Need suggestions for my home made cage

andydhebert · #1 (**permalink**) 10-09-2002, 10:52 PM

Hi everyone,

Although I have been reading some of the message threads here, I am brand new to this site.
I have seen a lot of ideas back and fourth from people in regards to home made cages. I built one a couple years ago for my Bearded Dragon, and have had 2 design flaws that I am not sure how to compensate for.

(1) My sliding glass door tracks are not nearly as secure as I would like them. Does anyone know of any safe to use substance that would bond between wood and plastic?

(2) My power cord hole is just a nice size for crickets and grasshoppers to find! How can I plug it without ruining the appearance of the cage?

I have put up a REALLY quick web page that has a couple pictures of the cage to give you an idea of what I am talking about. It loads really slow, which I apologize for, but I don't have the time to fix that right now. The site is at:

[url=http://www.webhostsolutions.ca/forsale]Gazoo The Bearded Dragon[/URL

Something else I would like to do is secure the branches I have in there to the inside of the cage walls (which are 3/4" red oak plywood) so I can provide more floor space. I haven't thought of how to do that yet. Honestly, I haven't really put a lot of though to it. Maybe you folks have tried something similar.

This was my frist attempt at uilding a cage, and I have luckily been pretty satisfied with it. The pictures don't do it any justice - due to a very poor quality digital camera!

Any suggestions? I thrive on critisim.
[addsig]

andydhebert · #2 (**permalink**) 10-09-2002, 10:57 PM

Doh! Sorry, the hyperlink didn't come out right.

The pictures are located at www.webhostsolutions.ca/forsale

THE CAGE ISN'T FORSALE! THIS IS JUST A CONVIENIENT EXTENSION I HAD ON MY WEB SERVER!
[addsig]

txgirl266 · #3 (**permalink**) 10-09-2002, 11:00 PM

aquarium sealtn/adhesive actually works really well. it work for my doors with plexi. now for the perches you can add small blocks around the ends of the branches where they meet the wall. basically it will make the end look like a picture frame on the wall. never tried it before, i just thought of it actually. thats my 2 cents
[addsig]

Ti · #4 (**permalink**) 10-09-2002, 11:04 PM

There is a product called liquid nails that might work, but I dont know if it would be safe for your reptiles after it cures. Aquarium grade silicone would work too, but you would still need to use the finishing tacks for added support. The best bet may be to drill some counter sink holes in your tracks for 2 screws, one on each side. That would keep the tracks in place.

I used screws to secure the sliding tracks in my cages. Hope this helps, good luck!
[addsig]

andydhebert · #5 (**permalink**) 10-09-2002, 11:08 PM

so the sealant will bond to the wood? I didn't think it would.. but now that you mention it - that's how the windows are sealed onto their frames...

I don't know if that perch idea would be very secure. I am not exactly delicate with, well, anything! I would like to find a way that a 50 pound boa could hang on if need be.

My dragon used to climb a lot (hench the tall cage!) when he was small, but now I don't have anything for him to get up on.

Thanks for the suggestions! Keep em comming!
[addsig]

txgirl266 · #6 (**permalink**) 10-09-2002, 11:08 PM

as for the plugs,what i did is cut a small hole where the side and top meet and either cut the end of the cord thread it through the hole and add a new plug. the kind you get at lowes or home depot. or if it is not a heat mat or something similar just connect the wiring after the fixture is affixed in the enclosure. then seal the hole with aquarium sealant, caulk. or something of that nature
[addsig]

andydhebert · #7 (**permalink**) 10-09-2002, 11:14 PM

Unfortunetly, as you can see by the pics, I cut a really big hole, probably 1 1/4 - 1 1/2 inches, without thinking that crickets would escape..

The lamp is also a heat lamp (its intended purpose is for incubating chicken eggs!), so i didn't want to cut it. The end is secure from moisture..
[addsig]

txgirl266 · #8 (**permalink**) 10-09-2002, 11:26 PM

how much are you worried about appearence. if worse comes to worse you could cover the hole with screen material. the perch design will work fone along as you use something larger than 1/2 inch plywood
[addsig]

XzyluM · #9 (**permalink**) 10-09-2002, 11:47 PM

Very nice cage you have there. As for the power cord hole, you might could find a stopper like one of those that comes with aquariums that have a cut and hole through them for running cords. Aquarium sealant should be able to seal the sliders, if not, maybe some contact cement?
[addsig]

sophia · #10 (**permalink**) 10-10-2002, 02:03 AM

>>
>>(1) My sliding glass door tracks are not nearly as secure as I would like them. Does anyone know of any safe to use substance that would bond between wood and plastic?

A quick dry two part epoxy for bonding many different type surfaces together will work wonders and dries hard and clear.

>>
>>(2) My power cord hole is just a nice size for crickets and grasshoppers to find! How can I plug it without ruining the appearance of the cage?

Clear indoor/outdoor use Silicone, just run the cord and then fill the hole, on the 'outside of the cage' let dry for 4 to 8 hours.

>>Something else I would like to do is secure the branches I have in there to the inside of the cage walls (which are 3/4" red oak plywood) so I can provide more floor space. I haven't thought of how to do that yet. Honestly, I haven't really put a lot of though to it. Maybe you folks have tried something similar.

What we do is measure how high up we want the perches on both sides and drill pilot holes in both the cage and the perch, then install the perch using 3 1/2" long galvanized screws counter sunk into the cabinet from the outside, then just put a dab of wood putty over the screw holes and stain or paint as usual. The heavy duty galvanized dipped decking screws are the strongest and work the best. Otherwise, you could use a piece of continuous thread, bore out a hole in the perch on each end, epoxy the thread in and drill a hole in the cage that the thread can slip through then use nuts to tighten it down, but we prefer the screws, they're quicker and easier.

>>
>>This was my frist attempt at uilding a cage, and I have luckily been pretty satisfied with it. The pictures don't do it any justice - due to a very poor quality digital camera!
>>
>>Any suggestions? I thrive on critisim.

That's about it, I need to go and look at the pics yet.

Tay

[addsig]

dlamphere · #11 (**permalink**) 10-10-2002, 03:18 AM

You can get a plastic cover that looks really good that you put in a hole after you put the cord though at lowes. It is with the "specialty fasteners" they are in drawers labled something like furniture parts. It will also be where the shelve pegs are.
[addsig]

andydhebert · #12 (**permalink**) 10-10-2002, 08:22 AM

Hi Guys,

Thanks for all of the suggestions! The appearance of the cage is as important as the functionality, which is why I spent all of the cash on red oak!

I do like the idea of counter sinking the screws and using the little plastic ends to fill the holes though! I will have to go log hunting and find some good looking logs to spread out.

Unfortunately, the back of the cage is only 1/8" wood, so I may not be able to fasten perches as tighly as I would like.

I wish I was a little more creative with the decorations!
[addsig]

Advertisement