Rich Beasley Reptiles

Equipment:

Tape Measure

Pencil

Drill/bits

Table saw or Skill Saw

Jig Saw or router

Screwdriver

Square

Straight Edge

Hand Clamps

Materials:

Expanded PVC

1 ¼” Screws

Tape

First let’s look at the cage dimensions to determine how much material will be needed to build your cage. Remember we offer Expanded PVC in 24” X 48” sheets so we’ll use dimensions that fit easily into these. You can make your cages any dimension you’d like. These are just examples.

Cage Size	Top/Bottom	Front/Back	Sides	Total Number of Sheets
24”X24”X12”	24”X24”	11”X23”	11”X24”	2 – 24”X48”
24”X24”X24”	24”X24”	23”X23”	24”X23”	3 – 24”X48”
36”X24”X12”	36”X24”	35”X11”	24X11”	3 – 24”X48”
36”X24”X17”	36”X24”	35”X16”	24”X16”	2 – 24”X48” 3 – 16”X48”
36”X24”X24”	36”X24”	35”X23”	24”X23”	5 – 24”X48”
48”X24”X12”	48”X24”	47”X11”	24”X11”	4 – 24”X48”
48”X24”X17”	48”X24”	47”X16”	24”X16”	2 – 24”X48” 2 – 16”X48”
48”X24”X24”	48”X24”	47”X23”	24”X23”	5 – 24”X48”

 

The dimensions in the chart above take into account that you will be insetting your front and back. If this is not the case you will need to adjust your dimensions accordingly. Also the front and back lengths will be determined by the thickness of your material. Always check this before cutting as there is a slight amount of tolerance between plastic/wood manufacturers. To do this take you side pieces and stack them on top of each other. Measure the thickness and subtract that from the total length of your cage. That will give you the length of the back and front if you are insetting.

 

So now let’s look at the layout and construction. The first thing you will want to do is to cut your pieces to size. The best way to do this is with a table saw. Most of us know someone who owns a table saw. If not you can use a skill saw and a steady hand. Once you’ve cut your pieces it time to determine the front opening dimensions. I like to leave a minimum of 1 ½” around the opening to provide structural support. Keep in mind that the front of your cage also acts as a litter dam to you may wish to make the bottom a little taller than the sides and top of the opening. If you are building a 48” cage you may wish to make two front openings with a center support, which will make your front even stronger. You will not notice that my cages don’t have a front support in the middle. This is because our track system is designed to provide strength to the front of the cage. I only offer this track with the cages I build, because this track is custom built and installed on each cage front prior to delivery. This makes it impossible to simply cut to length and install on site.

Once you’ve determined the dimensions of your front opening and its placement it’s time to lay it out. Take your straight edge and a pencil and mark the opening on the front. Now it’s time to cut it out. This is where you router or jig saw come into play. With either of these I’d suggest using a fence attachment for accuracy, but that choice is yours. If you are using a jig saw you will first need to drill a starter hole. After you have cut out your opening clean up the edges and it’s ready for installation.

Now take you back piece and drill your hole(s) for your wiring. Keep you holes as small as possible as this could be an escape point for some reptiles/amphibians. You may also decide to use a plastic wire grommet, which makes your wiring look a little more professional. If you are going to place vents/slots in the back this would be the time to cut your openings and install. It is much easier while the cage is unassembled.

The next step is to determine where you lighting, if any, will be attached. I prefer to attach my lights to the top of the cage. I use “Lights of America” lighting in most of my cages. These are an under cabinet light that you can buy at you local Wal-Mart for $8-9. They are easy to install and if one stops working they are easily replaced. A word of warning, you’ll need to replace the screws that come with the light as they are too long and will go through you cage material. You’ll need ½” screws for this purpose. Installing your lighting before you assemble the cage makes things go a lot easier. Once the screws are in place you can remove the lights to make assembly easier.

Assembly

You can attach your cage parts in two ways. You can use screws or PVC glue. The glue can get messy and you have to be quick or it’ll set before you get your pieces together. I prefer to use screws.

If you decide to use screws now is the time to mark and pre-drill your pilot holes in the top, bottom, and sides. The spacing of your holes is up to you and will depend on the height and length of your cage. Remember that if you are using sliding doors you will need to inset the front the width of your track. The track will be glued to the top and bottom which is by far the easiest way to assemble this. As far as the order of assembly goes, I like to attach my sides to the front and back first keeping everything square. Next screw the bottom in place then flip over the cage.

At this point I go ahead and caulk my seams with kitchen and bath caulk. For black I use clear drying caulk and for the white I use caulk that dries white. You can find this in a squeeze tubes, in the paint section at Wal-Mart or at your local hardware store.

Next attach you top and the shell of your cage is complete. Now comes the fun part, cutting and gluing the track in place. The length of your track should equal the length of your front piece. You can cut your track with a hacksaw just make sure you keep your cuts straight, because they will show. There are a couple of products that will work to attach you track. I would suggest using an Epoxy designed for us with plastics. Apply a bead of epoxy to the track and clamp it in place for the suggested amount of time.

Next I would suggest leaving your cage alone for the suggested curing time of your caulk, for most this is 24-48 hours. Once the caulk is cured you can re-install your lights, put your sliding glass or acrylic doors in place and you are ready to go.  

Disclaimer

The aforementioned designs and or suggestions in no way guarantee you success in building your cage or your safety in doing such. These are my personal perspectives and should be taken as such. Please follow all manufacturer’s safety instructions while using power tools or adhesives.

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