# Making a custom cage



## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

Two days ago, I found out that Martin's Cages is no longer selling directly to the public, and that they will only be selling some of their prefabbed cages via Chewy. Which was sad because I wanted to custom order a cage from them (I just purchased an R-690 from them about 3 months ago).

So now, I'm building my own custom cage. I have ordered a 50 foot roll of 16 gauge galvanized steel welded wire mesh, that is 24" in width and has 1" by 1/2" bar spacing. It was $70 but should give me plenty of material to work with, and will be marginally cheaper than purchasing a prefabbed cage of this size. Here is the link to where I purchased it (USA): Fencer Wire 2 ft. x 50 ft. 16-Gauge Welded Wire Fence with Mesh 1/2 in. x 1 in.-WB16-2X50M1H - The Home Depot

It's basically the same material as my Martin's R-690 (which is 24" W x 14" D x 36" H). The cage I'm building will be 50" W x 24" D x 60" H. I've also purchased a 10 foot roll of 1/2" x 1/2" wire for flooring and ramps. I will be getting the panels powder coated by a friend of my dad's. My dad does custom welding and fabrication, and he will be making me a welded metal litter pan for the cage to sit in, similar to a Martin's Cage. The pan will also be powder coated.

I've made this very rough blueprint while I wait for the mesh to arrive. The very bottom door will swing downward and open like a ramp. I plan on not removing the cage from the litter pan except to deep clean; due to the bottom door being wide enough for me to spot clean and agitate the pine shavings in the pan regularly. One of the things I do not like about my Martin's is there's not a lot of room for them to dig at the bottom. This cage will give them lots of room to burrow and dig.










Here are swatches of the powder coat colors I'm considering. They're a metallic finish.
















I'll update once I have the wire and start cutting/test fitting the panels


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## Rats4All (Feb 4, 2021)

That is really cool! It looks like a better cage then I could get anywhere.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

I just ordered plastic door guards, a pair of handles, and three prefabbed 12" x 12" cage doors from KW Cages; and cage door latches from a seller on eBay, respectively. I should now have everything I need to build the cage except for the custom litter pan my dad is making for me.


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## CorbinDallasMyMan (Feb 24, 2017)

This sounds super awesome! I found a post here called ["Built a wire rat cage"] from user inod3 where they outline their process to make their own diy cage inspired by Martin's design. The images no longer load in Chrome, they might load with a different browser but I reposted the meat of the post at imgur [link here].

That post inspired me to make my own cage to go on top of my dresser [imgur link here].










Cutting the wire really is the worst part about the project. If you can come up with a design that minimizes the amount of cutting and grinding/sanding that you have to do, you'll save yourself a lot of blisters. 

The main issue I'm seeing with your design is your top level is 30" tall but the wire mesh you bought is only 24". I don't think that's going to work. You can seam the mesh on the walls but I only think it will work if they're seamed at a floor level where they'd be fully secured to a horizontal piece of wire mesh. I don't think you can have a seam going through the middle of a level (and through the doors).

I think it would work much better if you made the cage 48" tall and had a full floor in the middle. That way you would make the bottom section out of a 48" long piece of the 24 inch wire mesh and the top section out of a 48" long piece of the 24 inch wire mesh. At 48" x 24" x 48", the cage would still be absolutely enormous (32 cubic feet, or the equivalent of a triple unit Critter Nation). Maybe think about it like two R-680's stacked on top of each other. 

As for the color, the darker the better. Lighter colors stop your eye and grab your focus. Darker colors allow you to focus on what's beyond the wire mesh. It's easier to see into a cage with dark colored bars.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

I'm going to make 2 long vertical panels and seam them together in the center, to make the front and back panels. As in roll out 60 or 55 inches of the wire, cut it, and cut another, and put them together. That way there will be two 24" wide panels coming together to make a single 48" wide panel, and 60-55" lengthwise going up will be uninterrupted. I can cut the top 3 door holes out with no issues or seams.

So only the wide bottom door would have a seam running down to it, but since it's the bottom of the cage it shouldn't matter as much. I could simply put two smaller doors on either end also. 

