PVCX is heavier than plywood???

[hungba]

Is 3/4 ply really necessary? I have one rack made of that and to me it seems like overkill. Admittedly those racks are all 1 tub across, but just feeling the 3/4 plywood it feels so stiff I don't really think that it is necessary?

[hungba]

Is the melamine laminate itself toxic or the particle board and the related glues that are?

[PsychD_Student]

I've built abut 20 racks in the past year, consisting of at least 5 different designs. Here's some thoughts I have about some of your points/concerns.

Firstly, melamine is a wood based product that is thermally fused to melamine resin, which makes a strong and waterproof material. It is HEAVY. It also will not warp over time like you would see in almost any kind of plywood product. Warping is associated with fluctuations in humidity within the wood structure over time. This is often exacerbated by the natural grains and imperfections within the natural wood structure found in plywood. Bottom line: Melamine is heavy as hell, but is also waterproof and will be more resistant to warping. Its not toxic to snakes either. I think if you used plywood, the product will warp over time -- without question. Just depends on the rate and frequency of humidity fluctuations.

I like the implementation of Expanded Foam PVC (XPVC) in snake racks. While it is heavier than plywood, it is resistant to warping. Its also waterproof, doesn't chip like melamine, and looks more attractive in my opinion. Its more expensive than melamine products, but it will last much longer. Because they're lighter, they can be stacked to save valuable square footage. However, XPVC must be purchased from a plastics distributer, and hopefully from on that will cut the sheets to specifications on your behalf for a decent price. Not everyone has a plastics distributor in their city, so some people are deterred by the need to travel for supplies.

After building so many racks, I will definitely be using only XPVC from now on. When weighing the pros and cons, there is no question -- in my opinion of course.

[kitedemon]

I've built abut 20 racks in the past year, consisting of at least 5 different designs. Here's some thoughts I have about some of your points/concerns.

Firstly, melamine is a wood based product that is thermally fused to melamine resin, which makes a strong and waterproof material. It is HEAVY. It also will not warp over time like you would see in almost any kind of plywood product. Warping is associated with fluctuations in humidity within the wood structure over time. This is often exacerbated by the natural grains and imperfections within the natural wood structure found in plywood. Bottom line: Melamine is heavy as hell, but is also waterproof and will be more resistant to warping. Its not toxic to snakes either. I think if you used plywood, the product will warp over time -- without question. Just depends on the rate and frequency of humidity fluctuations.

I like the implementation of Expanded Foam PVC (XPVC) in snake racks. While it is heavier than plywood, it is resistant to warping. Its also waterproof, doesn't chip like melamine, and looks more attractive in my opinion. Its more expensive than melamine products, but it will last much longer. Because they're lighter, they can be stacked to save valuable square footage. However, XPVC must be purchased from a plastics distributer, and hopefully from on that will cut the sheets to specifications on your behalf for a decent price. Not everyone has a plastics distributor in their city, so some people are deterred by the need to travel for supplies.

After building so many racks, I will definitely be using only XPVC from now on. When weighing the pros and cons, there is no question -- in my opinion of course.

Melamine is in the plastics family. It is not wood based at all but based in formeldehydes. It is bonded with urea formaldehyde glue to a particle board substrate. The substrate out gasses formeldehydes for at least ten years. This is proven to cause cancer in humans it is unknown what it will do to reptiles. The 'newer' low voc particle boards use phenolic resin glues that can leach phenols that are known to be toxic to reptiles.

Particle boards are not water proof at all they in fact are prone to water damage and are hydroscopic (attract water from the air). It is super easy to prove place a small 'stick' of plywood and a stick of melamine and particle board substrate in water and see which comes apart first. Plywood survives weeks if not months in water some will stand up to far far longer ( years) the substrate melamine is glued to often will swell and start to come apart in days.

Melamine is heavy and weak compared to weight. It is close to the weight of solid oak or ash wood and less than 1/4 as strong.

The only thing it has going for it is cost. It is cheap.

All wood based material will warp and change shape melamine particle board will sag under its own weight. Low quality plywood a often warp if miss handled high quality are very stable and resist warping. A design with the properties of the material used considered can easily overcome the movement of that material. Warping in a plywood construction is not poor materials but poor design and understanding of the material.

I agree with the clear choice is a plastic material or hybrid material of some sort. Pvcx is ten times lighter than fir ply! Pvcx (komatex) is 0.5 gm/ cm2 and fir ply is 5gm/cm2 way way heavier. Plywood is quite a lot stronger as well not that the strength is needed in a rack. laminated woods are very difficult to beat strength to weight.


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