I want better enclosures for display

metaldad904

Arachnopeon
Joined
Dec 18, 2006
Messages
39
So my P. Regalis has her nice exoterra but the rest (P. Irminia and Mystery Avic.) are in sterilites from Walmart. While they are practical and all I hate them, they're ugly and and worthless for displaying my beautiful girls. I wanna get away from true glass if possible and i've seen so many beautiful enclosures on here. Both of my other girls are probly 4 inches maybe a wee bit more. I'd like something of decent size similar to my exoterra for my pokie or at least something not tiny. I'm more than willing to DIY in some areas but I dunno even where to start outside of just buying a bunch of plexiglass from home Depot. I figured some of ya'll could help me out. The key is good looking and not expensive. If I'm spending too much I might as well buy more exoterras or something similar. Also they don't provide cross ventilation which is lame. Thanks for the help! Here's a pic of my exo setup for reference 20160425_195140.jpg
 

viper69

ArachnoGod
Old Timer
Joined
Dec 8, 2006
Messages
17,851
If you don't want to spend the money on Exo's (less cash per cubic sq inch than some acrylics I've seen) or turn a 10 gallon on its end, your only route is a DIY acrylic or DIY glass setup.

There used to be a Chinese company that sold acrylics about the size of a Nano Mini Tall for $20 shipped to the USA. I never bought one, but a forum member who moved to China said they were pretty good. I liked their look at least.

Sometimes these Asian dealers are on Ebay. IF you go this route, keep use posted, would like to find another cheap vendor of these.

There's a guy on YouTube, British, used to sell his acrylics, made 3 or 4 pretty decent tutorials on DIY acrylics.

I also suspect you may end up getting the material from TAP plastics and not Home Depot.
 

lunarae

Arachnobaron
Joined
Sep 22, 2015
Messages
384
Just so you know, Exo-terra's do provide ventilation. There is the ventilation in the front, and then the ventilation at the top. People in Europe use this style for their T's with no problem what so ever. The way that it works is the hot air rises, as it does that, it pulls the cooler air in from that bottom vent, that's how you get your air flow. You just have to adjust your care for the style enclosure you have. That's all.

Depending on the acrylic you buy and where you buy it from it can be costly as well. I bought our 12x12x18 exoterra just recently for 70 on amazon and that included the shipping. Where as a sheet of acrylic that I went for that doesn't crack or shatter and has a 10 year garuntee from yellowing at homedepot that was 12x24 cost me 15-17 bucks. Depending on the size your going to go for I'd say your looking at 45 dollars right there if not more. As well as acrylic scratches very easily so if you use it, you want to leave the plastic covering on it as long as possible. Drill your holes before you glue the whole box together and such first with the sheets still on there to help avoid scratching. That's not getting into buying any extra tools you may need to do the job as well.

Personally I've used the 2.5 gallon aquariums converted on it's side for arboreal, and the only problem I had was air flow cause I only had it in the front and not the top to help it move. The Exo-terra I got and set up I'm in love with honestly. It has fixed the issue I was having with the other set up and while I'm still letting it settle and establish itself before introducing our A. versicolor I'm a lot happier with it then I was with my DIY set up prior.

I personally have come to like glass over acrylic because it doesn't scratch as easily which means it provides a much better viewing. As well as to me it just has a bit more weight which means it isn't going to shift as easily on the shelf and have an easier time being knocked over. But that's my opinion. Another place you can look into is jamiestarantulas.com for an acrylic set up. They have them up for like 70 dollars, full acrylic, holes on both sides. Their enclosures are made specifically with T's in mind, and the 70 includes shipping.

I know you're looking at DIY, but if your goal is a nice display, unless you already have all the tools you need to do it properly and such, buying a premade may actually be the most cost effective route for you. I've spent a lot of money on just tools alone to do some of my enclosures and while now I have the tools for future projects. That's what I like to do, if you're not into doing a whole lot of projects where you'll utilize the tools you need over and over then you may want to reconsider.
 

