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show me your set up!
I am a teacher and have 2 BP's in my classroom (normal, lesser) and think I will probably add a pied in about another year or so. I keep them there because my husband HATES snakes and I use them when I teach genetics. Currently they are both in glass tanks and I hate them and while I have got the heat up and stable the Humid part is getting a lot harder. They are so dry, But in the summer it gets very humid in the room. I have almost no control about the temp the room is set at because it is controled at the district office
Now even though my husband hates snakes he can build cabinets quite well and was going to make me a 2-3 level wood cabinet with glass front and sides so that they were visable for the students but "looked" nice. I figured the wood tank would help keep the moisture up but after looking at some of the Tubs that people use I am wondering if that would be easier.
Will you show me your set up so I can get some ideas and please share your thoughts on what you think would be best for me in this situation.
Thanks in advance you are all so much help to the novice keepers like me
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Your absolute best bet would be pvc cages from somewhere like Animal Plastics. They hold heat/humidity, are light weight compared to glass tanks, make good displays still, and are easy to clean out. They would cost like $150 a piece though, idk what your budget is. The humidity would warp the wood in a wooden encloaure and allow for mold growth. You could use a rack too, but the kids wouldnt really be able to see anything. What age do you teach? For little kids theyd proabably wanna see things but if it was highschool a rack would be fine bc then you could just pull the snake out whenever you wanna show them something. A rack can be made out of melamine for 3 snakes for like $150. Here is my 7 layer rack i made out of melamine for like $200:
http://img.tapatalk.com/aefc30a3-f2ef-722e.jpg
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For a small collection like you're talking about, this is a great option:
http://www.reptilebasics.com/iris-sw...y-or-back-heat
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Re: show me your set up!
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Re: show me your set up!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike41793
Your absolute best bet would be pvc cages from somewhere like Animal Plastics. They hold heat/humidity, are light weight compared to glass tanks, make good displays still, and are easy to clean out. They would cost like $150 a piece though, idk what your budget is. The humidity would warp the wood in a wooden encloaure and allow for mold growth. You could use a rack too, but the kids wouldnt really be able to see anything. What age do you teach? For little kids theyd proabably wanna see things but if it was highschool a rack would be fine bc then you could just pull the snake out whenever you wanna show them something. A rack can be made out of melamine for 3 snakes for like $150. Here is my 7 layer rack i made out of melamine for like $200:
http://img.tapatalk.com/aefc30a3-f2ef-722e.jpg
Thanks for the picts. I teach High school and my students love my snakes..... or most of them. I was told that if you really sealed a wood cage on the inside then it would deal with the moisture but you think it would still warp and get really nasty?
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I use PVC reptile cages made by animal plastics, they are stackable and look great as well as holding heat and humidity in very well.
http://i1186.photobucket.com/albums/...t/c22733cf.jpg
Here is a thread with more pictures and information (might be helpful in designing/building)
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...With-Pictures!
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Re: show me your set up!
Quote:
Originally Posted by lizlopez
Thanks for the picts. I teach High school and my students love my snakes..... or most of them. I was told that if you really sealed a wood cage on the inside then it would deal with the moisture but you think it would still warp and get really nasty?
it depends on the quality of the wood and sealer. I'm not a huge fan of wooden cages but they can defiantly be made to work. I personally would go with polycarbonate (can be purchased at home depot and really doesn't cost much more than good quality wood.
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Simplest setup ever. This is for my juvenile though. Temps and humidity are holding perfectly
http://i1055.photobucket.com/albums/...3/e9179941.jpg
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Re: show me your set up!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Trackstrong83
I think that mine is simpler lol... just 2 hides and a water dish
http://i1186.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMG_0455.jpg
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Yes like what aaron said about the wood cages^
since you teach high school though i would really go for a rack over cages. either build one out of melamine, or buy a plastic one from reptile basics like slim posted above^^
If you have any q's about the melamine feel free to ask or pm me, id be happy to help.
And for the record, i think that its AWESOME you have snakes in your classroom. I wish my bio teacher in highschool had snakes!
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Ohhhhh Kay Aaron so what I threw in some greenery and a branch :rolleye2: Lol
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Re: show me your set up!
I am working on this setup. It is made out of wood, but sealed very good. I have had a lot of help from The Serphant Merchant or I would have made it this far! There is lighting in the top, and the bottom has tempered glass for the UTH. I have sealed the wood underneath the glass (just in case pee gets past the glass and the door sealer I set the glass on.) I just put the doors on tonight, which have tempered glass on them also. I will be using two locks on the sides of each of the doors. Which work well on my other setup.
http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/...2/09287105.jpg
http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/...2/ce976cae.jpg
http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/...2/a320f473.jpg
http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/...2/7644cf9f.jpg
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I have to respectfully disagree with Mike.
I would think for classroom animals, people would prefer to display them.
I know when I was in high school, I appreciated looking at a nice classroom display enclosure. Tubs don't really allow that.
I use a rack. And while it is very practical and easy to maintain, it's not as visually pleasing as an animal plastic's cage and what not.
However, balls don't really display well anyway. They like to stay hidden.
To the OP, if you plan on a nice display animal, I suggest a Green Tree Python. They are gorgeous and will sit out proudly for all to gaze upon.
