DIY Cage - Ikea Regissor Bookcase

[DanniDorrito]

Thank you! I'm starting to get really antsy to finish it now ;P
The vent holes have been cut out and the vents were cut to size, we just need to find something to cover the inside of the vent then it'll be time to glue it all together with sealant.

That would be a really cool idea, I've really enjoyed working on the project so far so if someone would be ok to cover the costs for the parts and the time I spend on it I'd definitely be happy to make more haha. I live in Quebec, Canada so I don't think there's be anyone nearby that's interested in having one of these made for them.

[hamstermomma]

Oh wow this is going to be amazing! Your hammies are very lucky

[Teddy001]

WOW!! LOVE'N IT! Looking forward to see it finished.. I DIY'd a few habitats for my hamsters, as well.. It's quite a project, but, exciting to see the amazing results.

[Mysteri]

I can't wait to see the outcome!

[Hekomi]

Strong Brew would buy some I bet

[DanniDorrito]

Holes for the vents were drilled last night, also added plexiglass to the back.



Today we started adding vents and covering everything in sealant. Some vent holes weren't big enough so currently waiting for the sealant we've added to dry before filing the holes.

I made some covers for the inside of the vents using a plastic food mat thing and more metallic adhesive foil.



Plexiglass still needs cutting for the sliding doors, more sealant needs adding and the U channels need adding. We're at the homestretch now!

[Thin Lizzy]

This is really coming together, although I'm more than OK at DIY, seeing this project makes me want to improve my skills.

[Nancy's Hamsters]

Just curious, do you plan to place vents in the Plexiglass backing? I've seen many DIY Ikeas and almost everyone found they needed rear panel air vents to keep the cages with lots of air circulation. It's looking really good thus far and I am enjoying the step by step photos too.

[DanniDorrito]

Originally Posted by Nancy's Hamsters

Just curious, do you plan to place vents in the Plexiglass backing? I've seen many DIY Ikeas and almost everyone found they needed rear panel air vents to keep the cages with lots of air circulation. It's looking really good thus far and I am enjoying the step by step photos too.

Yeah we plan to drill some holes into the plexiglass at the back, I believe the side vents and the location of the bookcase in the room should give a sufficient amount of ventilation but you can never be too careful!

Please excuse the mess in the photo, we plan to place the bookcase on that corner wall, between the wooden panels and the corner. Its back will be up against that stone wall so the side vents will have the airflow of passersby and also with the wall not being straight the back vent holes should be working too. My boyfriend will be fitting it to the wall, I'm not exactly sure how that will work but he seems to know what he's doing haha.

[DanniDorrito]

Progress from the end of tonight!

All the vents were fitted into place, will also be adding some vent holes to the plexiglass. I've been spraying the bookcase with compressed air to remove some of the dirt and wood dust, mostly because the compressed air thing is super fun to play with haha. Given it a good wipe down and clean, we also removed the plastic film from the plexiglass and super surprised how clear it is!

We ran out of sealant so will be getting some more tomorrow. In the photo you can see our little workbench we were using to cut the plexiglass for the sliding doors haha. Decided it will be less hassle to fit the sliding doors as we fit the U Channels into the bookcase, then fit the panels which will hold the substrate in the cage. All the sliding doors have been made, but will need to get some more plexiglass if we want larger panels (Which we do, deeper substrate woo!).



So all is going well, hopefully we'll have it completely done and moving the hams in sometime next week!