LLL Screen cage ?'s

sixstring

New Member
I got a new 24x24x48 cage the other day and its great. I have two problems though. The door hinges were riveted in wrong so the door is a pain to open and close. I can fix this by bending part of the frame, which I feel is too weak and I am going to build some supports for anyway. My second question (yes I have searched) is drainage. I am getting a mist king in a week and don't want all the water sitting on the bottom and spilling all over the floor. The trays they make for the cages look tacky, and you have to pickup of the cage every couple days to clean it. I guess the door is just a gripe. But what do you guys do for a drainage system when the cage is on the floor or on a table?
 
The three solutions I have found are,
Cheapest: tiki tiki makes a tray that goes underneath and collects water.
Possibly the most expensive is: an Ebb and Flow tray underneath.
And an expensive and easy option is: a utility sink as a stand and drain all in one.
Just put a bucket below the sink and voila.
I went with tiki tiki's tray for now. Eventually I will make a stand and build a drainage system into it.
 
The three solutions I have found are,
Cheapest: tiki tiki makes a tray that goes underneath and collects water.
Possibly the most expensive is: an Ebb and Flow tray underneath.
And an expensive and easy option is: a utility sink as a stand and drain all in one.
Just put a bucket below the sink and voila.
I went with tiki tiki's tray for now. Eventually I will make a stand and build a drainage system into it.

What does Ebb stand for? And how is that tray working out for you? It seemed like it would be a pain in @$$. Did you take the plastic thing (came with the cage as the "floor" instead of screen thank god) out? Thanks for the reply I appreciate it.
 
I still don't actually have it yet, but I looked at them at the Pomona Reptile Show and they look and seem to work great. I figure I will use a turkey master to remove the water. I am going to use the pvc cage bottom insert that came with the cage since it is hoping up my plants and will keep my Jack Jack out of the dangerous pool of water.

I forget what ebb stands for exactly but they use it in hydroponics to flood the root system of multi plants and then drain the water and fertilizer to make the plants grow quicker.
 
Oh gotcha. So are you planning on drilling holes in the original bottom then? Tiki tiki says you can hook something up to drain it. I think I might email them and see how that works. I agree with you though, I dont want my getting into a big puddle or the plants sitting in standing water. They need to drain a little bit.
 
Never thought about the whole hole drilling idea, I like it. The Tiki Tiki trays are actually larger than your cage bottom so water would drain over the sides too. I also have a clear shower curtain covering the back and half of both sides of Jack Jacks cage. I am interested in what Chad was talking about in hooking up something to the tray for draining purposes. You could definitely hook up a small powered pump to it, but that is a whole other can o worms and you would have to start getting into overflow switches and more automation and timers than most people would want to deal with. Kinda like a large reef aquarium set up. Good thing I just bought a Herp Keeper from digital Aquatics. Anyhow, g night I'm off to bed. I'll check back some time today.
 
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I have ten screen cages with eight of them being LLL cages. Draining water is definitely my biggest issue right now since I have them inside. I have three of the trays Tiki Tiki sells ( LLL sells them also) What I did is I got a PVC slip thread connector drilled a hole in the back middle bottom of the tray the same size as the fitting and glued the fitting flush with the inside of the tray using PVC pipe glue. I then threaded a hose barb fitting in to the connector and ran a hose to a bucket. The cages have to be elevated in front to get the water to drain and the tray has to overhang your stand to allow for the fitting.

If somebody came up with a tray that actually worked they would make some money. I'd have ten of them right now.:D

I love my LLL cages. Great product but I don't like the trays.
 
You mean you like your trays but wish they were better. A tray that is about 3 inches tall with the inside of it built with angled sides and an angled bottom that fed into a pre built drain that you only have to run a drainage line too would be perfect. The tray would not have to be raised and you would not have to level out your cage. Chad, Ryan get on this;)
 
if it were me and i bought a new LLL cage and the door was riveted wrong, i'd send it back
 
I like the cages but the trays are lame. If you don't Mickey mouse your own drain you'd have to lift the cage to get the water out of the tray. Someone needs to make a tray molded out of plastic that is sloped, has a drain and support for cage and plant. I'd still like to be able to open the bottom door too, which you can't do with the current trays.

You mean you like your trays but wish they were better. A tray that is about 3 inches tall with the inside of it built with angled sides and an angled bottom that fed into a pre built drain that you only have to run a drainage line too would be perfect. The tray would not have to be raised and you would not have to level out your cage. Chad, Ryan get on this;)
 
I would send LLL an email; they are really good about damaged items…

As for the drain pan you can place it on a slight angle which will allow the water to drain to one side or corner of the pan. On the lower side you can install a misting type bulkhead which you can then run a tube to a drain bucket. I will take pictures on how to do it later if I cant find the thread that shows how to do it already.
 
That's what I did, but I put my drain in the bottom. Still not the best solution imho. If you don't drill the hole the right size you're kinda screwed too since your only glueing into 3/16 thick material.
 
I just recently purchased the same enclosure and what I ended up doing was creasing the plastic tray that came with it so that there was a large X across the center, causing the sides to be slightly tilted inwards. and then drilled a decent size hole in the center of the X. Find or make a stand, and put a tray underneath it.
 
Ya I think I am going to email them here in a minute. It looks like the ones (drain stand things) from tiki tiki are better quality just from the pic. I'm sure I could modify that to sit at an angle and drill a bunch of hole in the current "floor piece"
 
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