| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| bigJME |
Posted - 26/04/2012 : 20:31:37
hey guys, so my corn snake is coming up to 2 years old now and he is getting rather big now, he's just over 3ft long now. He has a 36" Vivexotic vivarium but he is being an absolute pain. I have a strip of LED's in plastic trunking built for the tank with 25 10mm blue LEDs which he absolutely loves. As the viv isnt very high he has a habit to climb all over the lights because the LEDs stick out around 8mm and he is just too big for it, he tries to lie across them and constantly falls off them. I have brought him some vines to climb over, a large and small which are wrapped together to make a higher climbing area, though still not as high as the lights.
Now he just climbs on the vines to help him get up to the lights  so i think he needs a taller viv now, i was looking at making a viv the same size as the larger Vivexotic vivs. I have been researching on the internet and finding some materials, everyone has said contiboard but its really expensive for the size of the sheets. I am going to be using Clear Polycarbonate for the doors as i can have a set of 3ft x 2ft x 6mm doors for £19.31 each which isn't too bad for the doors cut to size. Which for those that don't know, polycarbonate is what they use for bullet proof glass as its 290x stronger then glass
lots of people have been saying they have brought 8' x 6' sheets of material to use but i cant find anyone saying what material they have used, and what they have used to stop the humidity effecting it. I have a micro-climate AHS so i will be using that which should be find for the viv size. Any ideas on materials and if its worth it please let me know. Others have said to use the normal 36" vivs and stack them, I would need to buy 2 however and then the doors so its almost £160 for the 2 vivs to add to mine and the doors which is rather a lot, for that price it allows me £120 for wood to use, i was also looking at making the viv out of twin-wall polycarbonate which is 10mm thick and not too expensive to have cut to size, have seen some use it for treefrog vivs but never for corns.
If any has any pictures of any using polycarbonate twin-wall for the main viv frame i would be thankful and help will be greatly appreciated
Regards,
Jamie |
| 20 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| bigJME |
Posted - 08/07/2012 : 21:39:15
lmao i will have to look round. because the viv is so large the humidity can flux badly, sometimes as low as 15%. but he seems to have settled on the top shelf now, 28 degrees, 45% humidity. he is loving his vines as they are now, climbs half way down and just lies there rapped around them. coming out more and more which is nice since i could never see him before, he seems to love having the extra space to wonder around. |
| a2c7 |
Posted - 07/07/2012 : 21:45:00
Waterfalls aren't so hot tbh unless you own something that needs high humidity. We have one that's sat unused (if anyone wants it, let me know and I'm sure for a v.reasonable cost it could change hands) because it put our 4ft vivexotic up to 80% humidity at least. If you had a rainbow boa, it'd come in handy.
You can start with toilet tubes/kitchen roll tubes, fake plants (£3.50 for a huge long piece of Ivy in dunelm mill right now), I made some 'jungle' tubes out of postage tubes (see other thread.) You can do things with hooks/eyelets drilled into the wall/ceiling of the viv and then hang twine down to suspend things from - both our 4ft vivs have big tubes of cork suspended in them at the moment. We change their vivs around a fair bit to keep em entertained. Pieces of wood are always good as well - propped to climb on, laid to hide under etc etc
We also use small furry animal boredom busters for them - a 'log' with holes drilled in it is loved by Ara. A bendy bridge made out of pieces of wood with wire threaded through is sat on top of by Tek. Log with hole = £2, bendy bridge thing = £1.50, Watermarque. I've used rope for my boa. Our demon posessed kingsnake has a fleecy snug meant for hamsters, she LOVES it and it really ruins her image ;) |
| bigJME |
Posted - 07/07/2012 : 21:23:53
yeh he does need some more decoration, always climbing towards the glass doors. he likes to watch my on games aswell, only certain games. Even with no volume on he always comes out to watch me on some games. mainly Crysis 2 and F.E.A.R, he is very weird. i think im going to buy a mini tv for him that plays game footage on repeat haha
will have to buy more decor when i have more money, spent it all on a new paintball gun the other week. Any recommendations for what decor you all think i could add into the viv? i may buy a waterfall soon, different one to my old exo-terra since that one stopped working and they dont sell replacement parts for it anymore, big waist of money |
| a2c7 |
Posted - 05/07/2012 : 19:40:02
He likes the belly massages from the vibrations, clearly. Viv looks good - mine love more foliage to 'hide' in even when they're out and about, maybe you could stick more of that in? |
| kev 5 |
