I've never heard of having rats in a wire hanging cage, so no feedback on that. I don't think it will work while you're breeding, though. They aren't like rabbits, that give birth and raise their babies in one spot. I also don't know how their tiny feet will handle the wire. They need the bedding to make nests, and will need a lot of it to stay warm in the winter. Especially any babies, as in my experience, mothers will completely cover their babies with bedding so that they have a warm pocket.

I bought an 8 or 9 cu ft bag of aspen for $37, and with how little I've used in 2 bedding changes, I think it will last me a good year. I currently have one 4 tier rack with black tubs from Tractor Supply, and change the bedding as it starts to smell or look dingy. Which is maybe every 1-1.5 weeks for 1-2 adults. Probably every day once all the babies are making messes. haha

The first time I started raising rats, I had just albinos in a wooden 5' cage with a wire mesh front. I gave them deep bedding that only needed to be changed every few months with 2 females, one male, and their offspring (the male was kept separate when he wasn't breeding so as not to overbreed the females). In the winter, I'd make their bedding about half as deep as the cage is so they could stay sufficiently warm. They were in the back of a carport out of the sun and wind, and did quite well even in the negatives. This go around I'm going to keep them inside, and as of right now they're in that 4 tier homemade rack system I mentioned above. The rats hardly smell imo, except on cleaning day, so it doesn't bother me at all.