My first cage is done !

[jeff martin]

Well i am sure folks have seen a million, but here is my first Chameleon cage, I purchased the best i could.

2'x2'x4' wire mesh cage from LLL
Mist king system
24" hood for 18" 10.0 reptasun
75 watt basking bulb, might be too much though, This is what i was told to buy.
$130 in live plants
lexan plant covers, keep the bugger safe
custom buildt stand, hides 10 gallons of mist if needed
temp and humidity analog and digital Both
3 sets of fake vines from pet store

About $575 invested and $200 for baby i will get jun 7th.

 

[Julirs]

Wow-NICE JOB! You did your research! Does the water go down into the stand? What kind of baby are you getting? If you get say a 2-3 month old chameleon that cage will be way too big. A 5+ month old chameleon will be fine. I like the Reptisun 10.0 for that size cage, however if you get a baby that likes to hang off the top of the cage like alot of youngsters do, I would raise that bulb up so they are not right under it-it is a little strong for baby eyes.

 

[Minihuey]

130 dollars in plants? Wow that is a bit expensive. Everything else is hella sick but maybe you should consider going to orchard supply. I have all the same plants as you do and i only spent 30.

You did a really good job though. I am sure your chameleon will be happy as can be!

 

[jeff martin]

Thanks ! Yes i did tons of research and been planning for some time now. The plants where a bit expensive, they where $16.99 each for ficus x2 and a hawaiian scheff was $69.95 and a mini fig tree was $36.99 adds up pretty quick. Then $56.00 for new pots. I looked everywhere and the only plants i could find that are safe was from a nursery.

The light will be reduced to a 50 watt, after testing and having it 5 inches off of cage top the basking temp is 94f too high, Right ?

I buildt a light holder for the basking light to keep it 5 inches off of top.

I am getting a baby Panther Chameleon from Chameleon Northwest and its a Sambava "Torch" 5 months old.

 

[jeff martin]

Wow-NICE JOB! You did your research! Does the water go down into the stand?

What do you mean ? I am going to be using a mist king for water.

 

[panthercrazy]

Wow-NICE JOB! You did your research! Does the water go down into the stand?

What do you mean ? I am going to be using a mist king for water.

I think what Julirs meant is for excess water collection. Where is it draining? Do you have a collection container inside your stand? Using mist king or any system is going to produce excess water which if no drainage set up, it is going to create a mess on the bottom of the cage.

EDIT: Looks fantastic! Nice Job

 

[NewOwner]

i think julirs might mean "Feeding the plant" can water get to the soil so the plant lives?

Nice setup!

 

[Julirs]

Yep-that is what I meant. I have been setting up misters all weekend and building drainage which is the more difficult part of misting systems.

 

[jeff martin]

There is plenty of space for water to get into soil for the plant, and if not i can add some. I was torn on what to do for drainage, So i found a solution at fred meyers call shamwow towls. LOL ! But they do absorb 400 times there weight in water. I will change them daily or when they get to wet and i hope by doing this i will reduce any chance of bacteria.

 

[Julirs]

Your best bet is to drill some small holes in the middle of the bottom and set the cage on something that the water can drain down into. Mist systems put out alot of water. I don't think the sham wow solutuon is going to work at all. Have you run the mister to see how much water 5-10 minutes of misting 3-4X daily will create?

 

[warpdrive]

Jeff,

I think you did a great job for that new 5 month old you'll be getting.

as for the plants, and the cost...
I would do anything at this point just to get a few ficus.
I can't believe that I can't get any ficus under 5 feet tall in all of the NYC area.
I've even had stores and nurserys looking for them at the wholesalers each week with no luck.
shoot, money is no object at this point...it's not like my crickets and chameleon don't already eat better then I do at this point.

so you payed a little extra, but got what you needed and wanted for plants.
so what...big deal.
you are prepared, that's what is important.

good luck and post some photos of that 5 month old when you get it.

Harry

 

[Geckoxp]

Decent setup...but after a while dealing with the drainage issue I can expect that you would adjust on where the water will go. Maybe everything will work out but towels can develop bacteria growth and smell if the cage is not allowed to air dry a bit. Some people create setups that are built around drainage alone. Besides the drainage your setup looks very nice. I have a couple cages from LLL on there way myself. I am getting a veiled from FL chams and I am upgrading my panther to his larger home after I move this weekend.

Here is an example in what I setup below. I drilled small holes in the foam bottom in order to drain out the water into plastic holding containers below. I wiped down the bottom of the cage every evening with a very very "very" light solution of water and bleach that I had in a spray bottle so that bacteria didn't develop.

