My New 10 - 41 Qt. Melamine Snake Rack Build

[Aedryan Methyus]

Hey guys,
I just finished wiring up my second snake rack build and thought I would share it with you guys. It is sooo much work building these things! This one is a 10 (9 +1), 41 qt. melamine rack. The "+1" is because I decided to run heat tape across the top as well, just in case I need the real estate in the future. Perhaps for a Woma or something that doesn't require as much humidity. For the backing, I will be using a nice thin piece of 1/8" panel board, which is used on bathroom walls, etc. That works out really nice, because it's laminated, so it will stand up to humidity + it's laminated, so I don't have to paint it or anything.

For this rack, I used 12" THG heat tape and for my thermostat, I will be using another Vivarium Electronics VE-100, just like my other rack. I'm sure you're all familiar with this thermostat. It will run up to 700 watts and allows you to program day time and night time temperatures. I've been very happy with my other one...

One of the things I hate about using melamine for these racks is, it is ungodly heavy! I obviously won't be moving it around all the time, but once I outgrow my current snake room I will definitely need a dolly + someone to help when I move my racks! This rack took 3 sheets of 3/4" melamine (minus scrap). It measures 22 1/2" x 36" x 60" and it must weigh close to 400 pounds. I haven't put wheels on my racks yet, because they would just make them unstable on carpet...

[Aedryan Methyus]

Here is a front view of the finished rack. I meant to build this one a little wider, thinking it would probably help increase airflow, but I might have went just a little too wide with this one... lol Everything is working good, though. One thing I have definitely noted is, the thermostat isn't as accurate with the 12" THG as it is with the 6" THG I used in my other rack. I have to keep the thermostat on this one set at least 3 degrees lower than my target temperature and even then it will get a couple degrees hotter than I would like sometimes. However, I left a lot more space above the tubs in this build and haven't seen a need to drill holes in these tubs like my other ones. So, i'm wondering if perhaps more heat is being retained since there aren't any holes in the tubs?

[Mr.Snake]

Can the tubs sit directly on the heat tape ?

[Aedryan Methyus]

Absolutely. They basically have to...

[Mr.Snake]

Thks, getting ready to build one and I was worried about that