RCReptiles.com

[a_green]

Oh yes... I've done it. I've finally done it. My husband and I spent the last few weeks building Scout's new fabulous home!

I started with an old 50-gallon fish tank bought cheaply from craigslist. It was sturdy and a good size, but the plastic rims around the top and bottom were crappy and broken, so I took those off completely and then disinfected it thoroughly.

Then I got some lumber with which to build new rims. Here they are in the early stages:







The wooden frame looked great and would allow me to affix all the hardware I needed. My next step was to get some plexiglass for the lid. I tried to envision the most convenient and safe tank top possible, and this is what I came up with. I had three pieces of 3/8" plexiglass cut to form three separate lids, which I attached with just enough space between to allow air circulation, but not enough to let Scout escape!! Two of the plexiglass pieces I had a hole cut in the middle where I could place a heat lamp on top. Here they are being attached to the top of the tank:



Once they were attached with sturdy hinges, I added two latches to each piece that Scout can't possibly circumvent. Now I can open only the middle lid if I need to just reach in to get Scout or a water dish, or I can open all three if I need to. So handy!!

My next step was to get heating equipment going. I stuck on a UTH for the hot spot (plugged into a thermostat), and stuck on some heat cable along the rest of the bottom, which is plugged into a rheostat to keep it at the temperature I need.



I got my ceramic heat emitters going in hood lamps placed over the holes in the plexiglass, and I found a pair of deep frying baskets at a dollar store that were just the perfect size to add as screens so Scout can't burn herself:



I left the heat going all night with plenty of thermometers and checked the memory in the morning to make sure the temperatures were right. They were perfect! Finally I put in all my accessories, added one Scout, and the tank was done!!! You can see the tip of her tail here as she hurries into a hide:



After a few minutes she got curious and decided to have a brief look around at her new home:



CAUGHT YA!!!




So I hope you all enjoyed my photo journey through building Scout's new home. I'm still tweaking things, might still add more accessories, but so far, at least temperature-wise, it seems fine. Humidity, of course, is a bit low, but I think this time instead of using my DIY humidifier, I'll just give her a humid hide and see if she does all right during sheds. If the humid hide isn't enough I'll get my humidifier going again, perhaps with a stronger pump.

[Buck_99]

That takes the cake. Awesome set-up, great lid, excellent plans for heat and humidity. I especially enjoy the "The Far Side" décor.

[Monica]

Wow, that's nice.

[a_green]

Thanks guys! Pictures weren't loading for a while there, but I transferred them to better image hosting; it shouldn't be a problem anymore.

[Murefu33]

That is a gorgeous tank. Hubby or you have building experience?

[MikeandSlick]

Nice work! Inspiring too.

Good to see Axl's not the only one living among fake marijuana.

[a_green]

[Monica]

LOL FAKE MARY JANE! LOL

[Murefu33]

I don't think thc would do anything to a snake in case it was marijuana.

[deborahbroadus]

Freaking awesome!

Perfect, humidity easily to contain..overhead heat to warm up the surface of the substate so that the UTH doesn't have to be so high...AND..she comes out perfectly at ease!

I was blown away!

Can we please use this for a sticky??? I don't want this to get lost among posts. And other's trying to struggle to balance heat/humidity could use the inspiration.

[PyMama]

Great post! How long or how much time did you both spend on it?...and if you dont mind me asking....how much do you estimate its cost ?

I also got my tanks from Craigslist..great resource

I agree with Deb...this needs to be posted as a sticky and/or in the DIY forum.

[a_green]

Ooo, a sticky--I'm honoured!

It took us a several weeks of work, mostly because we're pretty busy and weren't always home long enough to work on it. This could easily be put together in a few days if you have time and all your supplies at hand. We made a number of trips to Home Depot to get more hardware as we needed it, and the plexiglass took a few days to get cut.

I'll try to estimate the costs... I don't think I have any Home Depot receipts left so most of these are just guesses.

tank - $40 used
lumber - $20
screws/bolts - $15 (had to get many different sizes)
6 hinges - $25
6 latches - $15
plexiglass - $80 (ouch... wish I knew of a cheaper place)
heat guards - $2 (ha! dollar store deep fryer baskets with handles torn off)

So up near $200, minus heating equipment. Sounds pricey, but probably not bad compared to paying someone to build a custom enclosure for you, and since the costs were spread out over several weeks it didn't hurt too badly. Would have been much more economical if I had a cheaper plexiglass source, or if I had the equipment to cut the pieces & holes myself... this place charges through the nose for every little hole they have to cut. If I need breathing holes or anything, I drill them myself. We managed to drill holes for bolts without cracking it. Anyway, I sure hope this helps some people out! It was a fun project.

[Buck_99]

[Mel]

Thought I'd throw in a word of caution/experience.

I too, have a similar set up. Same sort of frame. One side of the top has plexi.

USE CAUTION.

Because I left the nasty plastic on the 55 gal. and the way the frame sits, there is a slight bit of space there. When Sugar was smaller, he could crawl up and wedge himself in the little gap between the plastic and the top of the frame. He actually managed to pop the corner of the plexiglass stuff off of its frame. And it was stuck down with rubber cement/liquid nails/something like that. Luckily it was noticed before he escaped.

Make sure your plexi is stuck tight. And it wouldn't be a bad idea to design the tops so the snakes can't perch there.

*Sigh* All that said....absolutely beautiful set up. Start your own business!

[deborahbroadus]

We are waiting for an update .

How is the humidity doing? I would think with the plexiglass that it (humidity) is though the roof. I have a tank with the plexiglass and it is sooo humid...I do not need a mister.