But, I still have a lot of time to plan and change my mind, too 

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## CorbinDallasMyMan (Feb 24, 2017)

Enne said:


> I'm going to make 2 long vertical panels and seam them together in the center


Ahhh, the seam is vertical. I'm still a little concerned because the rolled wire mesh doesn't flatten out perfectly but I'm super curious as to how it will work out! Definitely post updates and pictures! I'm very excited for you!


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## VivDaRatLuver (Dec 26, 2020)

That cage seems like it will be amazing 🤩 !! I’m very impressed that you know how to build a DIY one.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

Different design idea using two 144" lengths of wire to make two large levels with a horizontal seam in the center. Shorter but more structurally sound than the other design also, vs a vertical seam with many more panels. Could add a third level to this design, if I wanted even more space.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

I've spoken with my dad about powder coating and he sent me the link for the manufacturer his contact uses. I'm now thinking this dark bronze for the cage (first photo), and a veined bronze/black for the litter pan (second photo). And then probably bronze or plain black for the door latches. The dark bronze comes in a high gloss finish, and the veined bronze comes in a satin finish, but I can have a clear coat applied for easy cleanup. They are polyester-based which is non-toxic and non-volatile; same thing as the black powder coating on Martin's cages.


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## VivDaRatLuver (Dec 26, 2020)

I think that is a wonderful idea! This cage is going to be beautiful 🤩


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## buddy/sire (Jan 19, 2021)

OMG so exited to see it


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

I'll be documenting everything, including costs and materials, etc. and hosting it somewhere for future reference, if anyone would like to make a similar cage.


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## Rex the Rat (Apr 7, 2020)

Enne said:


> I'll be documenting everything, including costs and materials, etc. and hosting it somewhere for future reference, if anyone would like to make a similar cage.


I can't wait to see the final product! 
@CorbinDallasMyMan your cage is beautiful!!


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## TheNinja (Aug 6, 2018)

Checking in to make sure I watch the progress as you make this thing. That cage look amazing...both designs do! How many rats are you keeping in there btw? Looks like they'll have a ton of room.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

Right now, I have three boys. I may bring two more in after the cage is built and my breeder has another litter with reservation spots open!


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

My wire should arrive today, and I've gotten the door latches in the mail. Have to go pick up black zip ties as well. All I'm waiting on now is my order from KW Cages with the plastic door guards and the prefabbed doors. I might not end up using those doors, but I still want to see how they look on the cage before I send it off for powder coating. And the door guards will be put on when I do the final assembly. 

If I get it built by Saturday I can take it up to my dad's this weekend and drop it off for powder coating. Hoping to have it back by the end of next week. But we'll see how quick the turnaround is at the powder coating shop.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

Here's what I've got so far. I'll post details later when I'm on my PC. Tapatalk mobile only lets you upload crap tier photos lol









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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

Okay, I'm back and will begin outlining the cage build up to where I am now. Here's a list of the items I've purchased for this build:

2 ft. x 50 ft. 16-Gauge Welded Wire Fence with Mesh 1/2 in. x 1 in. - $69.99
Plastic Door Guard x 17 - $11.73
Vinyl Grip Handle x 2 - $2.18
Galvanized Steel Cage Door Latches x 6 - $7.68
Black 4" Cable Ties (zip ties) x 1000 - $22.32
Wire Flush Cutters (made for jewelry wire cutting, I bought mine at a store) - $17.00

Other items used:
Second set of wire cutters (more heavy duty ones for easier initial cutting, but not really needed)
Black Sharpie (to mark wire for cutting)
Blue painter's tape (to mark cage doors)
Plastic bag (to collect wire trimmings)
Folding table (to save my back from bending down lol)
*A THICK PAIR OF GARDEN GLOVES*! Do not start cutting wire until you have a pair. This wire is SHARP and will scratch/cut your bare hands!
Also wear jeans/a durable shirt, because the wire is going to brush against you and it could tear the fabrics on your shirt or pants if they're thin.

The work:

Here are the tools I used most. Only the orange pair of cutters on the left were really necessary, and honestly left a better cut edge on the wire.









