Need advice on getting screen cage set up

[jajeanpierre]

I posted in the "Enclosure" category but received no response, so am asking here.

I just put my new male veiled in his new cage, a 24"X24"x48" Reptibreeze.

Neither the chameleon nor I are very happy with my set up.

How do you get wires into a Reptibreeze?

He definitely wants more heat. I have a 5.0 Reptisun, a 60w basking light in the double fixture plus a 75w infrared spot.

He's just hanging around at the top, often on the screen.

I'm just not all that crazy about the cage. I'm not sure I can get it warm enough. I took a reading with an infrared temp gun and the perch he is basking on was 75F.

I need to get more "stuff" up around the top and will work on it.

Can those who have worked with a Reptibreeze give me some suggestions? I'm not really crazy about the cage.

Here's a picture of it so far:
http://imgur.com/4R0dPLw

Thanks.

 

[johnnyev]

Personally i'm not a fan of all mesh enclosures. Here in the uk, i struggle with temps & humidity control using them. If it were mine, i would cover the back & sides with thin polycarbonate panels (cut from a sheet) leaving just the mesh front & roof. Fix to either the frame of the reptibreeze or the mesh itself, using marine/fish safe silicone sealant. I would then cover the inside panels with coco fibre panels, i use the Lucky Reptile brand ones. Fix using the same silicone. These are great for growing plants up & fixing branches/twigs to & provides more useable space for your cham to climb on.

 

[MelissaB]

I would put a horizontal branch under the heat lamp, keeping it low enough that he doesn't burn himself. And more horizontal branches in general, so he can have multiple walkways at different levels.
Also, what are you using to measure temperature? I don't trust the dial type thermometers or the humidity gauges. I prefer the digital type, but even on the digital for the humidity can be hit or miss. I use them more as something to give me a clue as to what's going on. The digital thermometers are usually pretty accurate, though.

edited to add:
Reread your post and saw that the temp was taken with an infrared gun, those are usually pretty accurate, too. I've usually never had to use more than a 75 watt bulb, but have used a 100 watt with a dimmer.
You can try putting plastic on the sides of the cage. I've used coroplast and shower curtains cut to size, and they worked well. The coroplast is super easy to cut, and since it's white it reflects the light really nice, making the enclosure brighter. It's corrugated plastic, so it might insulate the cage a little.

 

[jajeanpierre]

Thanks everyone.

I like the digital thermometers too, but where to you put the wires? Do you just hang the whole unit inside the enclosure. I'm not crazy about having the digital thermometer where I will end up spraying it with water.

I just hate seeing him crawling around on the screen, especially the roof. I just see a disaster happening when he slips and twists a foot or a toe because the toe is caught, maybe even breaking something. I'll get a lot more stuff up near the top and maybe that will solve the problem.

I am going to somehow enclose a lot of it. I'm not crazy about the all screen. My house is just too darn cold.

How do you hook up your lights and dripper? I don't think the cage is really strong enough to have all that weight on it, even if I only put the weight on the edges.

I had been hoping there would be built-in holes and things to put wires and dripper tubes through.

Thanks for any insight into how to work with this cage. I'm VERY new to chameleons--only owning them for weeks, not even months.

 

[MelissaB]

I set my lights across the top, so that they rest on the metal framing of the cage. It's strong enough for a flourescent tube fixture. I had my four bulb T5 fixtures on mine and it was fine. I've since gotten a different cage with wood framing, but when I used the metal screen cages that's how I did it.

For putting the probe on my thermometer in the cage, I used a phillips head screwdriver to wiggle a hole in the top. I then (and this isn't totally neccesary, but I like it) bought some rubber grommet things from the low voltage section (in the electrical section) of the hardware store. I squeezed them into the hole, and pushed the probe and tube from the dripper through it. It was a snug fit, and looked good, too.

On one cage I used the coroplast panels, and on the other I used the shower curtain cut to size. Both worked well for what I needed.