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Old 05-21-2013, 01:30 PM   #21
Tutu
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Default Re: Cage floor area comparisons - home built cages

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Originally Posted by syrianali View Post
I notice Ikea Expedit listed as making a cage, but wondered how you would seal the exposed chipboard and the corners to prevent them becoming urine soaked?
If you put loads of carefresh or something like that and train your hamster to use toilet and change the soiled substrate regularly you might find that any hamster habitat including ikea expedit range will be great hamster homes.
I personally put down big cardboard tray made out of shoe boxes then just put loads of carefresh and usually have no problem about urine or exposed chipboard corners.
Ikea stuff is really good for hamster including that glass jar as toilet sand bath.
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Old 05-21-2013, 09:48 PM   #22
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Default Re: Cage floor area comparisons - home built cages

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Originally Posted by Scamper View Post
I like the idea of using these large Ikea shelves for cages but have no idea how to adapt them exactly. For example the Expedit glass case has gaps down the side that would need blocking somehow - yet would still need to let in air and be remain easy to clean and put back together quickly. The Billy bookcases I actually have - I assume you would need to cut hole in door and cover with wire ? Also could the hamster not chew through the wood eventually, I don't know much about DIY but could get someone to make something if I had some pics for ideas.
Expedit shelves are finished and coated. They are completely waterproof. All the "joints" are pretty tight too, but contact paper can be used along all the edges / corners for easy cleaning.

There's nothing to chew--just flat finished surfaces. The floor or the walls don't stick out; there's nothing to grab onto.
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Old 05-22-2013, 01:46 PM   #23
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Default Re: Cage floor area comparisons - home built cages

Over here we seal all edges where there might be a possibility for urine to soak into a raw edge with aquarium silicone. Then it's all water-tight. We don't leave any gaps even little ones unsealed even if it's quite unlikely that the hamster will ever pee exactly there for another reason: it also prevents parasites from hiding there in case you ever have them. You really want to be able to clean out and disinfect your cage in case of parasites or if your hamster dies of an illness. Aquarium silicone is non-toxic so even if the hamster chews it a bit it's not a problem. Just don't use normal bathroom silicone (because that contains fungicides).
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Old 05-23-2013, 11:01 AM   #24
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Default Re: Cage floor area comparisons - home built cages

Thanks I was thinking of getting the detolf... Now I think that I will.
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Old 12-10-2013, 07:24 AM   #25
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Default Re: Cage floor area comparisons - home built cages

Regarding the Billy bookcases, it is also possible to have two or more attached front-to-back to multiply the overall depth of the habitat. Make the frame of the back one like normal, and then for the subsequent Billys, just make the floor/ walls/ roof (i.e. don't add in the back panel) and attach together. You may need to make a false floor to ensure the substrate doesn't escape, but you end up with a really nice footprint that's often easier to incorporate into a household than something very long and narrow.

I have two joined like this. Both bookcases are facing 'forwards', which results in a gap this big between the two:

It would have been a smaller gap if both bookcases had their 'fronts' in the middle, but I needed the bigger gap (caused by the skirting board clearance of the front Billy) for other reasons.

This is the overall floor area, you can see it's much squarer:


And this is after I actually joined them with glue/ supports and installed a false corrogated plastic floor:


The vertical bits of wood at the front also, are to support a glass billy shelf. These pretty much perfectly fit across the front, should you want a solid bit of glass depth that doesn't open.
BILLY Extra shelf - glass - IKEA
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Old 12-12-2013, 04:11 AM   #26
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Default Re: Cage floor area comparisons - home built cages

Fantastic!
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Old 11-30-2014, 05:23 PM   #27
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Default Re: Cage floor area comparisons - home built cages

@acapae - I've never thought of doubling up the Billy bookcases like that - fantastic idea!
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