This is my rack:
(The door stays open unless I have guests over or my ferrets are out and about)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v9...f/IMAG0348.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v9...f/IMAG0350.jpg
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I think ultimately it really depends what your end goal is. If you are using the classroom to keep the snakes because you cant keep them at home, and if you think of the snakes as your own pets and want to give them the best possible quality of life, then I would go for the rack setup definitely. The reptiles basics PVC rack that someone posted earlier is a great option. The reason I say rack is better is because its much easier to keep the temps and humidity consistent, and it will allow for you to check on them less times in a day, especially because they are at school (not at home where you could check on them more frequently) and because they are in a room in which you cannot control the temps. The rack system will still allow you to use the snakes in your lessons and is probably more economical in the long run. Also, tubs are 100x easier to clean than anything else.
If your end goal is to have the snakes available mainly for the students' learning purposes, then having an enclosure with a nice display would be great. I find the big PVC cages to be a little too expensive for my taste and too big as well. But if money and space isnt an issue, then those are probably your best bet.
Edit: heres my setup by the way. Hatchling rack on the left, and 20 gal glass tank on the right. Eventually they will all be in tubs/racks as soon as I save up enough.
http://img521.imageshack.us/img521/606/img9383k.jpg
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Re: show me your set up!
Quote:
Originally Posted by mattchibi
The reason I say rack is better is because its much easier to keep the temps and humidity consistent, and it will allow for you to check on them less times in a day, especially because they are at school and because they are in a room in which you cannot control the temps.
While racks are great for humidity, they're only easy to maintain rack temps if the classroom temp is consistent. I find that classrooms fluctuate a lot. Especially at night and throughout different times of the year. You would have to change the thermostat settings constantly to regulate the correct temps. And that's only for the hot spot too. It doesn't really affect air temp unless the tubs are small. So a pvc cage or something similar would work much better for maintaining the temperature of a classroom.
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Re: show me your set up!
Quote:
Originally Posted by satomi325
While racks are great for humidity, they're only easy to maintain rack temps if the classroom temp is consistent. I find that classrooms fluctuate a lot. Especially at night and throughout different times of the year. You would have to change the thermostat settings constantly to regulate the correct temps. And that's only for the hot spot too. It doesn't really affect air temp unless the tubs are small. So a pvc cage or something similar would work much better for maintaining the temperature of a classroom.
x2 at least down here in Florida at my high school they didn't run the AC On the weekends (me being in marching band found that out the hard way 95+ degrees outside for 6-9 hours a day in the sun then coming inside to a super heated band room really sucks!) But during the week the school was kept in the mid 70's. This temperature swing would cause issues with a rack, even a super insulated PVC cage like what I use with a good thermostat would be pushings its limits.
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Re: show me your set up!
Quote:
Originally Posted by BPnewguy
This is great! Is this "Granite-effect"Spray or something? Looks good
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Re: show me your set up!
Yes it is. It is a textured spray.
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I think it depends on how much room you have in the classroom. Racks are easily more space efficient however cages are more asthetically pleasing. So if you have the room I would go with cages, if not racks. Only because it is a classroom and they will be seen.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by satomi325
However, balls don't really display well anyway. They like to stay hidden.
Precisely. Thats why i think a rack is a better idea. If you spend a bunch of money on pvc cages chances are you wont see them that much anyways. Racks are cheaper and then you can just reach in and pull the snake out whenever you want to show the kids.
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http://images42.fotki.com/v1374/phot...sLounge-vi.jpgHosted on Fotki
http://images112.fotki.com/v106/phot...D7_4856-vi.jpgHosted on Fotki
http://images17.fotki.com/v147/photo...31/0128-vi.jpgHosted on Fotki
These are some of mine. I find it takes the same amount of time to clean these as it does my rack you still have to wait for the disinfectant to work either way so the extra stuff isn't more time just less sitting.
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Re: show me your set up!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike41793
Precisely. Thats why i think a rack is a better idea. If you spend a bunch of money on pvc cages chances are you wont see them that much anyways. Racks are cheaper and then you can just reach in and pull the snake out whenever you want to show the kids.
To my mind it isn't the snake you are looking at but the 'landscaping' I enjoy mine if the snake is out or not. In a class room I don't think a rack is a good idea. The room is not going to be warm enough for a rack to run properly. There is a reason why 95% of racks are in rooms that are 80ºF it is too hard to hold proper ambient temps and cool end temps in rooms much less.
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Re: show me your set up!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike41793
Precisely. Thats why i think a rack is a better idea. If you spend a bunch of money on pvc cages chances are you wont see them that much anyways. Racks are cheaper and then you can just reach in and pull the snake out whenever you want to show the kids.
But when you use racks, you have to have the whole room heated?
og do people here use 2 heatmats? i have a cold climate
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I actually keep a rack in a room that averages 66ºF. It can be done but is not easy. Mine is a 5 hole rack I have flexwatt 11inch for the hot side and 17inch for the cool sides I run the top 3 slots hot side on one probe the bottom 2 slots hot side on a second the top 4 cool sides on a third and the bottom cool side on a fourth... The floor is cold. The rack is well insulated top bottom and sides.
I had also to balance the way air moves in and through each tub and shelf. It is many times easier to heat the room. I would if it was reasonable. There is a reason why most that use snake racks have snake rooms to match.
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Re: show me your set up!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Natassja
But when you use racks, you have to have the whole room heated?
og do people here use 2 heatmats? i have a cold climate
well air temperature is still important, heat mats do not affect the air temperature in racks all that much so if the room is a good bit below 75 degrees most of the time you are going to have a hard time heating the air in the rack. As kitedemon said it can be done but it isn't easy.
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