Measure out your panels and use something heavy like a brick to hold the sides down. I left a half inch of wire panel just in case I needed more; you can always cut them down to fit later but it's better to start with more than less.









I purchased a 50 foot roll of wire, not just because it was cheaper than buying individual 10 foot rolls, but because it would give me more than enough material to work with in case of a mistake or defect in the wire. And boy are there defects. This stuff is welded by a machine and you're gonna see a lot of defects. Inspect it as you unroll it. *I noticed as I got farther into the roll, the quality increased. After about 12 feet, I noticed no more defects in the wire.* I think some of this is due to the impacts during shipping. Lots of bends and breaks at first. I scrapped the first two panels I cut out because of this.

















After cutting you'll end up with a group of panels. Since my cage is 48"x24" they were all the same size. 4 for the front and back, 2 for the sides, and 1 for the top.

















Take your flush cutters, and cut the edges of the panels down at an angle to leave a smoother edge. I strongly recommend placing a plastic bag under the wire panel, and then holding the top of the bag over your hand as you cut, to catch the little wire trimmings. You definitely don't want small sharp pieces of wire on the floor in your garage or in your yard!









Take the wire panels outside onto some grass, and lay one panel down and walk on it to flatten them out more. The softness of the grass will allow the wire to bend a little in the opposite direction but not kink it. Do this for all of your panels. Bending them by hand can lead to kinks and warping and is generally just more annoying to do.









After that I started test-fitting them together. I used little 4" zip ties. They're a bit of a pain to connect the panels together with, but they can be snipped off very easily which is why I used them.









I had to make the middle floor and balconies out of 1/2" x 1" wire, because the roll of 1/2x1/2" wire I bought was unacceptable quality for an animal cage. These parts will be covered by cloth anyway, so I am not concerned about it too much. It's just something to go under the cloth covers I'll be putting down anyway. And this has the added benefit of being able to use mini carabiners to hang things from underneath it, as opposed to the 1/2"x1/2" which is too small an opening for a carabiner to clip onto. This is something that always bugged me with my Martin's cage.









I took some blue painter's tape and marked out potential door holes. These are not finalized. I did also cut and attach one balcony in the top level to see how much room there would be underneath one. I'll be making a ramp up to that balcony from wire and plastic beads, kind of like a bird ladder but made of plastic for easy cleaning vs wood.

I think I'll keep the top doors as-is, but will make the bottom door wider but less high. Or, I might copy the top two doors and flip them on the bottom so the large door is on the left and the smaller on the right (this is what I ended up doing). Either way I need to be able to reach inside and scoop bedding out of the bottom level, which will be sitting in a 5" deep metal litter pan. I will be adding at least one balcony in the bottom level, with a ramp up to the middle level. I have not decided where to put it yet, though. Probably a balcony on the right side with a ramp going up into the back center of the middle level, similar to the Martin's R-690 that I have.

















I had to stop here because I had been out in an unheated garage for over 4 hours, and I was pretty cold and tired lol. I may work on it more today or tomorrow. I'll post updates as I go, but right now I've got the big stuff out of the way and it won't be long before it goes off for powder coating!


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## VivDaRatLuver (Dec 26, 2020)

Looks great so far! Can’t wait to see the final product!


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

The cage is now done being built! Now it has to be powder coated, and the litter pan made, and then it will be done.

Photo with the finalized door templates. Small doors are 12x18 inches, large doors are 20x16 inches.









After attaching the bottom balcony and ramp. Balconies are 20x24 inches.









Used this ladder to decide how large to make the ramp up to the middle floor.









After cutting the ramp hole in the middle floor. The door openings and this ramp hole will have plastic edge guards along the edges for added safety.









Photo with 3 of the 4 doors open

















Moved it outside and put the roof panel on. It'll be less saggy once it's held up by more clips.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

Overall, about 6 hours of work. I will update the cost and turnaround time of the powder coating, and post photos once it's done.


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## CorbinDallasMyMan (Feb 24, 2017)

Such amazing progress! Your cage is a beast! I really like the idea of the lower doors becoming ramps to enter and exit the cage.

