About 18 months ago I had the need for some new yearling python enclosures. Initially I thought about purchasing ready-made tanks, and then just adapting them to my needs. After lots of looking around, I (like most reptile keepers before me) came to the general conclusion that pre-fabricated reptile specific vivariums are extremely over priced, and more often than not inadequate in their design. So after some deliberation, I decided that I would attempt to make my own. A decision that I was extremely happy about upon completion of these new enclosures. What follows here is a step by step guide, showing how I designed, then created this 3 bank of enclosures.

Firstly, lets consider the advantages of a home made enclosure:

• The size is made to your specifications - It is the size that you want, so it fits in that tight space between the wall cabinet and the lounge (or in my case the wall and another set of existing enclosures). It is also a suitable size for the species that you plan on housing within it.

• It is finished in the colour that you want - and therefore fits in with other pre-existing pieces of furniture in your house.

• It has all the electrical wiring (for heating, lighting, UVA/B and thermostatic controls) that you desire. Some people don't like the idea of an incandescent bulb flashing on and off because of a thermostat, while they're trying to sit and watch the TV. So you can wire in a heat mat, a heat cord or a non light emitting ceramic bulb as you see fit.

• Any enclosure that is built by yourself is going to cost a hell of a lot less than one that has been marked up by a manufacturer or retailer.

• And of course, you will have the satisfaction of knowing that your animals are happily abiding in an enclosure that you have built yourself!

My next trip was to Bunnings. There I purchased all of my screws, glue, the lengths of timber used for making the top and bottom lip of each individual enclosure, a few lengths of 12mm x 12mm quad which were used as supports for each shelf, as well as the pre-routed timber moulding that I used to finish the the top and bottom of the completed unit. Finally I grabbed a couple of bits of timber that were used to finish off and hide the gaps between each individual enclosure (more on that later), and of course some stain and varnish.

Now on to the fun stuff! Using a dry iron set almost on the hottest setting, I ironed on the veneer edging. This stuff is made with a heat sensitive glue that melts and binds to your timber at high temperatures. It is extremely easy to apply, and dries very quickly. I then used a sanding block and a sharp utility knife to cut and then sand back the excess veneer. I only bothered to apply the veneer to any edging that I would be able to see when the unit was complete.

1. All the electrics for heating, and thermostats could be easily hidden.
2. I could put foam insulation between each enclosure, allowing different temperatures to be more easily maintained so that I could house different species in each enclosure.

At this point I also attached the top and bottom lips. The bottom lip is most necessary. It prevents substrate from falling out every time you open the glass doors, and also helps to stop it from building up in the tracks that the glass runs in. The top lip is just a personal preference. the timber for this was cheap, and I figured that the more I used, the less I would have to spend on glass, which is more expensive.
 

The gaps at the front of the unit and between each enclosure were then finished off with a couple of lengths of timber that I cut down and then nailed over each gap. The two lengths of timber moulding cost me around $15.00 each. these were measured and mitre cut using a drop saw to create an attractive finish at the top and bottom of the unit. These were just nailed and glued into place.

Each individual enclosure has its own backing. By maintaining those gaps at the back, I could access all the wiring for the heat lights and thermostats that were to go in down the track. Each individual piece of backing timber was attached with a combination of screws nails and glue.
Finally the unit was structurally finished. At this point all of the screw and nail holes were puttied up and the entire unit was sanded back (fun!). Getting to this point took me less than a day, doing most of it by myself and not rushing at all.

By far the slowest part was staining and varnishing the unit. 6 coats of stain and varnish were applied over about a 3 week period. On top of this I applied two coats of clear estapol to the interior of each enclosure.

Somewhere in the interim I made another trip to Bunnings. This time I bought plastic tracks for the glass, liquid nails, plastic vents and some clear silastic.

The measurements for the glass were made as per the guide that comes with the plastic tracks. these were then taken to my local glass cutter who cut up, and ground down the edges of 6 pieces of glass, which when I took home, magically fit into place. the heat lights and thermostats were installed by myself. This sort of thing should be done by a qualified electrician under normal circumstances unless you are completely confident with what you are doing.

The pictures below illustrate the final product. For approx. $400.00 I have three custom built enclosures that are fully wired up, and in my opinion look fantastic! I use Oz Black ceramic globes hooked up to a seperate mechanical thermostat for each enclosure. The light cages were made from stainless steel security door mesh, which were a royal pain in the rear to make. The top enclosure houses a yearling male M. bredli, the middle enclosure has a female of the same species, and the bottom enclosure has a yearling diamond python (M. spilota).
 

Please forward any questions or comments on to ben@herpasylum.com.au