Home made light/heater cages??

[montay]

Hi all - does anybody have a home-made, DIY idea for making your own cages to cover lights and heat emitting devices? The pet shop are a rip off - $45+ for a light cover cage - come on!!:evil: They are cheaper on ebay, but still over $20 with postage etc.
Any ideas??
Vicki.

 

[wokka]

use a heatmat instead!

 

[montay]

basking?

Hi, thanks, use heat mats to for my terrestrial pythons.
My bredli and coastala like to bask though, that's why I use ceramic heat devices/infra red etc.

 

[Kyro]

Bird aviary wire works well,if they are small snakes make sure you get the wire with small holes.

 

[888lowndes888]

Attatched are 2 pics of a whole dome fitting and cage i made out of a dog bowl and spare chicken netting back when i was on a tight tight budget. To attatch the cage to the dome i just rolled the wire into the correct diameter for the globe, used tie wire to weave it together and cut to two 2 rows of gaps down about 5 times around the top and bent them 90 degrees so as i could put a pop rivet with a washer through the wire and onto the dome to permenantly attatch the cage. I then marked out a circle the same size as the bottom of the cage and used tie wire to attatch it to the bottom of the cage so it was secure yet very easy to undo come globe changing time. Easy as to take the bottom off to replace globes and has worked really well for me.

 

[bongie555]

yeah ive made my own and has worked out quite well....bought one originally from herp shop but the gauge was too big and my hatchy bredlings were in and out of it like a jungle gym. so went to bunnings and bought a metre of rat/mouse cage wire,like aviary wire except smaller gauge or squares, 5 or 7 mm.
got the measurements from the bought one and copied the design. (draw on paper what you want and how you think it will work first helps) you can cut out the whole design/outline in one piece if you lay the wire down first and draw the outline with permanenet marker before cutting. its all in squares so measuring, bending and cutting is fairly simple and its soft wire so it bends quite readily.
all you need then is pair of good strong pliers to cut and bend on a sharp metal corner with a small hammer/mallet and used split rings from my fishing tackle to secure together where required(wish i had pics to show you) but with a little ingenuity and a lot of common sense, take your time but it is definitely possible and much much cheaper.
try it.....and good luck...

 

[smacktart]

Cages on special at my local reptile shop for $15 spewing your in brisbane

 

[eamonn]

Here have a look at this
http://www.aussiepythons.com/forum/general-herps/homemade-light-cage-5-in-1-hour-pics-45761

 

[Choco]

Mine made from mouse wire and aluminium corner mould from bunnings. Cut a long section of the mesh, the width of which will effectively be the height of the cage, and fold to make the 4 walls. Fold the last length of squares of the 2 joining ends into the middle and zip tie. Silicon the aluminium corner mould around one end of this box with the right angle facing inward. This creates a base for the bottom to sit in. Cut a square to fit and silicon it into the bottom. When you cut the 1st length allow 2 sides longer so they can be bent out to screw to the roof. See photos.

 

[montay]

Hi - I would like to thank all of you who took the time to reply to my post - this is a very generous community. Thanks again, all of your suggestions have been very helpful.
cheers
Vicki

 

[wranga]

i dont understand why people want to scab out on enclosure fittings. if you buy quality fittings, you will only buy them once. think how much your snake is worth and how much a trip to the vet will cost you when your cheap homemade fittings fail. sorry this isnt a personal attack on anyone. im just trying to point out that cost isnt everything

 

[Choco]

Check out www.aemili.com Just bought mine off ebay from them. Half the price of silver metal ones in pet stores.

 

[barbed_wire_dove]

The best ones ive seen are the little mesh type silver or black pencil tins.
You can pick them up from a cheapshop for $2 - $5 depending on size.
They are made of thick metal and wont bend/break, the metal doesnt heat up too much - so your snake wont burn itself, they still distribute the heat well, the holes are small so if you have a hatchy, it wont get thru and they last forever!
Stick it over your light and put 2 screws through the top to hold it on.
and you're done
Its a bit of a pain unscrewing it to change the globe, but that doesnt come around often.
thats the only issue ive had using them.
Good luck!


this sort of thing, but taller and without the pins in it... lol:

 

[jessb]

The best ones ive seen are the little mesh type silver or black pencil tins.
You can pick them up from a cheapshop for $2 - $5 depending on size.
They are made of thick metal and wont bend/break, the metal doesnt heat up too much - so your snake wont burn itself, they still distribute the heat well, the holes are small so if you have a hatchy, it wont get thru and they last forever!
Stick it over your light and put 2 screws through the top to hold it on.
and you're done
Its a bit of a pain unscrewing it to change the globe, but that doesnt come around often.
thats the only issue ive had using them.
Good luck!


this sort of thing, but taller and without the pins in it... lol:

Genius! I'm off to Officeworks!

 

[barbed_wire_dove]

Genius! I'm off to Officeworks!

hehe. :lol:

 

[user 16446]

The best ones ive seen are the little mesh type silver or black pencil tins......

Rather than screwing it off every time, position some wide flathead screws around the rim so the cage could slide into position. It would only have to slide a centimetre, then lift straight off.

I make my own cages out of the 6.5mm bird/snake mesh stuff. Bunnings sell a 30m roll for around $350, but some bulk pet and stockfood wholesalers can save you $100 or more on the same amount. I got a left over roll, 30m for $110, but the new price was $210, still a huge saving. I also use it to make lids for some enclosures.

I make the cages square by folding the four sides as previously described. I leave the bottom open and make a separate lid with a lip all around which hinges to the cage. I also leave some tabs at the top to fold out for screwing to the enclosure.

When you cut the wire, you can use some of the sharp wire segments to bend into loops and make a few hinges. I use nothing more than tin snips, pliers and the wire. Then just cover the edges with silver duct tape folded over, although an aluminium edging would be better.

I agree in saving money if you can make something safe and cheaper yourself. Pet shops try to make their profit too, I have one here that sells large frozen rats at $15 each!!!!

 

[barbed_wire_dove]

Rather than screwing it off every time, position some wide flathead screws around the rim so the cage could slide into position. It would only have to slide a centimetre, then lift straight off.

ooh your a thinker!
i might try that next time.
hehe thanks.