reptile tanks, cheaper to make or buy?

[darkmorning1]

What do you guys do you think is it cheaper to make reptile tanks or buy them. if you had about 4 corn snakes. Do you, think that its best to buy for 20 gall tanks. if so which kind stackable? or single units?

but which ones cheaper? and or better to/for you?

but do you want to do something on a rainy day. and you stop off at your local wood shop and get a whole pile of wood and start making Four at lest 20 gall tanks out of wood.

For all the corn breeders out there! that have Allot of snakes What do you use? Tubs? plastic bins? tanks? is anything home made? how much does it cost you?

what do you think is Best for your corn snake and for your pocket? this post is for everyone. so please do tell!

 

[tricksterpup]

I personally think its better to buy than to make.
I have bought cages and just prefer someone else making a quality cage. I do not have the tools or the time to build cages. I also have Tubs as well for my snakes. Again, all purchased and someone's work.

If I am going to buy an aquarium style tank, I will always go with a Zilla Critter Cage (used to be under the brand All-Glass).

I do have one home made cage and I use it for my bearded Dragons. There would be no way a snake would go in it. lol, to many escape holes.

 

[darkmorning1]

this is great i really hope this isnt the last post from everyone. if anyone has photos please feel free to post. Tricksterpup thank you for posting how much do you think it cost you though? how much or how little?

 

[Kjay]

I will definitely buy 20L when my girls are big enough for them. Good grief, I have absolutely no talent when it comes to using a hammer and nail--the only thing I end up with is bandaged fingers and a lousy mood.

 

[tricksterpup]

this is great i really hope this isnt the last post from everyone. if anyone has photos please feel free to post. Tricksterpup thank you for posting how much do you think it cost you though? how much or how little?

To be honest, I couldnt tell you. I got all my critter cages at cost from one of my local pet shops. lol they call me their reptile guy when I go there to visit. I have actually sold animals for them and answered questions while I was there.
As for my other cages, I got lucky and someone passed them along to me. I have ever been grateful to him for his kindness.
Here are a few of my cages.

here is my Rack system from Animal Plastics.

 

[darkmorning1]

thanks for posting Kjay i saw some photos on a other post of some of your tanks! Tricksterpup love the rack system. what do you heat it with.

 

[tricksterpup]

Animal plastics uses a heat rope for their racks. I really like it. I have seen heat tape but the rope is a little bit neater on this system.

 

[tsst]

I built mine. Not because it was cheaper (although mine was, but most probably wouldn't be) but because nobody made what I wanted at the time. Mine is a combo of a reptile terrarium with front doors and a long aquarium. It is 36"x18"x18" and has front doors and an opening top.

 

[dizzl]

For now I prefer to buy. Only for two reasons: 1) I live in an apartment so I don't have the room to build or the tools. 2) My girlfriend works at Petland and gets a REALLY good discount. Although my corn is in a tank that I already had, I bought my BD and a 50 gallon glass Viv, with all the lights and fixtures and furnishings for a little over $200! I think the tank came out to be $64. By the way love the set ups you guys posted, looks good! :grin01:

 

[darkmorning1]

tsst your viv home built cage. looks Amazing.how much time did it take you and stuff Dizzl your so lucky Petland is HUGE the one by me is. and you get Discounts lucky!

 

[Snake Dave]

Personally I'd go for buying tanks, because although I know what I'm doing in terms of housing reptiles, I'm not very handy with tools. So the safest option for both myself and the snake would be to buy one, they are quite affordable and attractive too, so I'd go for buying.

 

[Snake Dave]

Also, I forgot to add this. If you have 4 snakes, then I'd suggest buying tanks, if you can afford them and have the space, as they look the best and provide an ideal amount of space.

 

[tsst]

tsst your viv home built cage. looks Amazing.how much time did it take you and stuff

darkmorning1,

It took me about 1 week start to finish but I only worked on it a couple hours in evening and most of the time was painting and drying time. It is a wood frame lined with 1/4" lexan(plexiglass) and sealed in joints with clear silicone like an aqurium. BTW thanks!