For those who might be considering taking a project like this on, there is a type of wire mesh that may have fewer defects and stronger welds. The type of wire mesh that you get from a regular hardware store is "galvanized before weld" (GBW) mesh. This means that the steel wire is coated with a layer of zinc (galvanized) and then the galvanized wire is welded together. There's another type of wire mesh called "galvanized after weld" (GAW) that has stronger connection points. With GAW mesh, the bare steel wire is welded together to create the mesh, then the whole thing is coated with zinc (galvanized). GAW mesh isn't as widely available and it's slightly more expensive.


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## Rex the Rat (Apr 7, 2020)

That was quick and it looks great as well! I especially like how big the doors are! Thank you for this detailed process, I'm excited to see the rats in it.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

GAW is harder to find and more expensive for sure. That's why I went with GBW. Cheaper and easier to obtain in small amounts. Plus the powder coating really makes it a moot point as far as durability. Like I said previously, the defects in the wire became much less frequent as I got farther into the roll of wire. I'd say the quality improved drastically after about 12 feet of a 50 foot roll. All of the panels I cut out after that had no missing/crappy welds or bent mesh.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

Updated the build posts with some links to purchase materials/tools and edited to keep things tidy.


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## VivDaRatLuver (Dec 26, 2020)

It looks great! What color are you powder coating it?


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

Bronze, the swatch is up in post #9 

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## VivDaRatLuver (Dec 26, 2020)

I love that color, it is going to look great!


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

I got my KW Cages order yesterday, which included a pair of handles for easy moving, 3 prefabbed doors, and these plastic door edge guards. The doors were not useable because I cut the door openings bigger than the doors are, but oh well. Just going to use the doors I cut out myself. 

I ordered just enough plastic guards for all 4 doors (I ordered them when I was only putting 3 doors on the cage lol). I had about 10 inches left of it total.

The cage is going off for powder coating on Sunday. Turnaround is usually 7-10 days.


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## buddy/sire (Jan 19, 2021)

nice it gotten very far since ive cheked weow


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

Should have purchased these sooner, but I just placed an order with KW cages for 12 Mighty Mats for the middle floor of the cage. They come in assorted colors, but you can only get their bulk pricing on one color at a time. Normally they are $3.85 a piece; if you purchase 12 they are $2.99 a piece. I asked if they can send an assortment of colors instead of just one color, we'll see what they say. (update: I contacted them directly and they were able to send me an assortment of colors with my order!) 6 of them should cover almost all of the entire middle floor of my new cage, so I wouldn't have to make 2 foot by 4 foot fleece floor liners for that floor.


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## VivDaRatLuver (Dec 26, 2020)

The rabbit rescue near me uses to to prevent sore hocks.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

I like them for the middle floor because they're modular, removable, and easy to clean. It'll keep their feet off the wire and be a little more comfortable to walk on. And less fleece I have to wash lol. The balconies will have fleece liners of course.

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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

I've also ordered a set of 4 powder coated urine guards for the back corners of the cage from this eBay seller. 2 for the middle floor and one for each balcony. The price for 4 of these was $14.75. They hang on the cage bars and divert urine and raisins (that's what I've always called rat poop lol) from falling out of the back of the cage. Mostly just to keep them from getting anything on the wall behind the cage, since the rats like to back themselves up into the corners and urinate. They are 9" from each corner and 4 1/2" high.

In addition I've purchased a set of 36 gloss black powder coated cage door latches from the same seller. Just so I have them. I will probably use these instead of the 6 plain galvanized ones I bought previously (and I will update the final cage total later). I need at least 8 for the current cage I'm building so it'll be good to have spares. It cost $22.00 for 36 of them already coated.


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## CorbinDallasMyMan (Feb 24, 2017)

Enne said:


> In addition I've purchased a set of 36 gloss black powder coated cage door latches from the same seller. Just so I have them. I will probably use these instead of the 6 plain galvanized ones I bought previously (and I will update the final cage total later). I need at least 8 for the current cage I'm building so it'll be good to have spares. It cost $22.00 for 36 of them already coated.


It's good that you got extras. Because of the size of the doors, I'm guessing you may need 4 latches per door. 

...I really don't want to wait another 7 to 10 days to see your cage finished! I'm super excited for you!


