Cage Material?

[JMReptiles]

Im in the process of puting together some plans on a few custom cages and i have a question relating a material..if i should use it....if anyone else has...and the pros and cons if anyone knows any. Im not sure whats it called but cabinet installers use it. Its white...not to heavy...very smooth...kinda shiny to it....i know they normally use it to install around the upper edges on counters in kitchens and what not. i have a pic of a piece of it if needed. Is this material good to use as it seems like it would hold humidity and heat well as very easy to clean. What do you all think???

[Nexus]

Sounds like melamine faced board, should be fine provided you seal the seams well to prevent moisture getting behind the surface. If it is melamine faced chipboard or conti board then if it get water in the core it will bulge and crack the surface.

Cheers
Nick

[JMReptiles]

i thought malamine was like a type of plywood....this stuff is completely white...solid white..both sides.

[TheBoaGuy]

I use 3/4 sanded ply wood either spruce or oak. stain it and put 3 coats of polyurathane and you got a great funiture quality water proof cage

[Angela1kevin1]

melamine is more like a particle board ar MDF board with a protective covering on it. Post a pic of what you are referring to. It sounds like melamine. You say that it is completely solid white. Have you cut it yet? The sides could also have the protective covering on it as well. When you cut it I bet that you will see that it is not actually solid white.

[Angela1kevin1]

how thick is it, by the way?

If it is extremely thin, it could be FRP (Fiberglass reinforced panels)
Google search it, that stuff is extremely durable. Just a bit pricey for how flimsy it is.

[Shadraak]

Formica (sp) ?

[JMReptiles]

Here are a few pics that i just took of it....it has been cut and it is solid white all the way through it....solid piece..same material throughout. the thickness is 1/2 inch.

[Nexus]

Not sure what it is then. Looks okay though, how are you planning on heating the enclosure that you want to make as it may effect the material or heating method chosen. You could also hack a lump off and chuck it in a bowl of water for a while just to be sure.

Cheers
Nick

[Adrya]

I used tileboard which is laminant white on one side, smooth and shiny-ish, and it works great.

[JMReptiles]

yeah im just gonna go the tileboard route....i bought some tileboard and some other material to start building the cage. I just need to order my flexwatt now.

[TheBoaGuy]

That stuff looks like azeck or perma trim. It is syhthetic product made mostly out of plastic. It is really similair to the stuff boaphiles and other plastic cage makers use. The stuff is really light weight and duriable but carries a really high price.