Boaphile plastic cages

Whats your opinion on boaphile plastic cages? I'm trying to think ahead for when my baby gets a little bigger. I am definitely leaning away from glass tanks because it's proving to be a hassle getting the humidity right.

I know a girl who has a bunch of these http://www.boaphileplastics.com/221d.html
with flexwatt heating, and she said that she'd give me a really good deal on one. Seems like a good investment but I just wanted to make sure.

Is this tank big enough? my bp is a male.

Boaphile cages are great. I had a boa in one for 5-6 years. That size should be ok for a boy.

The only real problem people have is with lead times and difficulty with getting ahold of Jeff, but if you are getting it from a 3rd party, I would go for it for sure.

Everything I've heard about them and the company is fantastic. :gj:

Those cages are certainly big enough for an adult male BP. He'll love it. :D

I much prefer Animal Plastics PVC cages, I feel that you get a much better cage for your money with AP.

There have been some issues with Boaphiles cracking and as said above the customer service is terrible.

Read this, it goes over all of the aspects of plastic reptile cages: http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...69#post1763769

Personally I wouldn't touch a Boaphile with a 10 foot pole

Seems like people are pretty divided with these cages. The animal plastics look really nice, especially the T3 that's on sale right now for 175. Decent price, but I would be saving like 100 dollars by getting the used boaphile. The cracking thing sounds a little scary. Either way I have time to think lol, my bp is still only like 120 grams.

I've read that thread you made Aaron, it's definitely a cool setup.

I love my boaphiles. As was already said, customer service is a little slow but Id take a boaphile any day of the week.

I do really like the look of the APs. Haven't heard of the cracking issues, I'll look into that, thanks.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by The Serpent Merchant

Personally I wouldn't touch a Boaphile with a 10 foot pole

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39 and a half foot poooole... :rolleye2:

Well, I had a 4' X 2' X 18" one with radiant heat and belly heat that ran continuously for almost 6 years without a single issue. It is sitting in my garage as we speak in case I get another larger reptile.

Everyone has their preference (I am ordering AP for my next rack, already bought the 1755 tubs, so I am not a Boaphile junkie), but if you are getting a really good deal on that cage it would be silly to spend the extra $100 on a AP one.

Aaron, with all due respect I think we know how you feel about AP, and that is great, but I think she would be getting a much better deal in this case for a nice cage.

To the OP, you should be sure to check out the condition of the used cage before spending any money and pass if there are structural issues.

Boaphile cages have a few major issues:

1. they are made from thin plastic. This makes them lighter but it also makes hem prone to cracking during shipping or after a few years of heating (the expanding and contracting caused by heating)

2. they use chemical welds. this means that the cage can't be taken apart, and is yet another place for them to crack. these chemical welds are also a place where junk can build up and make cleaning the cage harder than it needs to be.

3. Acrylic doors. AP gives you the option of glass doors or acrylic doors. acrylic doors will get scratched p very easily and will warp over time.

4. Boaphile cages don't have any of the other nice features that I outlined in the thread I posted a link to in my original post.

either way you are going to have a better cage than a glass tank.

It's in good condition. It housed a juvenile blood python that unfortunately had some health problems. It is in nearly new condition. I'm not too crazy about the way it looks, but that isn't a big deal really. I have a question about substrate too. The girl I know with these cages has newspaper as a substrate, which I know is good, but I like the way eco-earth looks. That wouldn't be a problem, would it? seems like a dumb question but I might as well ask :gj:

Eco Earth should be fine if you keep it thin. It can be a pain to clean in this type of cage though. I like the craft paper from www.cageliners.net

it depends on what type of heat you plan to use, Ecoearth isn't great when used with UTH's/flexwatt, but will be great with a Radiant heat panel. I personally fine it to be a huge mess when dealing with a cage the size you are looking at. most of the time it will be fine but doing a full cage clean out will make you want to rip your hair out.

I use Corrugated wrap in my PVC cages, it looks great, and is super easy to keep clean.

http://i1186.photobucket.com/albums/...t/IMG_0230.jpg

*not my picture*

Disinfect it with extreme prejudice and mighty chemicals, though, if it housed an animal that got sick and died.

If you were buying directly from the company i would say AP hands down just bc of the customer service nightmares i have heard of from Boaphile... But since youre getting it used, at what i would assume is a good price, i say go with that. Its cheaper and you wont have to pay shipping costs. There are plenty of people who have used boaphile cages for years with no issues (that im aware of). If it breaks on you, call up AP the next day and get yourself a new one lol...
Just make sure you THOROUGHLY clean it out if there was a sick snake in there before yours was. Wouldnt want your bp to get sick from it.

I would definitely clean it well, although I think its previous occupant died from impaction. it seemed like she didn't wanna talk about it much, made her sad. Regardless I'm gonna go with plastic. Thanks everybody