DIY XPVC (Expanded PVC) racks coming soon!

http://ball-pythons.net/gallery/file...0_12.42.35.jpg

I'm building two racks. One will house 7 x 32 qt Clear View latching tubs or 14 x 15 qt Clear View latching tubs. I can also interchange any mixture of either. The spacing was designed to use 2 x 15 qt or a single 32 qt. The second rack is a hatchling rack designed to fit 50 x 6 qt tubs. I'm using 4" Flexwatt for the subadult/adult rack and 3" for the hatchling rack. I will be posting picture and a DIY type thread as construction begins. I hope to get it build today or this weekend at the latest.

Regards,

B

Sweet. Where did you get the xpvc?

I found two places but Professional Plastics was $20 a sheet cheaper for both 1/2" and 1/4". www.professionalplastics.com I should be putting the subadult/adult rack up tonight if all goes well! I just ran out of time after gathering the supplies to build last night.

Regards,

B

Nice. I think I'll wait to see how yours comes out though.

Are you going to be routing slots into the sides for the shelves, or just screwing them in?

I'm going to be using 1.5" screws and chemical welding. The way PVC works if you use the right glue it melts and actually bonds together permanently. I did some reading and several people did tests and broke the XPVC way before the chemical bond broke. It basically becomes one piece of plastic after the bond sets. I believe that combo should work just great for the subadult/adult rack.

Regards,

B

I can't wait to see it finished.

wow $227.25 for a 4/8 1/2" pvc sheet?

I think Scott (Scott&Becky) got a quote of like $120 for half inch locally

I didn't order online. I dealt with my office directly and they charged $85 for 1/2" and $50 for 1/4". It was $20 to cut everything. I'm using 1/2" for the subadult/adult rack and 1/4" for the hatchling rack. Sometimes online isn't cheaper... I hadn't even checked their online prices.

Regards,

B

Okay just a side note to think about Simple...if the glue and the PVC bond the way you say it will, make sure that you can actually disassemble it some way and get it OUT of the room or its narrow enough to get out in one piece.

Hate to see you make this awesome rack and then find out you can't get it out of the house (aka: moving day) without destroying it :( :( :(

Can't wait to see you build it though! More photos! :D

I always wanted to make an xPVC rack - so much lighter than wood. Looking forward to the progress and finished piece.

What glue are you using?

Mike is right I got a price of 116.50 per 4x8 sheet of 1/2". But when I asked what type of adhesive they used she said anytime they need to glue it (the sign shop) they just get an all purpose adhesive like liquid nails from home depot or Lowes. I'll be putting one of these racks together also soon as I'm going to be making them to trade for animals I'll keep everyone updated on my experiences with this stuff.

liquid nails would be good but you can use PVC pipe glue. use the primer to clean the surfaces to be glued then apply PVC glue and it chemically welds the pieces together.

i guess with liquid nails you could at some point cut the glue seams with a razor to take it apart if you had to or wanted to.

Can you list the dimensions and numbers of all the pieces you ordered in case we wish to replicate. That sounds essentially like the Animal plastics 7/14 15/32 qt rack...but much cheaper to build yourself...so I am interested.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Kingofspades

Can you list the dimensions and numbers of all the pieces you ordered in case we wish to replicate. That sounds essentially like the Animal plastics 7/14 15/32 qt rack...but much cheaper to build yourself...so I am interested.

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x2 please melamine is too heavy and about cost the same

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ete-with-pics!

DIY thread is up! The glue you want is Cyanoacrylate (Super Glue). This melts the plastic a tiny bit and chemically bonds it for strength and durability. I wouldn't use any of that liquid nails or gorilla glue crap. PVC glue works great but I didn't want to mess with priming and using a 2 stage for a BP rack. Trust me, once built, this thing is SOLID! The dimensions and stuff are all up in the thread. I will be posting a second DIY thread on my 50 x 6qt hatchling rack shortly. This was one of the easiest projects (once I got the plastic manufacture tracked down) I've ever done! I payed $85 a sheet for the 1/2" and $50 a sheet for the 1/4".

Regards,

B

Thanks for pioneering this, and posting. Is there any other advantage to XPVC other than the fact that it's lighter than wood?

The material is plastic so it is super easy to clean and won't mold or expand if it gets wet! I would imagine it would be a lot harder to harbor bacteria on this rack because of the ultra smooth surfaces. Bacteria likes porous surfaces. This rack could literally last forever if you take basic care of it.

Regards,

B

Excellent purty rack and best part is the link u gave us for xpvc show a warehouse around the corner from my house

I think you would be ok with liquid nails the tensile strength is 900psi edge and 1400psi lap. So I highly doubt any reptile regardless of size is going to break that. Now that being said I have no idea what the cost of super glue is in a large tube similar to a caulking gun size so if it's fairly inexpensive then it is stronger with a 4000psi lap strength. So if it's cheap then I see no issue with using it. But as far as liquid nails being crap the business that recommended it uses it in outdoor billboard applications and it is intended to withstand all weather conditions so I'm guessing it's far ahead of what we néed out of it. But that's jus my .02. Personally unless the customer wants it I doubt that I will use any adhesive as screws seem to work really well and it allows for disassembly. Again JMO. Anyway the rack turned out nice man it looks good.

@ mdfreak2 : where are you buying your melamine? Home depot here has it for 35.00 a sheet. If you're paying close to 85.00 then you really should keep shopping.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ScottNBecky

I think you would be ok with liquid nails the tensile strength is 900psi edge and 1400psi lap. So I highly doubt any reptile regardless of size is going to break that. Now that being said I have no idea what the cost of super glue is in a large tube similar to a caulking gun size so if it's fairly inexpensive then it is stronger with a 4000psi lap strength. So if it's cheap then I see no issue with using it. But as far as liquid nails being crap the business that recommended it uses it in outdoor billboard applications and it is intended to withstand all weather conditions so I'm guessing it's far ahead of what we néed out of it. But that's jus my .02. Personally unless the customer wants it I doubt that I will use any adhesive as screws seem to work really well and it allows for disassembly. Again JMO. Anyway the rack turned out nice man it looks good.

@ mdfreak2 : where are you buying your melamine? Home depot here has it for 35.00 a sheet. If you're paying close to 85.00 then you really should keep shopping.

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I used 6 small tubes of Super Glue. It is chemically bonding the plastic, not using adhesive strength. The plastic for all intense purposes is now one single piece. That's why I wouldn't use any of that caulking stuff. Too much work, too messy, and inferior to a chemical weld. The rack I built was not designed to be dissassembled. It is small and light enough that one person can move it. It also fits through any door without a problem. I would not trust rescrewing into the plastic. I don't think that's a great idea and would not recommend it after working with the XPVC. Just my $.02...Thanks everyone!

Regards,

B