vespers

Arachnodemon
Old Timer
Joined
Aug 18, 2012
Messages
712
So my P. Regalis has her nice exoterra but the rest (P. Irminia and Mystery Avic.) are in sterilites from Walmart. While they are practical and all I hate them, they're ugly and and worthless for displaying my beautiful girls. I wanna get away from true glass if possible and i've seen so many beautiful enclosures on here. Both of my other girls are probly 4 inches maybe a wee bit more. I'd like something of decent size similar to my exoterra for my pokie or at least something not tiny. I'm more than willing to DIY in some areas but I dunno even where to start outside of just buying a bunch of plexiglass from home Depot. I figured some of ya'll could help me out. The key is good looking and not expensive. If I'm spending too much I might as well buy more exoterras or something similar. Also they don't provide cross ventilation which is lame. Thanks for the help! Here's a pic of my exo setup for reference
Just for the record, that's a Zoo Med terrarium you have there, not an Exo Terra. But if you want to get some more Zoo Med or Exo Terra style terrariums for less $, try to go to some reptile expos/shows. Perhaps see if there's a Repticon or other similar show near you, you can often get said enclosures for cheaper than you would get in a retail pet store or online.
 

crlovel

Arachnopeon
Joined
Nov 23, 2011
Messages
46
Zoo Med has a new terrarium setup out, about $25 (reptile expo price I saw was 25, and 30 at a local store) for a 3 gallon glass terrarium, a decent screened cover, substrate (you'll still need more, there's not enough), a hide, and plastic plant. You may need to measure and buy an acrylic piece for the top or possibly drill holes in glass for ventilation - but hands-down, this is one of the better deals I've seen. It has plenty of floor space for most fossorials and terrestrials, and there's decent vertical space (sacrificing some substrate) for arboreals. I wouldn't keep anything over 6" in one. I'm hoping they come out with another, larger setup.

http://www.zoomed.com/db/products/E...zOjE6IjAiO3M6ODoiU2VhcmNoX3kiO3M6MToiMCI7fQ==
 

viper69

ArachnoGod
Old Timer
Joined
Dec 8, 2006
Messages
17,851
Zoo Med has a new terrarium setup out, about $25 (reptile expo price I saw was 25, and 30 at a local store) for a 3 gallon glass terrarium, a decent screened cover, substrate (you'll still need more, there's not enough), a hide, and plastic plant. You may need to measure and buy an acrylic piece for the top or possibly drill holes in glass for ventilation - but hands-down, this is one of the better deals I've seen. It has plenty of floor space for most fossorials and terrestrials, and there's decent vertical space (sacrificing some substrate) for arboreals. I wouldn't keep anything over 6" in one. I'm hoping they come out with another, larger setup.

http://www.zoomed.com/db/products/E...zOjE6IjAiO3M6ODoiU2VhcmNoX3kiO3M6MToiMCI7fQ==

Thanks for this one, I was hoping for more UGH. I'd rather keep an ExoTerra as this is a tall fish tank basically, as that has ventilation.

For the price you get a lot of things it seems. Certainly better than the fish tank prices I see for 2 or 5 gallon tank only.
 

crlovel

Arachnopeon
Joined
Nov 23, 2011
Messages
46
Thanks for this one, I was hoping for more UGH. I'd rather keep an ExoTerra as this is a tall fish tank basically, as that has ventilation.

For the price you get a lot of things it seems. Certainly better than the fish tank prices I see for 2 or 5 gallon tank only.
Get a glass drill bit and make some holes. Not a big deal.
 

viper69

ArachnoGod
Old Timer
Joined
Dec 8, 2006
Messages
17,851
Get a glass drill bit and make some holes. Not a big deal.
Agreed, not having any experience in drilling glass, I'd rather not until I've drilled a glass pane etc. There's always something that needs a mod when it's less expensive. I'd like something that doesn't need modding for a change.
 

grimmjowls

Arachnoknight
Joined
May 1, 2016
Messages
204
What on earth is that? Does it taste as strange as it looks?
God, my dad THRIVES on those cheese balls when we can get them... They leave a really gross, greasy residue on the inside of the container though. Makes me not too keen on eating them.
 

sschind

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
May 27, 2005
Messages
358
God, my dad THRIVES on those cheese balls when we can get them... They leave a really gross, greasy residue on the inside of the container though. Makes me not too keen on eating them.

You healthy people. You make me sick. Or maybe its just the cheeseballs:D

I've considered contacting the manufacturer of the containers and seeing about buying in bulk and maybe selling them at swaps but I'm sure they would require a pretty large minimum purchase. The advantage would be they would be label free which can be a PITA to remove.

these are really nice containers http://www.amazon.com/Stauffers-Original-Animal-Crackers-14oz/dp/B001NC8HS6 Roughly the size of the cheeseball ones but square and I found out the manufacturer has a facility in my hometown so I wouldn't have to pay shipping. I like the screw on lids too though they are a bit smaller than the Utz ones.
 
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