Daytona 2008. Rack search

I need a 41 quart rack with heat that holds at least 10 tubs. I have been reading and researching for a year. I need to take delivery of something at Daytona show this year. :8:

In time they will be kept in a snake room kept at 82 degrees. For the next two years tho, they will be kept in the living room that is kept at 76 degrees year round.

Right now the front runners for me are:

1.) Vision rack that holds 11 tubs, has adjustable heat cable, offers no insulation, and does not come with tubs. The price at the daytona show is $599. Total including high quality tubs comes to $720.

2.) Reptile Basics rack that holds 4 tubs, has different flexwatt options, has insulation, and comes with normal tubs. The price at the daytona show is $275. Total for three racks (12 tubs) $825.

Any comments, or suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated. Any others that you know of who will be in Daytona that are comperable??? They MUST be 41 quart tubs, and they Must come with heat. I am also getting a helix or herpstat, so any bundle type deals anyone knows about would be perfect.

My recommendation would be Reptile Basics racks over Vision. I don't like the quality of the Vision racks and I don't like heat cable as a heating source. It gets entirely too hot and if you have a malfunction of the thermostat it could easily get to 125 degrees and cause serious damage or death of an animal. I won't use heat cable for any reason. With the RBI rack you'll want to get belly heat considering that you will have to have the racks in a room below 80 degrees. Otherwise back heat works fine in a temperature controlled room above 80. Hope this helps!

Jamie

I wouldn't let the insulation be a deciding factor for you. You can go to home depot and pick up a 4'x8' sheet of foam insulation board for right around $10 if I remember right. Cut it with a utility knife or table saw to fit the outside of the rack and attach it using velcro or double sided sticky tape. I did this for the rack I made when the snakes were being kept in my bedroom, which was kept at 70 degrees year round. The insulation kept the heat in the rack and with the flexwatt set to 94 degrees the ambient temperature in the tubs stayed right between 80-83. I'm pretty sure Connie has posted pictures of this rack in the past, but if I can probably dig some up if you need a visual reference. :gj:

Mike, I've had no experience with the Vision rack so can't make a fair comment on that one. I do have one RBI rack (the 15 qt, 8 tub one) and can say that it's been a perfect experience. After about a year of owning this rack it's in still new looking condition. Not a bit of warp or anything at all malfunctioning on it. It was plug and play when it came, it's still ticking along a year later without a single worry. Very good workmanship I'd say.

The only issue I ever had was accidentally throwing away the little white pegs that keep the tubs from coming forward (cleaning....oops...tossed them out!). I mentioned it to Rich when I was ordering my new rack supplies and bingo....in the box is a little bag of replacement white pegs. The guy sure does know about good customer service. :) I wouldn't think you could go wrong ordering from Reptile Basics.

I purchased a Vision rack, and I never will for my ball pythons... I think the rack is too open and I don't think ball pythons feel very secure in them. In my solid sided Reptile Basics racks almost none of the balls even need a hide box. The Visions also don't hold humidity as well. I do think, however, that there are some Vision rack owners that like them just fine. If I were shopping for a new rack I would personally look at ARS, Reptile Basics, or Animal Plastics.

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Originally Posted by frankykeno

The only issue I ever had was accidentally throwing away the little white pegs that keep the tubs from coming forward (cleaning....oops...tossed them out!). I mentioned it to Rich when I was ordering my new rack supplies and bingo....in the box is a little bag of replacement white pegs. The guy sure does know about good customer service. :) I wouldn't think you could go wrong ordering from Reptile Basics.

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I don't use my pegs, but that's a good example of Rich's good customer service. He's done some really nice things for me as well and he continues to earn my business.

Call Rich (reptilebasics) and tell him exactly what you need! Your search will be over, and results will be great!


Booya! :gj:

I've been pretty happy with my Vision over the past year. The quality is pretty good if you ask me. It's not solid metal like Freedom, but it is definitely solid.

The heat rope is great...I've wired and re-wired my rack a few times and it was extremely easy...especially when I had 7 unexpected hatchlings come along and I had to adjust my rack....yep, half of the rack holds adults, and the upper two levels hold babies...I didn't have to buy a baby rack.

As far as I can remember, Jamie, there have been a few cases of flexwatt doing quite the melt job on tubs. T-stat malfunction? flexwatt malfunction? not wired properly? I dunno. Based on my limited experience, the heat rope has been easier to deal with and control over Flexwatt. ;)

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Originally Posted by nathanledet

I've been pretty happy with my Vision over the past year. The quality is pretty good if you ask me. It's not solid metal like Freedom, but it is definitely solid.

