DIY Water bottle holder

[Kiki_3173]

Since I built Smudge a new cage (tank style), I've been struggling with how to have her water bottle in there. I'm not a fan of the asthetics of the metal, tank style holders that fit over the edge of the tank. I didn't want to put holes into the wood, or velcro onto the walls because I want the ability to move things around in her tank if I want. So...I made my own :-) This was made for a 5 inch waterbottle from Petco.

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s208/Kiki_3173/IKEA%20Billy%20Hack/CAM01183_zpsf0bcc8a9.jpg

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s208/Kiki_3173/IKEA%20Billy%20Hack/f5271bd4-6fc2-438c-954c-b752a05e258f_zpsa579d017.jpg

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s208/Kiki_3173/IKEA%20Billy%20Hack/b8eb4f9c-e993-4883-8d2d-88af2f0b3dbd_zps386b1f32.jpg

Materials Needed:
-a 6in piece of wood that measures 1/4in by 3in
-Galvanized Steel Hanger Tape (found in the plumbing section of Home Depot)
-Galvanized Steel Wire
-2, 1 and 3/8in Axle Pegs (bought at Michaels Crafts)
-Small screws

Tools Needed:
-Drill
-Needle Nosed Pliers
-Sand Paper
-Wood Glue
-Heavy duty scissors
-Hand Saw

1. Cut the piece of wood to the desired length using a hand saw. 6 inches worked perfectly for Smudge's cage.

2. Sand the cut edges smooth, using sand paper.

3. Drill 2 holes (approximately a 1/2 inch apart from each other) 1 inch from the bottom of the wood board.

4. Drill 2 small holes (approximately and inch & 1/2 apart from each other) about 2 inches from the top of the wood board.

5. Measure and cut (using heavy duty scissors) 2 pieces of Galvanized Steel Hanger Tape, 3 inches each.

6. Bend the steel hanger tape into a U shape (that fits your cages' thickness) and attach on the back, flush with the top of the wood board using small screws.

7. Put a small amount of wood glue on the end of the Axel Pegs and wedge them into the drilled holes at the bottom of the wood board. I angled mine just a bit, so the water bottle would sit on them the right way.

8. Measure and cut a piece of galvanized steel wire (approximately 3 inches in length). Feed it through the small holes at the top of the wood board. Make sure the water bottle fits in it and then make a twist in the end pieces of steel wire, on the back of the holder. I kept my wire a bit loose so I could slip the bottle in and out without having to untwist the wire every time.

9. Hang in your hammy's cage for them to enjoy a cool, refreshing drink ;-)

[strawberrysmom]

Kiki!!!! You are so awesome!!! Look at you go!!!! We need a full updated cage tour now!!!

[Kiki_3173]

Kiki!!!! You are so awesome!!! Look at you go!!!! We need a full updated cage tour now!!!

Thank you strawberrysmom! One would think I have nothing better to do with my time, but it's just my OCD showing through;-) lol.

I'm waiting on a hammock for her and I have a few other little things I've got planned, so it'll come soon :-).

[Tutu]

Totally wish you could make me one as I'm in process of building home made cage cupboard conversion for Gertrude and water bottle holder is hard to come up! Also so funny as I have dog called smudge:)

[Kiki_3173]

Totally wish you could make me one as I'm in process of building home made cage cupboard conversion for Gertrude and water bottle holder is hard to come up! Also so funny as I have dog called smudge:)

I wouldn't mind at all, but he shipping to the UK is probably crazy expensive :-(

I found someone on HC that has a hammy the same name as my dog too! ;-) lol

[Kiki_3173]

This is what I had before:
It is a great idea (thank you Biscotti), but Smudge has limited on floor space & this took up some of that area that she could be using to burrow...
http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s208/Kiki_3173/DIY%20Hamster%20Items/CAM01189_zpsed391513.jpg

Here is the new water bottle holder (in her cage):
http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s208/Kiki_3173/DIY%20Hamster%20Items/CAM01193_zps520f9d96.jpg

[strawberrysmom]

That looks so good!!!

[Kiki_3173]

That looks so good!!!

Thank you :-)

[Biscotti]

Wow that looks very good, what a great idea. :D I've also dumped the log idea since it's taking up a lot of space and went back to those ugly metal hangers for now. I tried to use strawberrysmom's idea of using the baby-proofing strips, but my bell bottles are too fat. So I will also give this a go, thanks for posting it. :)

What type of small screw do you use? I don't think I've found ones shallow enough to fit 1/4" boards without sticking out at the other end.

[Kiki_3173]

Wow that looks very good, what a great idea. :D I've also dumped the log idea since it's taking up a lot of space and went back to those ugly metal hangers for now. I tried to use strawberrysmom's idea of using the baby-proofing strips, but my bell bottles are too fat. So I will also give this a go, thanks for posting it. :)

What type of small screw do you use? I don't think I've found ones shallow enough to fit 1/4" boards without sticking out at the other end.


Thanks Biscotti...it's kind of just a proto-type...I'm sure I will improve on it:-). The screws I used were only about a quarter inch. I got them at Hobby Lobby a while ago. They might have the, at Michael's Crafts??! If worst came to worst, you could use thicker wood:-)

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s208/Kiki_3173/CAM01195_zpsd7a83487.jpg

[Eriklover555]

These are so cool. I showed them to my mom, and she was like "Where did she buy that? I want one!" And I told her one of my forum members made it ;) Now I've been tasked with making some *sigh* I should've kept my mouth shut. >.<

[DrKMcK]

Hey Kiki, I just pm'd you. That design is fantastic and you should pat yourself on the back. Really creative. :-D

[Kiki_3173]

Hey Kiki, I just pm'd you. That design is fantastic and you should pat yourself on the back. Really creative. :-D

Thank you DrKMCK :-). Was just puttering with the materials I already had;-). AND, trying to be as simple as I possibly could be!

[newcastlemam]

That is fab I love it wish I was more DIY minded and my OH is worse than me lol

[_nod]

I had my water bottle held on the side with suction cups, but replaced that with some wire, after getting worried that the suction cups would fail. However the wire looks awful, so I've been thinking of a neater solution for my perspex tank.

Now it looks like I don't need to think up a solution as it's already here! Thanks Kiki!! : )

[mandyseley]

Thanks for this! I sat around puzzling over a water bottle holder for hours yesterday, and this is an awesome idea. I'll have to try it!

[SoapyVP]

Would velcro work d'you think? :-)

[Gayze]

What a nice design! Great job! I wound up going with velcro on the bottle and inside the bin, which is working okay, but yours is so much nicer looking. :-)

[Kiki_3173]

Would velcro work d'you think? :-)

Velcro would work just fine as long as you get the heavy duty stuff. I just wanted something that I could move around the tank easily if I changed Smudge's setup. :-)

[Kiki_3173]

What a nice design! Great job! I wound up going with velcro on the bottle and inside the bin, which is working okay, but yours is so much nicer looking. :-)

Thank you Gayze:-). I have used Velcro before in the past. This just gives me an easy way to move her water bottle around, if I changed her setup. :-)