 

[Nastassja]

Tsst, your home made viv looks amazing! I am also interested in your method of construction, as I plan on making one similar to that myself. Did you use any plans, or did you just imagine it up? I'd like to know more!

 

[CornNoobie]

Tsst that viv is great, well done! Ive not heard of plexiglass before? Is it like perspex (if you dont use that term in America, its just like a clear hardened plastic sheet). As with a few other people, I would like to hear more on your build!!!

 

[Blue Apple Herps]

If you have the tools and the means then I think that home built is the way to go. It's cheaper (gets pretty darn cheap if you make several) and you can customize it the way you want to. Plus the satisfaction of building one is pretty awesome.

Here are some of the ones I've built to maybe give you an idea(s). I have plans for a couple of them on my website if you're interested.

#1: Two unit display viv. Total cost was ~$100 not including heat. Each unit is 12x36x14". Perfect of corns and other colubrids. Instructions are available for download. This was designed to be able to be built using only a power drill and tape measure for tools and able to be built by someone with no experience. The instructions reflect this; very easy build.

#2: Three unit display viv. Total cost was ~$250 to build two of these (so $125 each). Probably would have been ~$175 to build just one though; this is an example where it's cheaper to build more than one because you can buy larger pieces of material for not much more money. Each unit is the size of a 55g turned on its side.

#3: 41 qt rack that holds 7 tubs. Total cost was ~$500 to build three including heat and tubs. Probably around $200 for one. I love this design; all my racks are like this one. Instructions available for download.

#4: MDF rack. Total cost including heat and tubs was ~$75. Holds 28/12qt tubs. Cheap and effective if you're on a budget. I sold this one as I wanted something a little more aesthetic.

#5: Mealamine rack that holds 41 qt tubs. Great rack, too heavy to move by myself, which I do to clean behind the racks. So I sold it in favor of a lighter design.

 

[Blue Apple Herps]

But I should add, if you don't have proper tools and/or experience then either buy one or find someone who does have the experience to help you out. The last thing you want to do is go out and spend all this money on materials and the goof it up because you cut something wrong or did something wrong.

 

[tsst]

Tsst, your home made viv looks amazing! I am also interested in your method of construction, as I plan on making one similar to that myself. Did you use any plans, or did you just imagine it up? I'd like to know more!

Nastassja,

It all came out of my empty head. lol Actually I started out liking the idea of the retile tanks with the front doors. But after looking those were all small footprint and tall. I talked to folks here and decided the large floor space was more important for a corn. Thus was born the hybrid tank I made. I used wood for the frameand lined it with the lexan. I used adhesive between the wood and lexan and small wood screws from the inside that are counter sunk in the lexan and covered with silicone so there are no sharp edges in tank. I dry fit everything so joints are tight and recess the hinges so there are no gaps. The closure points are tight enough that light does not get through. I used heavy guage aluminum screen on top that is counter sunk and framed to cover all sharp edges. I used window style latches because they pull tighter as they close. The only thing I would change is pre-paniting the wood on inside before installing lexan.

Tsst that viv is great, well done! Ive not heard of plexiglass before? Is it like perspex (if you dont use that term in America, its just like a clear hardened plastic sheet). As with a few other people, I would like to hear more on your build!!!

CornNoobie,
It is exactly that, clear rigid plastic sheets. What I used is 1/4" thick and pretty strong.

 

[tsst]

#2: Three unit display viv. Total cost was ~$250 to build two of these (so $125 each). Probably would have been ~$175 to build just one though; this is an example where it's cheaper to build more than one because you can buy larger pieces of material for not much more money. Each unit is the size of a 55g turned on its side.

blueapplepaste,
What did you use for the white insert on the #2 viv? If I get another snake I may go with something similiar to this design. Thanks!

 

[Blue Apple Herps]

blueapplepaste,
What did you use for the white insert on the #2 viv? If I get another snake I may go with something similiar to this design. Thanks!

If you're referring to the liners along the bottom they're those pieces of rubber that run along the bottom of the floor used in bathrooms and other areas like that. I installed them to help make cleaning easier and protect the finish a little better. They worked fine but I've since removed them as I wanted the "natural" look back.