Enclosure Blueprint

[Rango_TheManEater]

Hey everyone!

As I’ve been telling a few individuals on this website, Rango is getting a tank upgrade soon. It will be made of chicken/rabbit mesh on all 4 sides and have a 6% T5 light!

My dad (thank goodness for dads!) asked me what wood would be safe for Rango. I played it safe and told him Oak would work (we have walnut and pine trees in our yard, which is a major no-no as far as I’m aware), and I’ve actually completed a blueprint for the cage.

Should I change anything about this blueprint? Let me know!

(Featuring Rango himself as a silly addition to the blueprint )

 

[LizardLurkin]

The minimum requirement for a chameleon enclosure is 2ft x 2ft x 4ft, so keep those dimensions in mind as you build. Veileds get rather lengthy, and they're super active so you'll want to give him a lot of room to turn around comfortably and explore.

I'm not sure about the materials, but lots of people here have done some pretty impressive custom builds. I believe there's some threads around of people showing their progress. As for the mesh, I know there's a bit of complication with the placement of your uvb hood depending on the hole's size. ie bigger holes in the mesh means it needs to be propped up higher. Again, someone super wise can fill you in there.

 

[Rango_TheManEater]

The minimum requirement for a chameleon enclosure is 2ft x 2ft x 4ft, so keep those dimensions in mind as you build. Veileds get rather lengthy, and they're super active so you'll want to give him a lot of room to turn around comfortably and explore.

I'm not sure about the materials, but lots of people here have done some pretty impressive custom builds. I believe there's some threads around of people showing their progress. As for the mesh, I know there's a bit of complication with the placement of your uvb hood depending on the hole's size. ie bigger holes in the mesh means it needs to be propped up higher. Again, someone super wise can fill you in there.

Awesome! I wasn’t sure about the dimensions I know that Chams in general need a taller tank, but I’m incredibly bad at measuring! (It’s a talent, so thank goodness I’m not the one building it)

I’ll update my blueprints to accommodate this

 

[Rango_TheManEater]

UPDATED:

 

[LizardLurkin]

Sounds good dimension wise! I was looking around, maybe these videos can help you and your dad? It's part of a playlist and it is rather lengthy, but Bill Strand is a respected voice here and is very dedicated to proper chameleon husbandry. Has tons and tons of experience

 

[Sonny13]

Hey everyone!

As I’ve been telling a few individuals on this website, Rango is getting a tank upgrade soon. It will be made of chicken/rabbit mesh on all 4 sides and have a 6% T5 light!

My dad (thank goodness for dads!) asked me what wood would be safe for Rango. I played it safe and told him Oak would work (we have walnut and pine trees in our yard, which is a major no-no as far as I’m aware), and I’ve actually completed a blueprint for the cage.

Should I change anything about this blueprint? Let me know!

(Featuring Rango himself as a silly addition to the blueprint )

View attachment 365467

Looks like a great alternative project, I would suggest to give him some extra space, 2x2x4ft is the minimum but also maximum commercial size, 4x2x4 or 4x2x5ft would be way better size and gives your scaled friend a more happier life

 

[Beman]

I would not do chicken wire... Use aluminum screen attached to the outside of the frame of the wood. Not only will this keep insects in but you will not have to raise the fixture up off the top even farther. You can run into issues with wood it has to be sealed correctly to deal with the high moisture levels and with chams this is very specific as they can die from the fumes that gas off. Something like flex seal or water based poly eurathane. Both of these options still have to gas off for a few weeks before a cham can be put in the cage or near it.

I would look at some of the other people's build threads here.