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

CorbinDallasMyMan said:


> ...I really don't want to wait another 7 to 10 days to see your cage finished! I'm super excited for you!


I KNOW RIGHT? Having to wait is gonna be so frustrating! lol

I ordered some more hides and other goodies for the cage from Chewy. The blue bin feeder in this photo is WAY better than the metal Ware bin feeder I have, for Oxbow. The Ware one's opening is too narrow to let the food fall naturally into the bottom bin whereas this Kaytee one is much wider. I'll probably buy another one of these, or cut the metal one to widen the opening. That way the rats won't have just one place to get their blocks from, in the larger cage. I also plan on purchasing at least one more water bottle, so there's water in 3 places.


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## VivDaRatLuver (Dec 26, 2020)

I love that huge hide! Rats will love the 2 openings!


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

I have one of those already in green, and I ended up taking some shears and cutting additional holes in the other two sides so they have more exits/entrances. It's HUGE and they really like it lol

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## VivDaRatLuver (Dec 26, 2020)

I have seen it a lot on chewy! I might get one soon!


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

The Big Cage has been dropped off at my dad's. He has some stuff being powder coated right now, so he will drop my cage off when he goes to pick his things up this week. He thinks since the wire panels are clean they won't have to spend a lot of extra time stripping and prepping them, so it shouldn't take quite as long as it normally does. But I'm still going with 7-10 business days turnaround.

Dad and I were going to get the pan made today, but we could not find a sheet of aluminum large enough to make a pan at the local hardware store, so he will be going to a friend's machine shop tomorrow (he has business there anyway), and will be picking up a sheet large enough. The machine shop also has the machinery to pinch and roll sheets of metal. 

So what he's going to do is get one big piece of aluminum, cut it into a cross shape, bend the edges of the pan upward with a machine, then weld the 4 seams together to make one solid metal pan. Then it'll be powder coated as well.


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## buddy/sire (Jan 19, 2021)

NICE almost there so exited to see the finished result


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## CorbinDallasMyMan (Feb 24, 2017)

Enne said:


> Dad and I were going to get the pan made today, but we could not find a sheet of aluminum large enough to make a pan at the local hardware store, so he will be going to a friend's machine shop tomorrow (he has business there anyway), and will be picking up a sheet large enough. The machine shop also has the machinery to pinch and roll sheets of metal.
> 
> So what he's going to do is get one big piece of aluminum, cut it into a cross shape, bend the edges of the pan upward with a machine, then weld the 4 seams together to make one solid metal pan. Then it'll be powder coated as well.


Aluminum, interesting! What's the plan for the edges? Bass Equipment pans have a folded edge on the lip so it's not sharp and to give some rigidity.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

Probably going to have him either roll or bend the edges down with the machines at the machine shop.

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## MinkShadow (Mar 5, 2021)

How much has it cost so far?


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## VivDaRatLuver (Dec 26, 2020)

Looks good! I like the bend idea because it will eliminate crevices to clean.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

Dad's going to the metal shop tomorrow, things got busy for him this week. The cage is gonna get finished on his schedule at this point, so it may take a little longer than anticipated, due to race season starting (he builds and maintains race engines/does custom fabrication and welding for people).

Hoping to see the pan take shape in the next few days.

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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

My cage has been lost. No idea when or where it was lost. It was supposed to be delivered to the powder coating place a month ago, and no one there knows where it is. I'm going to have to start over from scratch.

Probably won't have any updates for a while, because I'm absolutely devastated to lose all of that work for no good reason.

I contacted Bass Equipment for a quote on a custom pan and apparently their machines can't make a pan that big, so they can't do it. So I'll probably just make one myself from plexiglass or something, I'm tired of people letting me down.

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## ratsbian (Feb 4, 2021)

Oh no!!! I’m so sorry about the lost cage, that’s awful. I’m so sorry, I hope it is smooth sailing from here on out


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## CorbinDallasMyMan (Feb 24, 2017)

Aaaahh! That's so frustrating. I'm so sorry.


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## TwilxghtRat (Nov 27, 2020)

Wow, that’s horrible. So sorry all your hard work was just lost! 

