Looking to buy my guy an AP enclosure

[Erikamc]

Got a pay raise and a big chunk of back pay, so I'm looking to move my guy from his 40 gallon glass breeder tank (approximately 36"L x 18"W x 16" T) to an AP enclosure. I want to do it right from the get go and not try to modify things as I go along. He's about 4' long. A couple of questions, and I know some of these will seem stupid, but I'm a worrier. Should I stick with roughly the same size? I was thinking of going bigger, but not sure if that would make him uncomfortable (too much space). I'm going to go with swing acrylic doors, has anyone gotten these and regretted it? I see no reason to get locks, unless these are needed to keep the doors closed (from the snake, not people)? can the screen support the weight of a heat lamp or will I still need a lamp stand (going to go with the 20x12)? The belly heat tape, is it 11" wide or 11" long? How would I add supplemental heating to the cage other than adding a heat lamp? I see no reason for a basking shelf, but should I add one just to give him variety and a choice? Any advice, experiences you guys want to share about these cages?

[WhompingWillow]

The AP T10 is a popular choice. It's 4'x2'x15". I have one with the swing doors and like the setup. The only potential downside of their swing doors is that they are acrylic, whereas the sliding doors are glass.

As far as heating, I'd recommend not doing a screen cutout and just getting a radiant heat panel either from ProProducts or Reptile Basics. They mount to the ceiling of the cage and obviously need a thermostat, but a heat panel, when sized correctly, is usually able to create both a hotspot and correct ambient temps/temp gradient.

[Erikamc]

Thats the size I was thinking of going with. I like the idea of sliding doors, but I'd rather have acrylic doors because I'm clumsy. Should I order locks with them or do they have a pretty secure latching feature with out getting locks? where would the ideal placement of the thermostat be for a radiant heat panel? Like would the probe dangle mid air? Do radiant heat panels just raise the temperature by a few degrees? temperatures in our house fluctuate a lot. We have a room ac so when we sleep the temperature is about 68 degrees, but when we aren't sleeping the room can get as warm as 80 (his cage is in our bedroom) Also, do these cages have spots to run thermostat and thermometer/hygrometer probes?

[WhompingWillow]

Thats the size I was thinking of going with. I like the idea of sliding doors, but I'd rather have acrylic doors because I'm clumsy. Should I order locks with them or do they have a pretty secure latching feature with out getting locks? where would the ideal placement of the thermostat be for a radiant heat panel? Like would the probe dangle mid air? Do radiant heat panels just raise the temperature by a few degrees? temperatures in our house fluctuate a lot. We have a room ac so when we sleep the temperature is about 68 degrees, but when we aren't sleeping the room can get as warm as 80 (his cage is in our bedroom) Also, do these cages have spots to run thermostat and thermometer/hygrometer probes?

We purchased ours pre-assembled, so hopefully someone will correct me if I'm wrong, but with swing doors I don't believe you need to order locks because they come with little clip things that you move to lock the doors in place. Each door on ours has 5, so pretty secure.

As for the RHP, we let our probe dangle mid-air about 2 inches off the ground underneath the RHP. Our snakes are also in our bedroom, which is 68-70 degrees usually. Our thermostat (Herpstat) is set to 86 degrees. With this particular setup in our house, we achieve a hotspot of 88-90 and ambient 81. Some people place the probe on the cool side and set the thermostat to reach 80 degrees, but personally I'd rather control the hot side temps.

But if your room gets as hot as 80 degrees a RHP would probably be overkill. Hopefully others can chime in with heating recommendations, as I haven't used belly heat in PVC cages.

Our cords are placed through the existing vents in the back, but from what I've heard AP can pretty much customize whatever you want or need if you give them a call.

[WhompingWillow]

Here is our T10. Please excuse the bare bones and knocked around enclosure. Arya was on the hunt tonight and moved things around.

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[Cheesenugget]

I have an AP T8 model. T10 is a bit higher. As far as I can tell, AP do not make any cages with screened tops. If you want them, you will have to ask them so they are open to customization outside of what they offer. However, based on the height of the popular T9 or T10, you will need a lower wattage bulb or taller (More expensive) enclosure if there is a way to install basking bulbs.

With that said, I use a UTH with a thermostat. The snake I use the cage for do not need the same cool end temps as bp's but you will have to find a way to keep it around 80F cool end. 68F would be too low. With that said, RHP may be a good option for you. I don't use one so I cannot comment about RHP.

You can drill holes into the cage for wires and thermometers.

I use glass sliding doors without locks. I would suggest picking one up from your local hardware store to save some $$ if you want it. Imo even though my king is able to squeeze her head between the glass and the front opening, she was not able to push the glass at all, not even a little. However, just for my peace of my mind, I stuck some old mail between the glass doors and that work just as well.

Fyi AP's wait time is long. You should expect to wait for quite a while until you get your enclosure. If you want one in less than 2 months time, I would call other companies like Reptile Basics and see what their wait time is for what you are looking for.

[Crowfingers]

I have a T11 (48x24x18) and love it. I didn't get the shelf because I thought it would block heat. I have two 8 inch cut outs for heating (I use CHE's) that worked beautifully until just recently - so now I also have a UTH for just the hot spot.

My guy is not 1100ish g and out grew his hides and his new ones are thicker, I'd been having some trouble getting the inside of the hot hide to 88/90 without cooking the top the hide. It's been set up on a Herpstat like the CHE on the same side and working beautifully. I have room for 3 plastic rock hides and a terracotta moist hide. If I get another cage (and a female bp), I'd probably go with a T25 as a final adult cage.

I don't think you can have too big of a cage **IF** you can maintain heat/humidity/security. Bigger cages are harder to get temps right, but worth it for the animal in my opinion

[Dianne]

I have Monster Cages with RHP's. My thermostat probe is fastened to the back wall with a plastic cable bracket so I didn't damage the probe. This setup requires some tinkering with the thermostat because you're measuring the temperature at the back wall rather than directly under the panel's hot spot. I set a digital thermometer under the panel, then tweaked my thermostat until it was set where I wanted it. I let each cage set empty and running for a couple of days to check for consistency in temps before I added my critters. Here's a couple of photos of the setup in my 8'x30"x15" for my Colombian redtail girl. There are actually two panels on the thermostat and the probe is under the right-most panel where the temps reach their highest point.

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[Mr. Misha]

I have 3 different AP terrariums and would definitely recommend the T10. It 3 inches doesn't seems like it makes a difference, but it really does.

In regards to sliding glass doors vs the other doors, I personally like the esthetic of the sliding glass. Feel like it looks more like fancy furniture and not a terrarium.

Heating should definitely be done with a RHP. RB heat panels are great and can be easily installed yourself. For the heat probe, I have it securely dangling below the floor.

Here are a few fotos:

[Erikamc]

Wow guys, this is awesome info!! Thank you so much! I have many things to research for Sterling.