DIY cage with underground hides

[kevall1]

I've never cut glass before. Wish I could help.

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[Lizardlicks]

How big of a snake do you need to make a hole for?

[imhumpty]

How big of a snake do you need to make a hole for?

She's pretty small but I rather make a bigger hole then have to worry when she gets bigger in the future.


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[distaff]

Okay now I'm just having trouble finding a glass bit that will cut a big enough hole into the tank any ideas


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If you want something larger than two inches across, you may have to go with the hand cutter you hold like a pen, and score the glass that way. I'm sure there are some good YouTubes on that somewhere. I vaguely recall some, but it was a few years ago. I've never scored glass myself, but a smear of machine oil may be called for. This may be THE stumbling block that would make a replacement acrylic/plexi bottom a better choice for BP owners. I would maybe consult with someone at the hard ware store, or a specialized glass store.

My viv is intended for a pair of male garters, so a two inch diameter will be adequate, even if the snake decides to turn around mid way. Not sure if they would ever do that, but the possibility of getting stuck would concern me with a bigger/stouter snake. In all likelyhood, that is probably a total non issue - snakes slither into tight holes all the time in the wild.

[distaff]

Yes, I've been interested in going bioactive but I know I cannot go that route with melamine. I use aspen so moisture should be held to a minimum. My biggest concern would be a spilled water bowl but I put my water bowl underground in the cool side tub.

I've seen where they install pond liner for the bioactive substrate on melamine. I really don't want to go that route, however, the pond sealant that the DIY King uses on his plywood aquariums could be an option, but I'm not sure if it's effective on melamine.

If I decide to go bioactive, is there a homemade substrate mix I could use that's a little drier and wouldn't require a drainage layer? Since I'd be using it for a ball python, I don't want the substrate to be too wet anyway.

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You could just line the walls and floor with acrylic or plexi. Acrylic is usually glued together with some very thin chemical bonding agent. Dont' know much of anything about plexiglass.

As for substrate, in my experience, the BEST way to keep the surface dry, is to have a drainage layer. Choices are: gravel (cheap, but really too heavy), hydro balls (expensive ugly, but lighter weight), blown glass (can't remember the trade name, looks like grey pumice, very light weight, but pricey, Matalla pond filter (lightweight, not bad looking in the viv, and somewhat reasonably priced - my favourite choice), People also use plastic light diffuser sometimes somewhat confusing called "egg crate" even though it has nothing to do at all with eggs. Drainage layer should be about an inch or a little less, and should be covered with a fitted piece of fiberglass screen to keep substrate from simply falling down and getting soggy.

Now, if you go back into fairly recent bio-active posts there is some controversy and disagreement among members about substrate and drainage layers. I go by results; you do NOT want mucky anerobic substrate for your BP, nor for the plants. However you can achieve a nice fluffy, aerated substrate with just enough moisture for plants is up to you. What works for you, may not be what I would recommend for a beginner, nor what I find seems to work for my soil type. Good results is what matters, so I don't get into arguments with other experienced planted viv people who are doing things differently, but I do strongly recommend what works for me.

A thinner layer of substrate over the drainage layer helps keep things dry and airy, because air can enter from both top and bottom. My most visually interesting viv has soil massed up higher at the back, and esp. at one back corner, and it slopes down toward the front. That gives the plants at the back a bit more root space, but there is still a high surface area to soil mass to allow things to breath. I think things look and work better if there is some variation of soil depth. I like New England Herpetoculture's soil mix, but it gets pricey in adequate amounts. They use charcoal hunks, lots of moss and orchid bark. You can simulate that with leaf litter, compost, and bits of broken up bark. You may have to experiment a bit.

[imhumpty]

If you want something larger than two inches across, you may have to go with the hand cutter you hold like a pen, and score the glass that way. I'm sure there are some good YouTubes on that somewhere. I vaguely recall some, but it was a few years ago. I've never scored glass myself, but a smear of machine oil may be called for. This may be THE stumbling block that would make a replacement acrylic/plexi bottom a better choice for BP owners. I would maybe consult with someone at the hard ware store, or a specialized glass store.

My viv is intended for a pair of male garters, so a two inch diameter will be adequate, even if the snake decides to turn around mid way. Not sure if they would ever do that, but the possibility of getting stuck would concern me with a bigger/stouter snake. In all likelyhood, that is probably a total non issue - snakes slither into tight holes all the time in the wild.

Yeah I know the size I want is outrageous it is a 4 inch and I can always go down in size but first is finding the 75g that petco has for 50% has been a mission so I may go down to a 55g


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[kevall1]

You could just line the walls and floor with acrylic or plexi. Acrylic is usually glued together with some very thin chemical bonding agent. Dont' know much of anything about plexiglass.

As for substrate, in my experience, the BEST way to keep the surface dry, is to have a drainage layer. Choices are: gravel (cheap, but really too heavy), hydro balls (expensive ugly, but lighter weight), blown glass (can't remember the trade name, looks like grey pumice, very light weight, but pricey, Matalla pond filter (lightweight, not bad looking in the viv, and somewhat reasonably priced - my favourite choice), People also use plastic light diffuser sometimes somewhat confusing called "egg crate" even though it has nothing to do at all with eggs. Drainage layer should be about an inch or a little less, and should be covered with a fitted piece of fiberglass screen to keep substrate from simply falling down and getting soggy.

Now, if you go back into fairly recent bio-active posts there is some controversy and disagreement among members about substrate and drainage layers. I go by results; you do NOT want mucky anerobic substrate for your BP, nor for the plants. However you can achieve a nice fluffy, aerated substrate with just enough moisture for plants is up to you. What works for you, may not be what I would recommend for a beginner, nor what I find seems to work for my soil type. Good results is what matters, so I don't get into arguments with other experienced planted viv people who are doing things differently, but I do strongly recommend what works for me.

A thinner layer of substrate over the drainage layer helps keep things dry and airy, because air can enter from both top and bottom. My most visually interesting viv has soil massed up higher at the back, and esp. at one back corner, and it slopes down toward the front. That gives the plants at the back a bit more root space, but there is still a high surface area to soil mass to allow things to breath. I think things look and work better if there is some variation of soil depth. I like New England Herpetoculture's soil mix, but it gets pricey in adequate amounts. They use charcoal hunks, lots of moss and orchid bark. You can simulate that with leaf litter, compost, and bits of broken up bark. You may have to experiment a bit.

Can't thank you enough for this information. The only thing stopping me from going bioactive is my knowledge of the subject. I have a long way to go but you just helped narrow the gap.

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