Good luck from here on out.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

*My cage panels have been found! *They were in the back of a truck no one bothered to look in, until this morning. They should be going off to get powder coated tonight or tomorrow... I'm so relieved lol


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## Angels with Whiskers (Jan 20, 2021)

🎇🎈🎊YAY!!🎊🎈🎇


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

I'm told the cage has been sent off for powder coating this morning (fingers crossed it actually is lmao). Apparently the guy who runs the metal shop has coronavirus, so that's off the table for now... Looking into making a pan out of plexiglass. I've found acrylic panels at Home Depot that are the right size. They even have colored ones, so I might use a black panel for the bottom, and make the sides clear. We'll be joining the pieces of the acrylic panels with some sort of epoxy or sealant, like what is used for making aquariums.


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## CorbinDallasMyMan (Feb 24, 2017)

If you've never worked with acrylic before...

Cutting acrylic is difficult. If you're using a circular saw or table saw, you might end up with rough edges. Clamping and firmly holding the sheet down will reduce vibration and give you a smoother cut. Wear gloves and protective eyewear. The blade will actually melt the acrylic a little as it cuts through and you don't want to get hit with melted plastic. 

Scoring and snapping the sheets is another option but it's more difficult to do by hand. The key is starting slowly with only a little bit of pressure and making sure your first couple passes are very straight. You would always want to score using some sort of clamped down straight-edge as a guide. You can use a standard utility knife/razor blade to score the acrylic but I would recommend getting a special [acrylic scoring tool]. They' just work better. 

If you can cut the edges very cleanly, an acrylic weld product might work better than an epoxy. A welding product is a thin liquid (almost like water in some cases) and it acts as a solvent that melts the surface of the acrylic and the two pieces are bonded/fused together as one. This can be stronger than any sort of "glue." If the cuts are a little rough, though, the lack of a consistent connection wouldn't create as strong of a bond and an epoxy would probably be a better route. 

I don't know exactly what Home Depot stocks but the 0.118" thickness might be okay but the 0.177" would probably be sturdier for the size of your project. 

...Also remember that if you're doing a Martin's style bin that the wire cage sits inside of, the bin needs to be bigger than the outside dimensions of the cage so you'd be looking at a 25" x 49" base size, at least.


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## ratmom! (Mar 11, 2021)

I am just seeing this post!! This is amazing! Great job!


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

I ended up buying 1/8" thick acrylic sheets and scoring/snapping them by hand. I bought two 48x24" pieces. One of them can be the bottom and then I cut the other into 4 side pieces. One piece snapped with a warped edge on one side, but that piece can just be turned so the warped part is at the top. I'm going to sand the edges down and test fit it together. I purchased silicone made specifically for joining acrylic/plastic together, so I think that'll work.

Since the acrylic is thin enough, I'm going to place the cage down over it so the "pan" is inside of the cage bars, rather than having it sit in the pan. There was no way for me to make a larger pan without buying a much larger acrylic sheet than I needed. I will put some sort of padding underneath the entire cage to keep it from scraping on the floor.

I'll most likely build some sort of frame with a set of casters on it later so the cage can be moved around.

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## CorbinDallasMyMan (Feb 24, 2017)

Enne said:


> I purchased silicone made specifically for joining acrylic/plastic together, so I think that'll work.


Silicone might be okay but it's not the strongest bond for acrylic projects. Being that pan will be inside the cage, your rats might nibble as much of the silicone off as they can. I might use something like [SCIGRIP Acrylic Cement], instead. It applies like a clear thick glue but it also acts as a solvent so it melts the surface of the acrylic to create a true bond and it dries hard and can't be nibbled off.



Enne said:


> I'm going to place the cage down over it so the "pan" is inside of the cage bars, rather than having it sit in the pan.


Did you cut the acrylic pieces smaller than 24 x 48? I might wait to put the pan together until you get your cage back and have it assembled. You can use painter's tape to temporarily hold the pan together while you make sure the cage can fit over it.

