Build planning for 6x2x4 and 6x2x2

[Regius_049]

Still, weight is certainly something to take into consideration, so thank you for pointing that out!

Just as food for thought, a constrictors NW 4' x 2' x 14" cage weighs around 50 lbs and an animal plastics T-10 cage with sliding glass doors is probably around 60-65 lbs empty. The cages you are proposing with substrate I would guess would be well over 100 lbs.

I weighed one of my exo-terra cages once (18" x 18" x 24") with substrate and decor, it was like 70 lbs.

[Starscream]

Yeah, there's a reason this is planning for at least 4 years in the future. I have time to think things through, consider my options, and save up for materials. As for the age of the Russian rat snake -- this is for an adult enclosure. I'll probably use my ball python's current tub for the Russian's baby to juvie enclosure.

[Starscream]

Just so you know, Home depot rents tools but tools are really dirt cheap anymore.

Really all you need is a circular saw with a bevel adjustment, clamps (to hold the piece of 2x4 that you will use to guide the circular saw), corded or cordless drill to screw things in and drill holes, and maybe a router if you want to make fancy schmancy recessed areas like for the tract of the glass or probe channel or even pretty rounded corners.

I may or may not like to do home remodeling and may or may not be a little bit of a handylady Youtube has tons of builds on tanks and enclosures. Check out serpa designs for examples on plywood builds. Guy is a real genius with vivariums

Oh my goodness, SerpaDesigns has the perfect solution to my door conundrum! Wow, thank you so much for pointing him out! Also, did not know that about renting tools from HD -- I'll probably buy them in the long run, but that's pretty interesting and potentially useful.

I used 3/4 inch melamine for my retic tank, might be a little heavy but very sturdy..... I would highly recomend doors on hinges verses doors tracks if you do not have very much wood working experience..... Hinges are easy but sliding glass doors are difficult. Definatly make your door two pieces, i messed up and made mine one piece thats 6 ft by 2ft. It has hinges on the bottom and hangsdown when open..... My next tank, my tegu tank, will have sliding glass doors because of conviences and the fact that the retic tank and tegu tank will be stacked on each other. My two cents, best of luck.

So far hinged doors is the plan! They just look so much nicer than sliding doors.

I'm interested to see how these turn out, but they are going to be heavy as f#!@ lol. I hope you won't need to move them very often.

Regarding thickness, it depends on how you construct the cage. If you are going to have a center support piece (similar to Animal Plastics), then 1/2" is probably fine as you will really have only 3' sections without the additional support. That said, if you can go 3/4", it will certainly be sturdier. If you want to split the difference, use 3/4" for the bottom of the cage and 1/2" elsewhere.

My only other note would be to potentially consider doing 6' x 2' x 3' for the rat snake enclosure. Assuming you are going for a bioactive / paludarium, 3' is a good deal easier to light and heat than a 4'. If can be done, but you may find these solutions easier with the 3'. Sadly, most LED lighting solutions are mainly designed for 12-24" setups, but you can cheat and select low-light or taller growing species such as ferns and calathea. 3' still certainly gives you sufficient space to design and allow for good climbing. Consider that GTPs are typically put into 2' tall enclosures and they are true arboreal snakes. A Russian rat snake is admittedly larger, so I think the extra 1' is warranted in this case.

If you want to go the full 4', more power to you, just keep in mind that you may have to spend more and be clever about how you light and heat the setup. That said, if you want to go the easy route and just get a kane heat pad and set it up on the floor or a shelf and call it a day, assuming your ambient temps are reasonable, that would certainly solve any issues surrounding heating. They aren't super cheap, but they are a robust and water-proof heat pad. I believe some come with a rheostat / thermostat attached. I'm considering using these for my larger indigos as they provide a hot spot without heating the enclosure.

Since I am planning on having this larger enclosure with a water feature, I figured at least a foot of the height would be water and substrate, which leaves 3 feet for climbing. I'm also going to be using UVB, so I'll be using a T5HO fixture for that, and we'll see for the plants. It's so far into the future I'm not even there yet lol. Thanks for the suggestions on thickness -- I'm sure the more I research, the more it will make sense to me.

Actually about bioactive, look into LED for hydroponics. They are designed for up to 6 feet above the growing vegetation. You can get full spectrum or a grow friendly spectrum conducive to the type of plants that would do well in a heavy bodied snake vivarium.