The heat rope is great...I've wired and re-wired my rack a few times and it was extremely easy...especially when I had 7 unexpected hatchlings come along and I had to adjust my rack....yep, half of the rack holds adults, and the upper two levels hold babies...I didn't have to buy a baby rack.

As far as I can remember, Jamie, there have been a few cases of flexwatt doing quite the melt job on tubs. T-stat malfunction? flexwatt malfunction? not wired properly? I dunno. Based on my limited experience, the heat rope has been easier to deal with and control over Flexwatt. ;)

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what temperature is the room you keep them in? do you have any problems with humidity?

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Originally Posted by mcavana

what temperature is the room you keep them in? do you have any problems with humidity?

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Bro we're in Florida :P Humidity is rarely an issue. sheds are usually good, occasionally broken up and rarely need additional soaking...but when that time comes, I follow this advice.

High 70's - low 80's is my ambient room temps with about ~92 on the warm side.

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Originally Posted by nathanledet

As far as I can remember, Jamie, there have been a few cases of flexwatt doing quite the melt job on tubs. T-stat malfunction? flexwatt malfunction? not wired properly? I dunno. Based on my limited experience, the heat rope has been easier to deal with and control over Flexwatt. ;)

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I've always felt more comfortable with the heat cable on my AP racks than flexwatt. I've heard many stories about flexwatt overheating, shorting out, causing fires, etc. Never heard anything like that about heat cable. :confused:

AP has always used cable and has only just started offering flex watt. Ali (from AP) has told me that they have never had an issue with cable causing melting tubs or fires or whatever. I was going to go with cable for my big cages until I decided on RHP's instead.

Jamie, can you share your experience with cable causing issues? It might be really helpful for other members when needing to make a decision for heating :)

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Originally Posted by nathanledet

I've been pretty happy with my Vision over the past year. The quality is pretty good if you ask me. It's not solid metal like Freedom, but it is definitely solid.

The heat rope is great...I've wired and re-wired my rack a few times and it was extremely easy...especially when I had 7 unexpected hatchlings come along and I had to adjust my rack....yep, half of the rack holds adults, and the upper two levels hold babies...I didn't have to buy a baby rack.

As far as I can remember, Jamie, there have been a few cases of flexwatt doing quite the melt job on tubs. T-stat malfunction? flexwatt malfunction? not wired properly? I dunno. Based on my limited experience, the heat rope has been easier to deal with and control over Flexwatt. ;)

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Nate,

I've heard the horror stories before but nothing first hand. I heard about houses going up in flames and melted tubs but nothing first hand. I don't use anything but 3" or 4" flexwatt anymore. I used to use 11" which is higher wattage and runs much hotter. I haven't measured temps on unregulated (no stat) 3" flexwatt but it runs much cooler. Unregulated heat rope on the other hand runs extremely hot.

Jamie

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Originally Posted by starmom

AP has always used cable and has only just started offering flex watt. Ali (from AP) has told me that they have never had an issue with cable causing melting tubs or fires or whatever. I was going to go with cable for my big cages until I decided on RHP's instead.

Jamie, can you share your experience with cable causing issues? It might be really helpful for other members when needing to make a decision for heating :)

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When I first started keeping snakes I used heat cable. In my experience it runs extremely hot unregulated which in the case of a thermostat malfunction could be disastrous. I had AP cages and the heat cable heating was very uneven. Extremely hot right at the area where the heat cable was routered in and then not close to warm enough 2 inches away. Mark and Ali do a great job and if they say there have been no incidents, I believe them. For me, heat cable will never be an option. Radiant heat panels are an excellent choice for caging and Rich has done a great job with his. I am about to pick up two of them for my boa cages.

Jamie

Thanks for the info Jamie. The extreme hot spot is a reason why I don't like flex watt either~ none of my snakes ever want to be right on that hot spot....
As for RBI's RHP's, they are awesome!! Your boas will love them!! I have Rich's RHP's in each of my boa cages and they work really well. Jeez, wish I lived close enough to make a road trip to Rich's place and fill the bed of my truck with his products :D

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Originally Posted by starmom

Thanks for the info Jamie. The extreme hot spot is a reason why I don't like flex watt either~ none of my snakes ever want to be right on that hot spot....
As for RBI's RHP's, they are awesome!! Your boas will love them!! I have Rich's RHP's in each of my boa cages and they work really well. Jeez, wish I lived close enough to make a road trip to Rich's place and fill the bed of my truck with his products :D

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No problem. I've never seen an extreme hot spot with regulated flexwatt. I definitely think people should go with what works for them. For me, it's flexwatt and high quality thermostats. Lots of dollars in animals to protect! ;)

Right on about Rich. He is a good guy and I catch up with him at shows every chance I get or just BS through email. I like to support the good guys in the business.