Posted - 02/07/2012 : 22:05:53
looks really good |
| bigJME |
Posted - 02/07/2012 : 20:26:42
ok guys sorry its been so long, my viv is finished, put the top shelf in. my corn has been settling down for a couple of weeks, temperatures are still a little funny. im struggling to keep them constant because of the area that has to warm up before it settles, takes 3 days after adjusting then have to adjust again. Heres my viv finished, not a great picture
my corn is a right pain, hasnt been out atall for ages, put music on today and some games and he is having a right wonder. weirdly he loves loud noises, he is never out when the rooms quieter |
| bigJME |
Posted - 11/06/2012 : 22:47:38
Still waiting on the varnish to stop smelling. I put some plain mdf outside around a week ago, its been out in the horrible british rain we have had, wood bowed due to being soaked but im actually thinking unless water is poured on the mdf it wouldnt bow or anything, not with basic room humidity. What do you recon? Painting it would add a slight seal, but prevent the need for waiting on the varnish |
| bigJME |
Posted - 25/05/2012 : 21:35:15
lmao i will consider it :) im not artistic so i would think of an idea to save my life |
| a2c7 |
Posted - 25/05/2012 : 18:30:38
*tries to influnce you* you wannnnnttt to maaakkkee a custom bacckgrrouunnndd! |
| bigJME |
Posted - 24/05/2012 : 20:07:21
yep, cant get it all done till the smell goes so i can make sure everything is in, will be a while till thats done. Just trying to find things to do because i am very bored now lmao |
| kev 5 |
Posted - 24/05/2012 : 20:03:11
excellent, that will be good |
| bigJME |
Posted - 24/05/2012 : 19:58:10
thanks, i may have a custom electrics box built for it all with a proper dimmer so i can change it all the time if i want |
| kev 5 |
Posted - 24/05/2012 : 16:52:22
the white lights look good |
| bigJME |
Posted - 23/05/2012 : 22:42:35
and some images for anyone who may want them :)
White light - Full brightness
White light - Dimmed
Red light - Full brightness
Red light - Dimmed
New larger shelf
 |
| bigJME |
Posted - 23/05/2012 : 22:31:17
thats having my corn (3.5' long) but as you can tell it may have something larger later..... when i talk my parents into it.
the 33 degrees is from the tube heater which is one i have sitting around if im honest, but this is 33 degrees all over, no gradient atall. We have this heater and the controller sitting in my room doing nothing so i may aswell use it for a bit
when its done the viv will be 31-21 (hot-cold) obviously i could get away the with tube as the height allows a much taller climbing area to allow to bottom to become colder then the top, unsure whats best yet
i have also done a much larger top shelf, its had a single coat of yacht varnish, ran out now so one coat will have to do, but that will be at the top. If anyone else is interested i will post a picture of my aspen bag, it was £24 and its huge! the normal bags of aspen i usually buy have gone up to £6.50 each and i need 3 atleast so easier to buy the large one
since this project went well, i may buy a projector for my room and build an even larger viv if i decide to get more snakes, heating is the problem i have due to the cost of the heating and the price of running it all, too bad noone does a heater which has channels what carry the hot air able to warm multiple vivs..... be worth looking into :) |
| kev 5 |
Posted - 23/05/2012 : 21:34:03
looks really good |
| Sta~ple |
Posted - 23/05/2012 : 21:30:13
I like the little shelf! |
| a2c7 |
Posted - 23/05/2012 : 19:54:22
Just give it time with the smell, it really does need to be gone before snakey face gets to explore! It's looking really good. I've never asked..what snake is going in there? 33 sounds suspiciously boa-ish... |
| bigJME |
Posted - 22/05/2012 : 20:47:13
right then ive just made my larger shelf for the viv, brought a huge bag of aspen, removed the onions as it really didnt help, i have a tube heater in there now, with a microclimate DL1 thermostat keeping the viv at 33 degrees for 12 hours a day then allowing the viv to air out for 12 hours. Cant get rid of the smell so looks like im going to be waiting a long time which is a pain as my snake hasnt been out his cave in the room he's in now :( my probes came, one was faulty so im waiting on the other now.
My lights are sorted, i havr red and white switch-able with a switch to dim both. i have a switch attached directly on the viv for my AHS power so the entire viv is seperate from the mains and can be disconnected easily. Im going to have a mesh guard built around the AHS once its in made of stainless steel mesh because the heater will get considerably hotter then normal. Just need to smell to go now so i can move things in and start to look at decor :( |
| bigJME |
Posted - 16/05/2012 : 22:18:01
i mean place the probes as i will most likely drill 2 holes, one either side for either hydrometer, my LEDs came today so i have them just placed in the tank, heres them in there
the bowl in the middle contains chopped up onions and water if anyone wonders |