Also, I know you've been putting a lot of thought and research into this project. I hope I'm not coming off as condescending or anything. When I do projects, I like to look at all of the angles and make sure all bases are covered.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

The cage should flex a little to allow it to slide over the pan. The pan is only an eighth of an inch thick on any side, so it's not like it has to flex much.

I already applied the silicone to the inside joints of the pan. The pan is 5" deep, so they'd have to dig to the bottom to chew on it, if they wanted to do that. I suppose I can get something else to do the outside joints later, if what I used isn't good enough.

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## Jerrick (Mar 14, 2021)

You can always cover the insides with duct tape. That is what Isamu Rat Care did in her tutorial video. I also did, but bear in mind that I don't have rats yet and mine looks like a toddler did it.

You can also duct tape the outer edges instead of sanding it down to make it rat safe.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

After curing overnight I can pick the pan up and it seems pretty sturdy. I feel that it'll be a good fit for the cage. I will look into getting acrylic cement for the outside joints. The silicone was needed as a few edges didn't sit flush, hence some extra material was needed to bridge those gaps on the inside.

Build photos below.

Bought two 1/8" thick 48" x 24" sheets of acrylic at Home Depot for $37 each. One will act as the bottom of the pan, and the other will be cut into pieces and attached to the sides. Also purchased a plastic scoring tool, clamps, razor knife, and the 48" long metal ruler seen in these photos. I scored along the long edge to make 5" high by 48" wide sections. A LOT of scoring had to be done in order to get these to snap off cleanly, and even then I had a few hiccups. But with the dimensions I'm using, I had 5 pieces when I only needed 3, so there was room for practice/error.









After cutting the sheet I then cut one of the pieces in half to make two 24" x 5" pieces for the short sides. You can see I ended up with one piece that isn't perfectly straight along the top, but that's okay... I don't think the rats will mind.










This tool was very handy in making sure I had good 90º angles. This was also the one side piece that didn't snap off perfectly straight lol. I did sand the edges down later, to make sure they weren't sharp.










I peeled back the protective film on the acrylic at the edges, and started setting the joints with acrylic-specific silicone, with a caulking gun. I used an old TV box as a way to keep the acrylic easy to move/off the concrete.









The mostly-finished product. It's ugly right now but it will look better once the protective film is removed. I'll be keeping the protective film on it until the cage is ready to put together. In the meantime I'll seal the outside joints together and let it cure.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

I contacted Bass Equipment about making a 3" deep litter tray, vs a 5" which they said they couldn't make. They will be making me a 50" x 26" x 3" tray from galvanized metal and shipping it to me in 2 pieces. Then I will join them together in the center to make one large pan. So I'll have two pans for the cage, one will be deeper than the other. They said the turnaround time for this pan will be about 6 weeks, so it'll be a while before I get it.

The pan will be $70 plus shipping. I asked them about powder coating, and if they don't offer it I'll have my dad take it and get it powder coated at the same place I'm having the cage done.

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## ratmom! (Mar 11, 2021)

That looks great! It’s so co how you are building your own cage


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## buddy/sire (Jan 19, 2021)

l am exited for the final outcome


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## Rats4All (Feb 4, 2021)

Mhm!


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

The color of powder coat I requested has been on backorder. It should arrive by next week. 

Also, Bass Equipment sent me an invoice today for the 50" x 26" x 3" pan I inquired about earlier. It will be made and shipped in two pieces. The total cost for it was $70 with $30 shipping. I will have it powder coated at a later date.

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## Rats4All (Feb 4, 2021)

Updates????


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

Powder coating is still on backorder, apparently :/


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## Rats_for_life (Feb 17, 2021)

Enne said:


> Powder coating is still on backorder, apparently :/


Looking forward to seeing the finished cage though !


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

Powder arrived late last week. They are very swamped but they will try to fit my cage in this week!


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

Coming soon... 









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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

Picking up the cage tomorrow 

I won't be moving anyone into it until my new baby is old enough to be introduced to my mischief; at least 2 weeks from now. I figured the best time to move them in together would be when there's a brand new cage to explore and thus less chance of anyone getting upset about a new member touching "their" stuff lol. But I will set it up and take photos before then! I need to figure out how I'm gonna decorate the inside and set everything up before anyone moves in anyway, haha.