How about Animal Plastics line of economy racks? They make one that's for the 41 qt tubs that is 10 tubs high. Its not on their website, but they had them on display at the NARBC show. I have two of the 1756/46 economy rack, and its been great so far!

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Originally Posted by jglass38

No problem. I've never seen an extreme hot spot with regulated flexwatt. I definitely think people should go with what works for them. For me, it's flexwatt and high quality thermostats. Lots of dollars in animals to protect! ;)

Right on about Rich. He is a good guy and I catch up with him at shows every chance I get or just BS through email. I like to support the good guys in the business.

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Hmmm, interesting. I regulate all of my racks and cages with either Helix or Herpstat t'stats and there is still the one spot that gets higher than what the snake would like and so I just put the larger water bowl over it (helps with the humidity). All of the other flex watt areas are perfect- it's just the one spot and the temps are taken with my temp gun. I think this is just the nature of the beast (flex watt) however.

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Originally Posted by starmom

Hmmm, interesting. I regulate all of my racks and cages with either Helix or Herpstat t'stats and there is still the one spot that gets higher than what the snake would like and so I just put the larger water bowl over it (helps with the humidity). All of the other flex watt areas are perfect- it's just the one spot and the temps are taken with my temp gun. I think this is just the nature of the beast (flex watt) however.

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All I can say is I have every snake in my collection in racks with flexwatt and haven't had any problems like that. All have uniform heat. I think people are fairly temperature obsessed anyway when it comes to their snakes. Use a quality heat source and a quality thermostat. I rarely check temps in my racks. The snakes tell me if there is a problem. Of course not everyone has temperature and humidity controlled snake rooms and that definitely helps.

Lol!! I don't have a temp controlled snake room!!! I have kids instead ;)

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Originally Posted by starmom

Lol!! I don't have a temp controlled snake room!!! I have kids instead ;)

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I have a dog...That's all the child I need...:D

AP is not going to be in Daytona so dont worry about that. Rich @ RBI said if he gets enough preorders he will bring racks to the show, so call him and order some so I can take delivery of mine and we can both save on shipping!

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Originally Posted by FIREball

AP is not going to be in Daytona so dont worry about that. Rich @ RBI said if he gets enough preorders he will bring racks to the show, so call him and order some so I can take delivery of mine and we can both save on shipping!

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Placed order for 2 racks with Rich.... GO TEAM!!!!

Mike

Did he say he will bring them to Daytona or ship them?

Just from a money-conscious girl's point of view, I feel that the manufactured racks are very cost-prohibitive. I can build a 8-tub 32-qt rack that also holds 2 15qt tubs on each shelf(or one 32qt) for about $100 plus the thermostat. I build them myself, design them how I want them to look, and they are extremely functional. Whereas, if I wanted a manufactured rack that held a few 41qt tubs, it'd be over $400 for a 4-tub rack including heat.. I don't think so. I have better things to spend money on, like my electric bill or snake food.

I built a 6-tub 41qt rack with 11" flexwatt for a little over $120 including tubs and flexwatt. I just recently(like a week ago) took the melamine sides off of it and put 2x4s and a back on it. It heats wonderfully, and the snakes thrive in it(6 big girls). If it gets too cool in the winter, I will pop some 1" insulation board on the sides. No biggie.

If I had actual money for racks, then sure, I would have a ton of FBs and a decked out snake room. But I don't, so I go with functionality, and the snakes sure don't suffer for it(thriving little turds). If plastic wasn't made from oil, racks wouldn't be so damn expensive...

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Originally Posted by jglass38

Nate,

I've heard the horror stories before but nothing first hand. I heard about houses going up in flames and melted tubs but nothing first hand. I don't use anything but 3" or 4" flexwatt anymore. I used to use 11" which is higher wattage and runs much hotter. I haven't measured temps on unregulated (no stat) 3" flexwatt but it runs much cooler. Unregulated heat rope on the other hand runs extremely hot.

