Karma Chameleon's custom built penthouse

Check out Karma sporting his new penthouse suit! I have always wanted a chameleon since I was a little boy, and now that I'm grown up, i'm able to make that happen. So here it is, after years of research and countless hours on this forum (which I love! hats off to whoever created this website!!) I am presenting my first chameleon and his home.

I built the cage in two weekends. It took much longer than I thought it would have... But atlast its finished. The measurements are 7'Hx2'Wx1'Deep. I modeled the cage off of the ones from customcages.com or something like that. I got all of the supplies from home depot and other hardware stores. The frame (four corners) is constructed of small wooden strips. I nailed two strips together to create a corner. The back of the cage is soild wood which i painted red and then sealed with a spray enamual. The two sides are screened and the top has a wire screen which is rigid enough to place all of the lighting componets on, under that, regular screen . The front door is plexi-glass... I know I know, i shouldn't have made it solid, but I wanted to be able to clearly see in it. Don't worry I get lots of airflow though the enclosure.

The Top basking area reaches 100-105 degrees. And the temp gradiant goes down the cage to around 72. Night time temps are a solid 72-74. Humidity levels are anywhere from 40%-70%. All plants are fake as of now. 1/3 of the way up I have a screen divider because my veiled cham. is only 3.5 months old. My lighting componets consist of an 18'' 5.0 uva/uvb lamp. 150W basking lamp. Dripper. and Humidifier (more for effect.)

I am curious to see what you guys think about it so please let me know!
 

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your cage is very nice. Great job planning and building.

Good to see you did all your homework before the purchase. Congrats!!1



Maybe a littlre more vegetation?
 
The only thing I do not like is the depth. One foot seems a little small for a male. They usually exceed or come close to that in length from nose to vent. That is about the only thing that I do not like. The design is good. Seems like it would be very sturdy even with a lot of plants in it. I like the stain color it gives it a very distinquised look and will be a show piece no matter what room it is in. I like the way you hide the lights. I am hoping that you left the top completely open above them. For that matter I like the way you hide everything. The wires, hosing and the humidifier. Mine look kind of tacky because I did not think of these kinds of things first but you most definately did.

I do not know how firm you are on that red on the back wall but I figured I would show you a couple of ideas for back wall use. You may have already seen stuff like this before. It just blows my mind to see some of the cages people keep frogs in.
 
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Yes I have seen the backgrounds that you displayed before. I saw one site that showed you how to make them out of foam sheets and grout. That is actually how I made the "shelves" that are screwed through the back of the unit. I am curious to see how big my male will get, if he gets too large I will redesign/revamp the enclosure to add more depth. I have thought of this... and I'm sure in a year or two I will be dying to build another. I starting bulding his outdoor enclosure today. Its 1.5 feet in debth.

The top of the unit is open and allows for great circulation and access to the lighting componets. When I designed the unit I wanted to hide the componets and wires. The bottom of the unit has a large tubberwear that catches all of the drain water waste. etc. etc. Its very easy to empty and clean. Another thing I plan on changing soon is I want to add a front door ontop of the unit to gain access to the lights/water without having to climb up and over the thing on a step latter. When he gets larger I will be changing out the screening too, as i'm scared he will break his nails in the screen.

Soon I will be ordering a pro-mist system. It looks neat and I love hi-tech stuff on timers! LOL. Thanks for the feedback!
 
Very nice! I agree with all the comments (hiding wires, 1' a bit tight)

Do you plan on using real vines as well as silk? I ask, just to make sure you did your homework on poisonous/toxic plants. Veiled will eat vegetation when older.
Ivy is a definite no-no. Here are some sites that may help
Cornell University Poisonous Plants Home Page

Toxic Plants


Chameleon's Owners Manual - Non-Toxic Plant List


Non Toxic Reptile Plant List


Potentially Toxic Plants


Poisonous Plants and Mushrooms of North Carolina


lele
 
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