My Bass litter pan for the bottom should be getting shipped out soon. Just emailed someone last night about the status. They've been super behind on orders, apparently. I will be using the acrylic "pan" I made for the inside of the cage to keep bedding from being kicked out, and then I'll set the cage and the acrylic pan down inside the Bass pan which is larger in width/length/depth by 2 inches. Double protection!


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

The cage is all put together now! Though I'm going to switch the latches to spring latches for more versatility. I want the bottom doors to swing downward and I can't do that with the way the bars are spaced. I'm waiting on my Bass litter pan to arrive also. It took me about 2 hours to assemble using small 4" black cable ties (zip ties). I used cable ties because they are much easier to remove than traditional C-rings or other metal clips, plus plastic won't corrode or rust. The very bottom of the cage is not all the way tied together because I want to put my acrylic litter pan on the inside of the bars, drill a few holes in the acrylic, and use spring clips to attach it to the bottom of the cage. Then when the Bass pan arrives I will sit the entire cage and acrylic pan down inside of it.

In about 2 weeks when Mugen is old enough to meet my other boys, and I do intros, I will move them all into this cage. Until then I'll be busy decorating the cage and figuring out where I want everything to go. I'm very happy with how it turned out.










All the panels laid out before I assembled them:









Closeup of the powder coating below. It is polyester-based, so it's nontoxic and nonvolatile. It was done in a 3-stage method with a base, color, and clear for years of durability. I love the way it came out!


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

When everything is finally put together (I'm waiting on the spring clips) I'll make a final total cost post. I won't be factoring in anything I bought but didn't use/swapped out for something else.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

2 ft. x 50 ft. 16-Gauge Welded Wire Fence with Mesh 1/2 in. x 1 in. - $69.99
Plastic Door Guard x 17 - $11.73
Vinyl Grip Handle x 2 - $2.18
Black 4" Cable Ties (zip ties) x 1000 - $22.32 (didn't use all of them but it never hurts to have a bunch around)
Wire Flush Cutters (made for jewelry wire cutting) - $17.00
Spring door latches x 4 - $4.95 from eBay
Mighty Mats x 12 - $35.88
Urine guards x 4 - $14.75 from eBay

Total Material Cost BEFORE POWDER COATING: $178.80
_(not including other tools, toys and accessories for the rats, etc. just the cost of the things I needed to build the cage itself)_

Acrylic litter pan cost me $78 in acrylic sheets, and a few more dollars for silicone and an acrylic blade.

I did not factor in the cost of powder coating, because the cost will vary depending on your location and availability of this service. I also got mine done at a deep discount, so it wouldn't be fair to include that into a realistic total.

Roughly, the entire project ran me about $300 with materials, tools, and powder coating. I already had a lot of the tools needed, so be prepared to make some extra purchases if you don't have some of the things I outlined in this thread.

Now if only a cage company would sell pre-cut powder coated panels and the other materials as a DIY kit, lol


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

And here's the final product! Very happy with how it turned out, and I think the rats are happy as well. 

Pictured to the left is their old Martin's cage, an R-690 which is 24" W x 14" D x 36" H. The cage I built is 48" W x 24"D x 48" H.


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## ratmom! (Mar 11, 2021)

Oh my gooodness! Thats huge, it looks great!


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

I love coming into my office every day and seeing them in this cage. Cleaning is so much easier with the numerous large doors, they use their litter boxes more often, and overall, they seem happier. I can fit so many fun things in it for them! I just got these donut-patterned pieces for them put up, and they really add to the colorful chaos that is the big cage.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

I got the 2.5" deep metal tray from Bass Equipment to put underneath the cage put in place tonight. So now the floor is extra, extra protected lol. They sent me 2 sets of this pan even though I only ordered one. Guess that was their way of apologizing for the long manufacturing time (it's a custom sized tray to fit this cage).










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## ratmom! (Mar 11, 2021)

Wow that looks so big and nice for them. Just wondering, we’re did you get those cute hammocks? I’ve been looking into getting my rats a set of the same pattern.


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## Enne (Dec 12, 2020)

I had them custom made by someone who makes rat stuff.

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