Jamie

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In a cool room in winter, i have an RBI rack that had 3" flex. To keep proper temps that stuff was running HOT. and actually ended up burning on the bottom level and started warping on others. I ripped all of it out... * hassle * I cut the back out of that rack with a tablesaw * since at the time RBIs design was a solid one piece hunk of plastic that could not be removed, not sure what it is now* and added my own strip of 11". Its been running perfectly since i did that, but i dont recommend 3" for cooler setups, or areas where it does happen to get quite cold. Not worth the risk!

freedombreeder! rack

Yeah, unless you've got a climate controlled room, or live someplace really nice and tropical, Freedom Breeders just aren't very suitable :)

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Originally Posted by mooingtricycle

In a cool room in winter, i have an RBI rack that had 3" flex. To keep proper temps that stuff was running HOT. and actually ended up burning on the bottom level and started warping on others. I ripped all of it out... * hassle * I cut the back out of that rack with a tablesaw * since at the time RBIs design was a solid one piece hunk of plastic that could not be removed, not sure what it is now* and added my own strip of 11". Its been running perfectly since i did that, but i dont recommend 3" for cooler setups, or areas where it does happen to get quite cold. Not worth the risk!

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Good points! You never want to be running your flexwatt on full. Like they say, use the right tool for the job. I think I'm spoiled by having a temperature controlled room.

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Originally Posted by starmom

Yeah, unless you've got a climate controlled room, or live someplace really nice and tropical, Freedom Breeders just aren't very suitable :)

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That's for sure. Also, a humidity controlled room unless you like your sheds in a million little pieces! :D

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Originally Posted by HALEN16

freedombreeder! rack

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Freedombreeders are just too expensive:colbert:. If you are in the market for a FB you should check out ARS caging:gj:. You will get a much better bang for you buck!

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Originally Posted by SatanicIntention

Just from a money-conscious girl's point of view, I feel that the manufactured racks are very cost-prohibitive. I can build a 8-tub 32-qt rack that also holds 2 15qt tubs on each shelf(or one 32qt) for about $100 plus the thermostat. I build them myself, design them how I want them to look, and they are extremely functional. Whereas, if I wanted a manufactured rack that held a few 41qt tubs, it'd be over $400 for a 4-tub rack including heat.. I don't think so. I have better things to spend money on, like my electric bill or snake food.

I built a 6-tub 41qt rack with 11" flexwatt for a little over $120 including tubs and flexwatt. I just recently(like a week ago) took the melamine sides off of it and put 2x4s and a back on it. It heats wonderfully, and the snakes thrive in it(6 big girls). If it gets too cool in the winter, I will pop some 1" insulation board on the sides. No biggie.

If I had actual money for racks, then sure, I would have a ton of FBs and a decked out snake room. But I don't, so I go with functionality, and the snakes sure don't suffer for it(thriving little turds). If plastic wasn't made from oil, racks wouldn't be so damn expensive...

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Yeah, I thought long and hard about this for months. I finally decided to just purchase the RBI racks mainly because:

1.) They are profesionally made with fantastic reviews.
2.) I am TERRIBLE at building things.
3.) It will match the rack I already have
4.) they come with 2 3" flexwatt strips built in, and the flexwatt is recessed into the plastic so it does not come in contact with the tub at all (I figure this has got to make it last longer / have fewer issues.)
5.) Don't have to worry about it getting bowed
6.) It does not weigh a rediculous amount of weight
7.) THey weren't really that much more then building them myself
8.) It is easier!!!!

Mike

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Originally Posted by mcavana

Yeah, I thought long and hard about this for months. I finally decided to just purchase the RBI racks mainly because:

1.) They are profesionally made with fantastic reviews.
2.) I am TERRIBLE at building things.
3.) It will match the rack I already have
4.) they come with 2 3" flexwatt strips built in, and the flexwatt is recessed into the plastic so it does not come in contact with the tub at all (I figure this has got to make it last longer / have fewer issues.)
5.) Don't have to worry about it getting bowed
6.) It does not weigh a rediculous amount of weight
7.) THey weren't really that much more then building them myself
8.) It is easier!!!!

Mike

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These are some good points Mike! I too am terrible at building things and don't really have the tools to do it anyway. I like all my racks to match (I know, it's a little crazy). Recessed flexwatt definitely is more safe. I had a melamine rack without recessed flexwatt and it began to wear away quickly with the tub sliding over it repeatedly. That can't be safe.

I love RBI racks. Rich does a great job with them!