Designing New Cage, any input

[Reed7786]

Hello, I'm new to the forum but wanted to see if i get any feedback from people. I'm looking into building a cage for a future veiled chameleon, I'm pretty much going for something similiar to the attached pic, and have started to model mine, its going to have screens in the 3 open windows. I was looking at using pine, i know I'll have to seal all the wood and such, but was just looking to get opinions of the design, i notice mostly everyone has the traditional big box for a cage, i just wanted a little more apprealing cage.

I'm not starting it for a few weeks so i wanna get my design all finished soon, I'm also looking into an automated mist system and custom dripper, this will be for my first chameleon, i've always wanted one and i think its about time plus i got extra cash finally. Let me know what you guys think and any other help, in the mean time i'll keep reading up on info.

Thanks,

 

[nick barta]

Reed,

Welcome to the Forum, I like your design, with a screen top and 3 screen sides you will have plenty of ventilation, and it does look better than most all screen cages.

Some considerations:

1) If you haven't already done so, use the search feature and look up custom enclosures, you will get a lot of ideas.

2) Design your water collection now, before you build and wish you had built it differently.

3) You can use aluminum screen, but look into Super Screen and Pet Screen at Metroscreenworks.com. It is plastic screen and won't damage chameleon nails.

4) On one of the threads you look up, you will see one of the most innovative designs was a screen that inset into the wood, so the entire screen could be taken out to clean/replace.

5) On furnishing the cage, consider Pathos as a hanging plant, this makes it so much easier to clean when your floor is clear.

6) Another trick on furnishing, get your plant(s) in place, then add your vines and limbs. Add your feeder cup once you see where your cham hangs out.

Good luck and enjoyment on your cham condo!

Nick

 

[Reed7786]

Yea thats kinda where i'm stuck at right now, i'm trying to figure out how i want to handle the water. I'm thinking about having 2 plants on the bottom and a hanging plant for the back middle coming down, but yea im stumped on what to do. im either going to have a raised floor right were the screens start at the bottom and might angle those to filter to the middle or back and can have a container under. Thanks for the screen place, and yea i was looking to recess mine in the wood so i can take them out for cleaning from time to time.

 

[Olimpia]

Yes, I second the water drainage considerations! I used to dread taking care of my first cham until I got all of that sorted out, because I was in a rented apartment with beige carpet! And there was no way to keep anything dry, I always managed to spill something. And then I got a different cage, and built a propper stand with drainage for it and the difference has been night and day. Now I can actually enjoy my chameleon, and have since gotten 2 more.

It looks like an awsome design!

 

[Reed7786]

ya also on the water issue, so when misting does alot of water escape the mesh? or is it pretty containted, i'm going to be moving into a buddies house with a newly finished basement so i don't wanna soak his capet all the time, if its bad i was just going to make like shower curtains for the windows..

 

[boj3434]

You should be fine the mist will go through a little but prob not enough to be noticable. I like the cage design I think the best way to deal with the water is to either make a stand or make the stand build in so its up off the ground. Then I would either make a slight v shaped floor so it funnels to te middle and have it drain to something under it. The way I did it is just to drill alot of holes over the etire floor and I put a big plastic thing to the shape of the cage and then I put a tube out of that into a bin that I could empty.

 

[Elizadolots]

It's going to need to be on a stand anyway to get it up off the floor, so figure that's where your drainage is going to be. Finding a plastic tub that shape is going to be hard. I'd find my tub then drill holes in the floor "over" the tub. Put something heavy (plant?) there to help slope the floor toward the holes. If you are worried about overspray, make your stand a bit bigger around. The overspray will go on the stand, not the floor. You could hide the tub with doors or even a black curtain.

 

[Reed7786]

ya i'm going with 5 angled pieces tapering towards the middle, ya i'm not sure if im going to put it up on a stand or not, guess i could its almost 6ft at the top so its pretty tall, and i have 8" in the bottom area under the floor im putting in to put a container, i'll try to get up pics of the model once i'm done with it, but it will drain in the center

 

[Elizadolots]

ya i'm going with 5 angled pieces tapering towards the middle, ya i'm not sure if im going to put it up on a stand or not, guess i could its almost 6ft at the top so its pretty tall, and i have 8" in the bottom area under the floor im putting in to put a container, i'll try to get up pics of the model once i'm done with it, but it will drain in the center

That will work. Having the drainage all worked out at the start is, as Olimpia said, very good.

 

[nick barta]

ya also on the water issue, so when misting does alot of water escape the mesh? or is it pretty containted, i'm going to be moving into a buddies house with a newly finished basement so i don't wanna soak his capet all the time, if its bad i was just going to make like shower curtains for the windows..

