My Custom Display

[bkelm18]

Built a custom snake display recently. I have an apartment so I don't really have access to many tools other than a drill, so I built this as a "No Cut" or "Almost No Cut" unit. I used pre-cut MDF boards from Home Depot for the sides and shelves. Pre-cut pegboard on the back for ventilation. I ordered the 3/8" plexi online for a lot cheaper than Home Depot sells it. It's got two display cages with room to add a third if I choose at some point. I really only fully completed the top one right now to save on money since only one snake needed a bigger cage at the moment. Will probably do the second one here in a couple months when my King gets a bit bigger. Learned a few lessons on what not to do, but all in all, I think it turned out alright. Here are a couple pics:

Picture of the whole unit. Heat pad has a sheet of plexi over it. All surfaces are sealed to protect against water.
http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l238/bkelm18/IMG_0020.jpg

Pic of the top unit. Light is a undercounter light. I checked to be sure it doesn't get hot. It gets warm to the touch but I doubt it's over 90F.
http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l238/bkelm18/IMG_0022.jpg

Pic with all the stuff in it. Yeah I went cheap with the hide boxes. :p
http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l238/bkelm18/IMG_0024.jpg

And here's Mr. Achilles checking out his new digs. He likes to sit in his hides with his head sticking out. I guess he's a people watcher.
http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l238/bkelm18/IMG_0026.jpg

That's it for now. Any comments or questions are welcome. :)

[nivek5225]

I am in the process of something very very similiar! Where online did you get the plexiglass from? And what are the dimensions??

[bkelm18]

I am in the process of something very very similiar! Where online did you get the plexiglass from? And what are the dimensions??

I got the plexiglass from http://www.estreetplastics.com/. The overall unit is about 4 ft x 4 ft. But each individual enclosure is 12"x12"x48". The plexiglass I ordered was 12"x48" and 3/16" thick.

[great_kali]

Impressive! Really nicely build enclosures!

Peace Out!

[_skittles_]

Very cool!

[Stormy]

This is something very similar to what I want to build :D
Dont feel bad about cheating on the hide boxes! I got alex a nice log to hide in, but s/he prefers an empty benadryl box of all things.

[nivek5225]

I got the plexiglass from http://www.estreetplastics.com/. The overall unit is about 4 ft x 4 ft. But each individual enclosure is 12"x12"x48". The plexiglass I ordered was 12"x48" and 3/16" thick.
I just got a peice of 36"x48", 3/16" thick plexiglass from home depot, i'll have to see how much i paid for it. My enclosure is actually going to be 3ft x 3ft, with 3 individual enclosures of 36"long x 16"deep x 12"high. Not quite sure how i'm gonna do the heat though...

[bkelm18]

I just got a peice of 36"x48", 3/16" thick plexiglass from home depot, i'll have to see how much i paid for it. My enclosure is actually going to be 3ft x 3ft, with 3 individual enclosures of 36"long x 16"deep x 12"high. Not quite sure how i'm gonna do the heat though...

The Home Depot near me is pretty expensive on plexi and lexan.

[raynefyre]

Just an FYI, maybe try a Lowes next time. Their prices compared to that online store are cheaper. Didn't know if you looked into there or not so I thought I would throw it out there.

[bkelm18]

Just an FYI, maybe try a Lowes next time. Their prices compared to that online store are cheaper. Didn't know if you looked into there or not so I thought I would throw it out there.

All of the Lowe's stores near me are not even in the same ballpark as the website I used.

[raynefyre]

Oic. Well it was at least worth a shot. lol

[pwargcm]

even if you used lowes cutting .220 acrlyic with no table saw is a pain. i just did it for a boa enclosure and i had to do the score and crack method. it took a lot of strength and scoring to get it to crack. i woulda used a jigsaw but i learned on a prior cage how big of a pain it is.

also on the light i would get a temp gun and make sure it doesnt get too hot. warm to us is actually pretty hot. i work on cars all day and sometimes measure temps of things when im bored and a really hot exhaust manifold barely bothers me at all to the touch. and i know that its about 170 or up when im touching them with my forearms to get around. them. so just be careful is all im saying.

[bkelm18]

even if you used lowes cutting .220 acrlyic with no table saw is a pain. i just did it for a boa enclosure and i had to do the score and crack method. it took a lot of strength and scoring to get it to crack. i woulda used a jigsaw but i learned on a prior cage how big of a pain it is.

also on the light i would get a temp gun and make sure it doesnt get too hot. warm to us is actually pretty hot. i work on cars all day and sometimes measure temps of things when im bored and a really hot exhaust manifold barely bothers me at all to the touch. and i know that its about 170 or up when im touching them with my forearms to get around. them. so just be careful is all im saying.

I put the temp probe of my thermometer on the light and it stays around 90F.

[nivek5225]

Just an FYI, maybe try a Lowes next time. Their prices compared to that online store are cheaper. Didn't know if you looked into there or not so I thought I would throw it out there.
I'll have to check out Lowes. Do you know if they will cut it to size for you?

[Stormy]

Yes Lowes does cut to size.