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Your thought's for a reptile rack.....

A

albyalby1

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So with my next daughter on the way i have decided to step away from reptiles. As a side thing i want to start making my own racks for people in this hobby. I have had a few different racks and some have worked great and others did not. Some of them had a fair price and others cost thousands.

So my wife's father has a CNC Machine company and i have been kicking the idea around with him about making our own racks. There is a few things i would like to know from you all what would you like that current racks don't have or maybe you would like to change. Below i am just going to ask a few things and if you have the time please feel free to let me know...


1. What do you feel is a fair price on a rack that would be made with the cnc machine. A nice sturdy well crafted rack?

2. Do you prefer a wood or metal rack?

3.Do you feel that the current tubs on the market are easy to clean/ absorb heat and are good for the reptile?

4. Heat rope is out of the question.... Do you like belly or back heat better?

5. Do you think current rack offer the right size? Would you like a bigger or smaller rack?

If there is anything else you would like to add let me know.

Thanks for your time Albert L
 
Please keep in mind I don't know much about cnc machines & what the capabilities are regarding to size & materials.

1. What do you feel is a fair price on a rack that would be made with the cnc machine. A nice sturdy well crafted rack? Obviously the manufacturing company would need to make profit but total price I think it would depend on rack size & materials used.

2. Do you prefer a wood or metal rack? again it would depend on the size of the rack in regards to weight. Plain wood would probably not be as popular as Melamine or something that is better sealed. It probably would also depend on the heat & humidity needed for a particular species.

3.Do you feel that the current tubs on the market are easy to clean/ absorb heat and are good for the reptile? I don't currently have a rack but use a similar tub as a hide box & can verify it absorbs heat well & is very easy to clean. I think the affordability of these tubs is also a bonus.

4. Heat rope is out of the question.... Do you like belly or back heat better? I currently use heat panels & love them but also know belly heat could be preferred for certain species & can be an asset to many reptiles in digestion & when pregnant. Enough above heat can be maintained in substrate for a good amount of critters but I definitely would offer both options if possible.

5. Do you think current rack offer the right size? Would you like a bigger or smaller rack? I personally would like to see larger style racks. A majority of reptile keeps have multiple animals. People with larger animals (burmese pythons or boas) that require more space are limited to certain enclosures where keepers of smaller animals (example:ball pythons or corns) have a little more options.

If there is anything else you would like to add let me know.
If you create a quality rack large enough to house large critters while maintaining heat/humidity, that takes up minimum room, & is affordable let me know. The ideal of above access rather side sounds a lot easier to me for removing larger critters as well as cleaning.
 
I like bigger racks... that being said, I too am looking into manufacturing a better system to keep my Drymarchons in.
The size of tub I would like is 12" tall, 8' wide and 30" deep for the adults. I'm thinking of acrylic for the tubs themselves, and imbedding a leaf pattern such as Mossy Oak inside the acrylic with a few spots for "windows" between the leaves so the snake can see out and you can see in, but the animal still has privacy.
The frame would be metal, preferably aluminum, and beefy. Wood is out of the question since you can't sterilize it.
As for a formula on price, I would follow the rule of Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream and have no employee, including yourself, making more than 7 times the wage of another, then try and make 100% profit on materials, and see where the price lands.
I'd have a combo of belly and basking heat sources as well, but have not really gotten that figured out yet. Just my $.02
 
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