 

[jeff martin]

Jeff,

I think you did a great job for that new 5 month old you'll be getting.

as for the plants, and the cost...
I would do anything at this point just to get a few ficus.
I can't believe that I can't get any ficus under 5 feet tall in all of the NYC area.
I've even had stores and nurserys looking for them at the wholesalers each week with no luck.
shoot, money is no object at this point...it's not like my crickets and chameleon don't already eat better then I do at this point.

so you payed a little extra, but got what you needed and wanted for plants.
so what...big deal.
you are prepared, that's what is important.

good luck and post some photos of that 5 month old when you get it.

Harry

Agreed my friend, Kind-of what i thought when i saw the plants. Sometimes you gotta pay to get the right stuff.

 

[jeff martin]

Decent setup...but after a while dealing with the drainage issue I can expect that you would adjust on where the water will go. Maybe everything will work out but towels can develop bacteria growth and smell if the cage is not allowed to air dry a bit. Some people create setups that are built around drainage alone. Besides the drainage your setup looks very nice. I have a couple cages from LLL on there way myself. I am getting a veiled from FL chams and I am upgrading my panther to his larger home after I move this weekend.

Here is an example in what I setup below. I drilled small holes in the foam bottom in order to drain out the water into plastic holding containers below. I wiped down the bottom of the cage every evening with a very very "very" light solution of water and bleach that I had in a spray bottle so that bacteria didn't develop.

I would agree about the bacteria problem if i left them in there for a few days, but i wont. I will change the towl daily. If it ends up not working i will design a drainage system of some type. Right now almosat the whole bottom is covered by planter bases, That will catch the water. I won't need to mist much either, because washington state is pretty high humidity, Right now its 65% with any misting. Got any pictures of a collection system ?

 

[Malicious]

Got any pictures of a collection system ?

You were looking at it Jeff. Those rubermaid tubs beneath the cages. That is the most economical drainage you can get. I know it doesnt look pretty, but thats the easiest way to do it. Empty the bins every few days and thats about it. If you have the cages on a wire rack as many do, you can pin up a sheet or shower curtian to act as a skirt to hid the drainage bins. It is a bit more appealing to the eye that way.

Good luck Jeff, the cage looks great.

-Jay

 

[chequepoint]

I would agree about the bacteria problem if i left them in there for a few days, but i wont. I will change the towl daily. If it ends up not working i will design a drainage system of some type. Right now almosat the whole bottom is covered by planter bases, That will catch the water. I won't need to mist much either, because washington state is pretty high humidity, Right now its 65% with any misting. Got any pictures of a collection system ?

First of all, looks good. Nice to see when people actually do their research and listen.
Second, the misting is really less about humidity and more about stimulating the chams to drink. If you're not misting that much, you then need to run a dripper, which still necessitates drainage.

 

[Julirs]

I live in Florida-you don't get much higher humidity than that-but most of my chams are indoors and yes-you will still need to mist enough to cause you to build drainiage.

 

[Geckoxp]

You were looking at it Jeff. Those rubermaid tubs beneath the cages. That is the most economical drainage you can get. I know it doesnt look pretty, but thats the easiest way to do it. Empty the bins every few days and thats about it. If you have the cages on a wire rack as many do, you can pin up a sheet or shower curtian to act as a skirt to hid the drainage bins. It is a bit more appealing to the eye that way.

Good luck Jeff, the cage looks great.

-Jay

Good idea about the skirt...never really thought about it...knowing me I would forget to empty the buckets having it hidden haha. Unfortunately I stink when it comes to building something myself so the setup is not the prettiest. I think that after I move and setup the new cages I will looking into setting the bottom up better.

In regards to the setup...very simple. I used the automister say either 5-10min 3xs a day...once in the morning and evening at 10min and once during the mid day at say 5min...never had an issue with a cham not drinking. I had a couple of shower curtains around the back on both cages to protect the walls and to drain the water down not all over the place. It also helps with the humidity and such. The curtains are very cheap and if I get any bacteria to form I just replace the curtain.

Yes I would of called my setup the "average joe" setup as it is really easy and works the best! Just drilled the holes in the foam small enough that just the water drips and I have the rubbermaid containers on the bottom. Now the skirt idea...I will def look into that one to cover it up!

 

[jeff martin]

Lots of great info, Thank You Very much. Can someone give me a idea of volume of water per day i should be misting. In gallons ? I have a idea for my drainage. Thing is i build a wood stand and my wife would not agree to have a wire rack in the front room, Where we can enjoy our new friend. So i am thinking i can screw the center plastic sheet to the top of the wood box and that should divert the water toward the center, then i can use a tube and a hidden bucket under cabinet for water collection.

 

[laurie]

Jeff I do something that might work for you also. I make "legs" that are 6" tall out of 4" PVC pipe. Put a leg at each corner of the cage, put a dishpan under the cage (between the "legs" to catch the water. Also you will lost all your plants if you keep the saucers under them. They also need to drain as the mister will keep them too wet. I use 48" UVB lights, the cheap fixtures from home depot with a plant light on the other side from the UVB. Does that make any sense at all?

set up looks great.