As misters clog with minerals and dust, they tend to spray at their own will. It is important to check your nozzles as they spray to be sure they are not spraying straight on the side screens,and are not clogged completely.

That being said, with your glass front, you probably won't have a problem.

One of the challenges is that water will want to drip along the frame on the bottom,so the pan in an ideal world would be slightly larger than the cage.

Nick

 

[Reed7786]

ya i'm not using any glass, i just dont wanna model screens, the 3 spots will be meshed.

So is buying a misting system worth it? i was planning on just making my own, maybe use those garden pressure pots and just rig it to a sprikler timer, and as far as a drip system i see most people just have that black jar dripper thing, im guessing thats pretty cheap?

also heres ther floor, its going to be split into 5 pieces, i got a 3* taper, might make it more when i build it will see what works best, that will funnel everything to the middle where i can drop it in a pan below..

 

[eppcheck]

Keep us posted on your progress with this project. I'm considering building my own enclosure similiar to the first picture you posted. If it isn't to much trouble take pictures with instructions/technique.s I would love to have a screened enclosure like that but the price is way out of my budget. I understand building it is enough trouble in itself but it would be a great resource for many otheres like myself.

Good luck and I hope it turns out with you being satisfied proud ownere of a beautiful enclosure.

 

[reptoman]

I built a drawer under a grid of african mahogany slats and it has worked out very well for me. I could not find a pan to fit the cage I was building so basically made my own. I built a drawer out of 1/2" plywood and lined it with 1/8" acrylic. African mahogany is good for outdoor projects and it is strong so it is able to hold the weight of the plants. You could also use teak if you dont mind paying a little more. Dead leaves, waste, excess water fall to the bottom and collect. I drain off the excess water once a week and wipe down the entire bottom. The nice thing is I dont have to remove any of the furnishings from the cage to do a thorough cleaning. The drawer is large but it is still easier than reworking the entire contents of the cage to clean it out. That was my biggest gripe with the plastic bottom on the store bought screen cage I had before building my own.

 

[Reed7786]

Ya I get back home next week so I want to start around then, and yes i'll post up pics as i go along, it should go smooth called the woodworking master, my dad, for assistance. my wood working skills end at speaker boxes but i think we can do this.

yea i was going to do a drawer style but i don't plan on having anything on the floor but the pots, so it wont be to bad for clean up, i plan on getting a good epoxy for the floor so nothing should stick.

So does anyone have an opinion on the Mist systems? i was looking at builiding my own with a garden pressure pot, but it looks like a homeade one still comes out around $100, and you can get the mistking or promist for right around the same price so i'm leaning that way so i have an electric pump. any opinions?

 

[Reed7786]

Here is a PDF of the Pieces all dimensioned out, in case anyone else was interested in this design, i'm sure tweeks will be necessary, mainly the chamfers i'll figure out the actual angles while building.

 

[Olimpia]

It's going to be a gorgeous cage. I'm so jealous!

 

[Reed7786]

ya i can't wait to start it, i'll put up pics of building and a cost estimate when i start it..

anyone have input on my misting questions?

 

[VeiledOwner87]

Yea thats kinda where i'm stuck at right now, i'm trying to figure out how i want to handle the water. I'm thinking about having 2 plants on the bottom and a hanging plant for the back middle coming down, but yea im stumped on what to do. im either going to have a raised floor right were the screens start at the bottom and might angle those to filter to the middle or back and can have a container under. Thanks for the screen place, and yea i was looking to recess mine in the wood so i can take them out for cleaning from time to time.

if you REALY want to spoil your animal like im about to this summer, you can use this idea. i seen not to long ago, a guy made a custom enclosure for his caiman. it was hudge of course, but i got the jist. he took these styrophome or however you spell it, blocks. carved what he wanted and fiberglass coated the whole thing. you can add a whole pond type to it if you'd like and make it look totally natural.

 

[Texas Panther Man]

Many people on here have made these rock walls your talking about. To the op i wouldnt mess up my cage with pond feautures. Your just asking for trouble with bacteria filled water inside your cage.

The design you have is very nice. Good luck with you project.

 

[Reed7786]

Yea i'm not going to do the styrofoam walls, i was thinking about it at first but i don't believe i have the artistic ability. I'm prolly running to HomeDepot this week to get final prices, but i think the cage will be about $300...prolly looking at around 500 for the complete setup I'll post the BOM soon and hopefully you guys can give me a heads up on anything i shouldn't use..