DIY UTH for a stackable

[zandi202]

All right, so I'm going to take the armoire I have and turn it into a stackable cage because I have three beardies and three leos and no more room. So the plan is to put my girl, Zy, on the bottom as she isn't growing much now and is definitely smaller than my two males who I plan to worry about later. Then I'll put two of my leos on top (viv divider between them). I was wondering if anyone could help me figure out a way to put the UTH's there for the leos as I have no idea what to do/what will work best. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Obviously I plan to put vents and what not on it and outlet holes. Might not be for a bit because I want to do a lot of wiring work and what not. But for future reference any idea will definitely help. Thanks!

 

[Taterbug]

Look into flex watt/heat tape. It's like a naked heat mat and comes in lots of widths and you pick the length. You put little connectors on it and a plug.
Folks use it for gecko and snake racks.

Sounds like a neat build!

 

[zandi202]

Thanks! I will definitely look into that. It's going to be a fun project.

Do I put anything over the tape so it's not skin to direct heat?

 

[Taterbug]

I'm not certain. I don't know if it needs airflow like a heat mat or not. I think on racks it's along the sides or back outside the tubs.

 

[zandi202]

Will look into that. Thanks again!

 

[zandi202]

So my boyfriend and I talked about it and our plan is to get a sheet of glass and get it cut at the hardware store where he works. Then we're going to use 2x4's as support. This way I can use the UTH's from Petco that stick to the glass.

 

[Soulwind]

If you use glass, make sure it's either good and thick or is tempered glass.

Too thin and not heat resistant enough and it can crack (either from heat or just even from the weight and claws of your dragon), possibly leading to injuries.

If it's going inside his cage, I'd probably use a PVC or Plexi sheet instead.

It won't get hot enough (if regulated by a thermostat, which is should be)
to melt the plastic and is safer in preventing possible cracking issues.

 

[zandi202]

Okay, I was thinking of using plexiglass as I know it's safer than using glass, but the back of the UTH says that it should be on glass only. I'll double check with the people at Home Depot just to make sure.

The leos don't really have nails so scratching the glass won't be a problem in that aspect as well sat the fact that I'll be covering it up with laminate tile.

I do prefer plexiglass, however, and will definitely look into that. Thanks for the input - much appreciated.

 

[zandi202]

So after doing quite a bit of talking with my boyfriend and a lot of measuring, we've decided that this will become a viv for all three of the leos. What we plan to do is have 3.5" of the bottom be dedicated to the wiring and electrical work. Then obviously 35.5" long is super huge for a leo so we're going to cut it down to 27" long. Typically a 20 long is about 30" or so so we're going to make up the 3" difference by making it 17" wide which a 20 long is about 12" or so wide. Now by having that extra 8" open we're going to make that into shelves for reptile supplies and what not to help get more stuff off the floor. I felt that since Zy still has a chance of growing another 1"-2" longer that the size would have been too small if she did grow anymore, but would work out perfectly for the leos.

We are also going to switch to plexiglass bottoms instead of glass.