to long and i finally decided to take the plunge. its spring break in panama city so making that money :D

anyway i went with a 36x24x12 enclosure. (i dont feed in cages anyway) for my 2 bps and my milk+king snake i plan on getting. plus it has a nice sized storage apace underneath that i plan on throwing some decorative cabinet doors on. the hole thing is 72 3/4 X 37 1/2 X 24" this way all the cages are exactly the same dimensions.

it took 2 4x8 sheets of melamine which i never wanted to use untill i ran into a problem.... what plywood + sealant + place can i paint this sucker? i was at home depot for 3 hrs and pee'd off several employees who needed to cut the wood haha.

i plan on putting a 1/4" melamine sheet to cover the hole back and reenforsing it by adding 1x4" all the way around the back and on the underside for extra support and something to mount my casters to. (this all will be out of sight in the place i plan to put it so why not?)

ill add more details as i get farther along

any suggestions questions or comments welcome!

sorry for the crap pictures. taken from my cell

http://img571.imageshack.us/img571/2...0323200532.jpg

http://img43.imageshack.us/img43/662...0323200524.jpg

http://img263.imageshack.us/img263/7...0323200137.jpg

Looks good. From a "been there, done that" perspective i HIGHLY suggest building it in the room you plan to put it in bc of the weight of the melamine. Also if you can find a piece of pvc to go over the back or corrugate plastic or something that will cut down on the weight alot.
So far it looks good though, be sure to update us with more pics of the final product!

Heres a plus. After I install my heat. Lights and everything else the 1/4" melamine backing is less than 5 lbs. And I bought wheels (casters) built and assembled in my living room of my 2 bedroom apt :D

Tha squeeze could not be happier getting the snakes out of the bedroom hahaha

But hopefully won't be much longer... Really lost on what way im going with the doors...

Looks pretty good you might consider some diagonal bracing across the back. When tall cases are built without dados they are prone to racking. You can stop this by cutting a simple rabbit in the back and placing your back panel in it. But it is all ready built so adding bracing from corner to corner and gluing and screwing to every shelf it will help strengthen it You may half to half lap the center braces but it is well worth the effort especially when its on casters. As far as doors are concerned if you have access to a table saw or a router table you could build frame and panel doors. They are light weight and strong. Mount them with flush mount euro style hinges. Looks pretty good.

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Originally Posted by luvmyballs

Looks pretty good you might consider some diagonal bracing across the back. When tall cases are built without dados they are prone to racking. You can stop this by cutting a simple rabbit in the back and placing your back panel in it. But it is all ready built so adding bracing from corner to corner and gluing and screwing to every shelf it will help strengthen it You may half to half lap the center braces but it is well worth the effort especially when its on casters. As far as doors are concerned if you have access to a table saw or a router table you could build frame and panel doors. They are light weight and strong. Mount them with flush mount euro style hinges. Looks pretty good.

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Took me aback a minute after reading that, thought I was on another forum sight I belong to, lol! Ball pythons AND woodworking?! BOOYAH! Great suggestions and that would definitely make that a unit to last with just those few suggestions. It's looking good and hope it turns out well for you (the OP).

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Originally Posted by Gabe Rienzo

Heres a plus. After I install my heat. Lights and everything else the 1/4" melamine backing is less than 5 lbs. And I bought wheels (casters) built and assembled in my living room of my 2 bedroom apt :D

Tha squeeze could not be happier getting the snakes out of the bedroom hahaha

But hopefully won't be much longer... Really lost on what way im going with the doors...

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Oh thats nice. The only size melamine at the home depots near me are 3/4" thick.

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Originally Posted by Mike41793

Oh thats nice. The only size melamine at the home depots near me are 3/4" thick.

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Well its panel board. Nice and sturdy.

Just installed the back and cut my slots for my heating tiles. Tomorrow I can caulk the entire thing and start installing my heating

i think i want to go with drop down doors tbh.. just because of the ease of instalation...

anyway heres a picture of the with the back on... i plan on heating it with a 16x16" ceramic tile with flexwatt under
http://img801.imageshack.us/img801/1...0324231155.jpg

welp... i ran out of flexwatt... time to order some and some hides!!!

glass tracks plus litter damn should go on tomorrow

does anyone know where i can find 1/4" glass tracks? for sliding glass doors. i cant seem to find them anywhere!?!?!