Oh, nice!

From just googling, it seems building an enclosure, rack, cabinets, etc. with plywood has quite a few cons to it. Some people used it, but there is a reason why it's not popular. PVC overall is very reliable, very light (almost like foam), and won't crack or break under screws. Personally, I would go with the tried and true methods and materials, especially with an enclosure you want to make so complex, I would assume you want it to last awhile without risk of cracking or warping.

There are ways to ensure the plywood build lasts a long time. Sealing it, pre-drilling, adding supports, etc. Birch is a bit more high-quality than cheap plywood. When I was looking at PVC, especially the larger sizes, I ran into people who had PVC warp and sag from humidity. But most importantly to me (and this is probably going to sound stupid and petty), I just like how wood looks better than PVC. It's a lot more aesthetically pleasing. Will I potentially pay for choosing wood over PVC? Maybe, though I'm hoping with all the extra bits I'm going to be putting into the enclosure it'll prevent that. Either way, it's a learning experience. I figure doing the 6x2x2 out of plywood first should help me make the final decision on the 6x2x4.

i have a buncha tools i inherited that u can borrow including big scary power saws lol.

anyway i think u have to weigh the pro's and con's for building materials, for example:

melamine/wood products - pro = lower costs - con = heavier materials
pvc/plastics - pro = lighter weight - con = more expensive

i built my first rack. it was fun to do, it works but the craftsmanship wasn't very precise lol. so i weight the pro's and con's and decided i would buy pro-made/CNC cut enclosures in the future. it was my first rack and i was nervous about escape so it was a lid on tub kinda rack. solid wood was solid, weight is fine:




also to help w/ moving the bulk and weight, u can add handles or caster wheels: https://www.homedepot.com/s/caster?NCNI-5

good luck, post pix!


Edit: also what age Russian Rat are u planning this for? IMO a bb Russian Rat is too small for a 6ft cage. i would be worried trying to find the lil worm in the enclosure just to feed.

Give me the tools and I will be mad with power. Mad, I tell you! lol. Thanks for the recommendation on caster wheels/handles -- whichever one I choose, I'll probably include those just because I'm lazy.....

And when I get there, all the pictures will be had! Mwahahaha!

Just as food for thought, a constrictors NW 4' x 2' x 14" cage weighs around 50 lbs and an animal plastics T-10 cage with sliding glass doors is probably around 60-65 lbs empty. The cages you are proposing with substrate I would guess would be well over 100 lbs.


I weighed one of my exo-terra cages once (18" x 18" x 24") with substrate and decor, it was like 70 lbs.

I figured they would be heavier than that regardless of the materials I chose. 6x2x2 and 6x2x4 (this one especially) are both a lot bigger than a 4x2x14" enclosure, and the 6x2x4 requires more than double the material no matter how you look at it.

Tiny exo-terra box weighs so little! Is that why people like them so much? lol


Thank you all for the input! It's given me a lot to think about. I have lots of time to think things over. A lot could happen in two years (when I will build the 6x2x2).

[Jhill001]

If you don't have a lot of experience with aquariums, paludariums and such I'd personally stay away from such a large endeavor to start out. For many keepers just adding live plants to the mix can be a whole new learning experience. Having water quality and added humidity issues added to the equation might make it even worse.

That said, people use Pond Armor to make giant aquariums for fish out of wood so if you feel like going for it I say go for it as long as you post pics.

[Starscream]

If you don't have a lot of experience with aquariums, paludariums and such I'd personally stay away from such a large endeavor to start out. For many keepers just adding live plants to the mix can be a whole new learning experience. Having water quality and added humidity issues added to the equation might make it even worse.

That said, people use Pond Armor to make giant aquariums for fish out of wood so if you feel like going for it I say go for it as long as you post pics.

I think what I may do, just to garner some experience, is collect some small, cheap tanks off craigslist and do a miniature version of what I'm thinking of. Like I said, this build isn't going to happen for at least four years, and the 6x2x2 is going to happen first (which will be bioactive). I have experience keeping plants alive in pots, but I realize that putting them in a more naturalistic environment is quite a bit different, and there are a lot more factors at play.

These are very, very distant plans, and I'm just feeling things out right now.

And when I eventually get there, trust me, millions of pictures. I get kind of carried away, lol.