# Critter Nation Double - Deeper Pans



## Kenowhereman

Could anyone point me to some deeper pans/trays for the critter nation double? I've heard of some people modding these and right now the amount of bedding that gets kicked out of their cage is becoming a real hassle when I have to vacuum it up all the time.

Thanks!


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## YTCrazyRatLady

When I owned a Critter Nation I made some boarders of Plexiglass, it didn't keep all the bedding inside, but it did help a LOT!


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## Isamurat

I have Perspex (aka plexiglass) trays and kick guards in my cages. I'm not sure about in the US but in the UK there are firms that will cut them to size for you. The kick trays work out cheaper but you need to fasten them to the sides. I've also made some myself which is a pain as Perspex cracks easily but is doable.

A cheaper but less pretty option is correx, or corrugated plastic as it can be cut with a good pair of scissors, it does get chewed though


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## artgecko

You can order deeper metal pans from Bass Equipment (in the US) or flowertown chinchillas (In Canada but will ship to the US). I have the stainless Steel bass pans (I got them to make them an extra 1/2" taller, so 3" tall for an extra $6 per pan). They are great and work well, clean well, etc. They are not cheap though... shipping is fairly expensive due to their size and weight. They have cheaper pans also, but those need to be powdercoated or sealed before use or they will rust from the urine eventually. Flowertown sells powder-coated pans. They are a little cheaper than the bass stainless ones, but depending on your location, shipping from Canada isn't cheap either. 

Midwest makes plastic litter guards as well, but I haven't heard much good about them.. mainly that they are hard to attach correctly and hard to clean, but I don't own them, so I can't say. I can say that I love my stainless steel pans from Bass and I think they were worth the cost.


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## Fraido

artgecko said:


> You can order deeper metal pans from Bass Equipment (in the US) or flowertown chinchillas (In Canada but will ship to the US). I have the stainless Steel bass pans (I got them to make them an extra 1/2" taller, so 3" tall for an extra $6 per pan). They are great and work well, clean well, etc. They are not cheap though... shipping is fairly expensive due to their size and weight. They have cheaper pans also, but those need to be powdercoated or sealed before use or they will rust from the urine eventually. Flowertown sells powder-coated pans. They are a little cheaper than the bass stainless ones, but depending on your location, shipping from Canada isn't cheap either.
> 
> Midwest makes plastic litter guards as well, but I haven't heard much good about them.. mainly that they are hard to attach correctly and hard to clean, but I don't own them, so I can't say. I can say that I love my stainless steel pans from Bass and I think they were worth the cost.


Do you think you could link to the pans you got?


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## artgecko

Bass the bottom two options, the stainless steel. But I had to call in my order to request an extra 1/2" deep.

Flowertown Chinchillas. I don't own the bottom pans, but did order the shelf pans.. I think they are good quality. Not sure how shipping charges would be on the big pans from Canada. The bottom tray is already 3" tall. You will need to scroll down a bit to find all the tray options. They also offer flat and 1/2" tall trays and the shelf trays I ordered.


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## Finnebon

I used to use those large plastic concrete mixing tubs sold at Lowe's or Home Depot. Measure the cage and the pans to make sure you get the right sized one. You may also have to cut off a lip or two of the pan to get it to slide into the cage easier, but even if you don't cut off a lip, it can still be fitted in with a little more wiggling and effort and it fills the entire floor of the cage. These worked great for keeping litter in the cage, they're about 5" high. A little litter still got kicked out of course. It IS a pain to clean every week because it's so big and awkward. lining the bottom with newspaper with the litter on top made it easier to clean and to roll up th elitter into a little burrito shape and then put that in the garbage and then sweep the rest out with a little hand broom.

I got tired of doing that though, so now I use all fleece and have a medium sized (maybe 12inches long and 8 inches wide, 4 inches tall) covered plastic bin that I cut a hole in the top lid and have litter inside with strips of newspaper or grass hay. I also have a corner litter box. Less litter to clean, they don't use the litter boxes 100% but it works fine for me. I really love using fleece. I just vacuum out the poops and litter, shake the rest out outside, and then wash and reuse. Litter was a pain for me, so I've converted lol. They still kick out some poops and litter, but it's easy to just vacuum up. Handvacs are wonderful for cleaning cages.


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## elmtree

I'm using correx at the moment. It looks okay, and it does the job. I quite like it as it's very forgiving when cutting/shaping, so I was able to make mistakes while assembling it and it turned out okay. (can't imagine plexiglass would be as easy to fix!) It was also _very_ cheap.
Having said that, it's not very sturdy. I'm planning on studying away in a while so I don't care if the trays only last a year or so, because the animals will have passed and I won't be in a situation where I'm happy to rehome more. Spending £100+ for a metal tray isn't worth it for me, but they'd definitely earn their keep if you were keeping rats long term.


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## amandanicollee

Questions for you all! In regards to the critter nation, I have 2 girls (dont plan on getting any more at the moment) but on amazon, with prime, the critter nation is 175 for a double, and I found a single critter nation for 125. My question is, for two girls, which would you all get? Money wise, double is bang for my buck since i get half off. But is that too much room? I dont mean to highjack the thread either


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## LilCritter

How tall are the shelf pans from Flowertown?


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## artgecko

Not tall... the half shelf pans? Only about 1/2 - 3/4"... A little taller than the plastic ones..but they hold litter better due to straight sides. 

Amandanicollee- Buy it! when I had less rats... I put a bottom pan in the top unit to split the two cages. That way, you have an active cage that they're in and a clean cage below.. I would shift them to the bottom that was clean, then have plenty of time to clean the empty top cage, etc. You can also use it split like this to house both genders... I had males on top, females on bottom. Or, you can give them the whole cage. I would start them in half of it to get used to it, then give them both halves.


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## RattyTriplet

I just bought the DCN today! SUPER excited. We only have 2 girls that are 6 weeks but are on the waiting list with a breeder so at some point we hope to adopt 2 more! I'm SO excited to get it ready and I am hoping to hold out and give it to them for Christmas!


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## LilCritter

ugh, I'd love to get the half-shalf pans... but being in SoCal, I can only imagine the shipping from Canada...  Oh well, Sterilite Bins it is.


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