The facination with Tubs???

[Argentra]

Alright, I must know. Why is everyone so thrilled with tubs??

I now have a bit of experience with them, as I use them for QT and was keeping my older BP in one for the winter, and I just do NOT see the appeal. The only pluses I see are:
Yes, they do keep the humidity very level most of the time.
Yes, they are lighter and cheaper than tanks or display cages.

Other than that...
They aren't as clear as tanks, so it's harder to see the temp readings.
The dips and curves of the plastic make cleaning a bit harder IMO.
I still have to insulate the back and sides to keep the air temps high enough.
They aren't really ever the right dimensions. You either get too short and too tall but a good length, or way too long and too low with a good width.
It's far easier to latch a tank screen top than a tub lid! For the screen, you just use strong clips, but for the tubs I have to use bungees that are a pain to take off and put on.
The temps can be just as hard to regulate, if not harder, since opening the tub lets out all the heat, but opening a tank doesn't seem to release the heat that fast.

So, maybe I just have really bad luck with them, but I don't see the wonderful qualities everyone talks about...

[Patrick Long]

Other than that...
They aren't as clear as tanks, so it's harder to see the temp readings.
The dips and curves of the plastic make cleaning a bit harder IMO.
I still have to insulate the back and sides to keep the air temps high enough.
They aren't really ever the right dimensions. You either get too short and too tall but a good length, or way too long and too low with a good width.
It's far easier to latch a tank screen top than a tub lid! For the screen, you just use strong clips, but for the tubs I have to use bungees that are a pain to take off and put on.
The temps can be just as hard to regulate, if not harder, since opening the tub lets out all the heat, but opening a tank doesn't seem to release the heat that fast.

Serilite, and Rubbermaid make tons of tubs that are the proper size, and most people who use tubs, use them in a rack system not just simple tubs stacked on top of each other.

[frankykeno]

Try Iris brand instead of Sterlite or Rubbermaid. They are glass quality clear plastic, have a totally smooth interior, come in a good range of sizes and Iris doesn't constantly change their tub dimensions on you. A lot of rack manufacturers use them for these reasons.

We have a few Iris tubs and will slowly be changing all our snakes over to this brand as we build our own racks. I love my Iris tubs!

[ChicaPiton519]

All i use is the 41qt Sterlite tubs for my ball pythons...
i have mine in a rack so its not hard to latch =] i just push um right back up =]

[Gloryhound]

How many Ball Pythons could you fit in this space using glass enclosures?


How about ten adults, twelve babies, nine clutches in the incubator, a humidifier, a weight scale, working surface, storage for equipment, and more if I wasn't worried about making it look nice with trim wood and all later! Also it could all be run from one Herpstat pro and two ranco's if I had wanted, but I like more control and back ups so it will have two Herpstat Pros and three rancos.

[Argentra]

Oh, I understand their function in a rack when you have tons of snakes... but I don't have the money for a rack and don't really like how short the tubs in them are. I like giving my snakes space to roam with some head room, and 6" is not enough IMO.

If the tub is surrounded on all sides by the rack, there's the insulation... and I did look around at racks online, but they're all outside my ability to buy. And I don't just want to make a wooden one due to warping issues...

And BTW GloryHound: That is one excellent use of space. I envy you for that...
All the room I have is a bit of wall space in our bedroom. That's it. I'm thinking of building a 4 unit display cage for my corns to save room.

[Gloryhound]

And BTW GloryHound: That is one excellent use of space. I envy you for that...
All the room I have is a bit of wall space in our bedroom. That's it. I'm thinking of building a 4 unit display cage for my corns to save room.

Thanks! It still has a ways to go before it is completely done.

This was my first housing project took me 3 days to build! It is what actually got me thinking their has to be a better solution.

It now dominates our living room and makes our 75 gallon fish tank look small, but it does give us a nice view of our highly visible morphs when they come out to play!

By the way I love AD&D also as long as it is the first edition! I still have all my old first edition books and will not get rid of them until I am dead!

[Argentra]

Oooo.. Nice. That's kind of what I want to make for my corns, but mine would have to be four stacked up due to major space constraints. Someone here made a unit like that...and I think I still have the link.

Now the only problem is seeing how much the materials would cost... money is a huge problem right now.

[Gloryhound]

Get a laminated book case and then you can just modify it with plexiglass and stuff. Just make sure the back panel is a solid panel and not a piece of card board. Mine came to $282.01 without including the T-stats and heating. Mine also started as a 24" multi purpose cabinate for $75 at LOWS. At $75.00 per enclosure which is just slightly smaller than a 40 gallon breeder it was ended up being cheaper than trying to buy and set up four 40 gallon breeder tanks and takes up a lot less room.

[Blue Apple Herps]

And I don't just want to make a wooden one due to warping issues...

If you buy thick enough wood it won't warp. Warping usually happens when people use wood that's too thin to try and make a huge rack.

Oooo.. Nice. That's kind of what I want to make for my corns, but mine would have to be four stacked up due to major space constraints. Someone here made a unit like that...and I think I still have the link.

Here's one I made for corns; it's only two high, but could easily be made to be 4 high. Was about $100 to make it - wouldn't be that much more to build it higher. Here are plans: http://www.blueappleherps.com/page13/page5/page5.html