I just got a new baby female red tail boa and I want to start building her a bigger enclosure now. I was wondering if someone could tell me exactly how much wood I need and how to put front sliding glass or plex glass doors on the front of it. Ive seen a lot of really nice ones just googling them and I have a picture in my head of what it will look like when its done but I know it probably wont look like how I want it though lol. I just need to know whats a good type of wood thats not too expensive and how many sheets i would need to build it and where i can get the glass for the sliding doors and track. Ill probably want to build a 2' high stand for it to sit on too so it would be very helpful if you could let me know what to use for the stand aswell. It doesnt have to be fancy at all. Im going to be painting the outside black to match the rest of my furniture. I know I can build it, I just dont know what materials I need to build it. A Simple stand and enclosure for my red tail boa, please help!!!
I'll take a picture of mine. it has a glass front and a sliding screen door. It has a shelf in it, with big hide place, a dish pan for him to soak in, plus heat. 2'wide 4'long and 3 feet tall.
To tell you the truth one of the easiest and best looking things would be to repurpose an old dresser or one you found on craigslist.... Look for one that is long and has at least 6 drawers (2 sets of 3), so the top 2 drawers on the left and right you can remove and build the new cage where those used to be and then still use the bottom 2 drawers for storage for supplies and access to under the tank heating elements. Now if you really do want to go the build from scratch method you can do a 6'x2'x2' tank fairly easily. If you are going to use lights inside the tank to heat it this would be your best bet on material (Melemine 4'x8' sheets, qty. 1, and qty. 1 2'x6' Melamine "shelf") For the 4'x8' sheet you can ask them to cut 2 feet off of one end, then cut it in half down the long way. So you end up with qty. 2, 6'x2' pieces and qty. 2, 2'x2' pieces. Ok I just made a little diagram for you: Here's a link to the tape you will need. You will also need to pick up a box of decking screws (I got white colored ones so you wouldn't see them, like these) If you have a sawzall or a jig saw and want to cut out a nice rectangle on each side you can get this vent. Or if you have a hole saw attachment for your drill you can get a couple of these to put on each side. Make sure you measure the inside dimensions for the sliding glass or plexi doors after you have fully finished construction of the outside frame - measurements might be a bit off or there might be a little sagging in the "ceiling" of the tank. If there is you can always get a cheap little 1"x2" to put in the center in the front. Also make sure when you get the doors that they overlap by at least an inch, 1.5" would be better. Good luck! Oh! Here is a link to the photos of mine when I originally made it.... This was in college with limited tools and I was doing it by myself. This tank will be HEAVY!!!! So make sure you make a very think stand (use at lease 2'x4's as the legs and center supports and maybe consider using 2"x6"s for the joists. Sorry I don't have time to come up with a stand sketch for you but you can make ap retty simple one and eventually cover it with fabric or nice wood panels. Good luck!! Keep us posted on whatever you do!
Thanks for that write-up Lauren, I'm looking forward to building Angus's new enclosure, and using those round vents is a great idea! I will see what kind of cool stuff I can find at my HVAC supplier!
Oh good! I'm glad it helped someone! For a Uri you would want larger ground coverage so your tank would have to be just a bit larger than this one.... probably 6'x3'x3' would be best, even 6'x4' if you really want to spoil him and space isn't an issue, lol. Good luck!!!
i am looking at getting a columbian red tailed boa but building a cage is way to expense is there a way to make it out of plywood and make it like with sliding glass doors
Yes, you can make it out of plywood but you will have to seal it.... And plexi would be cheaper than glass (usually), just be careful to buy the good plexi, not the cheap stuff that bends - you RTB will eventually be very strong and may be able to bend the plexi if you get the cheap stuff.
