Deeper pan for critter nation cage

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horselo285

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jan 18, 2012
Messages
126
Location
Long Island
Hi everyone!

Ok, so I gave it a really good try making fitted blankets for my critter nation pans. My rats rip through them like they are nothing and I have to sew a completely new one everytime I clean the cage.
If I don't sew them so they are fitted, they shred them even quicker and make more of a mess. As is, within a day or so of cleaning the cage, they are pooping outside their litterbox and then going under the blankets and the poop gets thrown out of the cage. This is absolutely no good as I have young children and dont want poop around them

I was thinking of getting the galvanized steel pans I have seen for the critter nation. http://www.bassequipment.com/Cages/Ferr ... fault.aspx If I did that, what would I need to do to the pan so they stay as non-smelly as possible?

Any other ideas on ways to make a good, deeper pan for the cage, specifically for the cut out level? I actually have a pan for the bottom level but it is not really the right size (the top is wider then the bottom making it secure but making the actual space they have to run and play smaller. Plus it is pretty tall.) but it works.

Thoughts would be greatly appreciated!!

Thanks,

Laura
 
Hi!

Thanks for the reply!

Where did you have them made?

My biggest issue with ordering the ones available online is that I believe I would need to paint them and let it completely cure, which from what I understand would take about a month? That would mean it would be a good month and a half until I get the pan in the cage. :-(

Of I could find something that would be faster, I would be much happier. lol
 
If you try an American rat forum, you might find out if there is anywhere in your country you can buy them.
That way you will not have to worry about possible duty, brokerage fees, etc
 
I had this problem with my girlies as well. :p I, however couldn't afford to get the metal pans. :/
I've made some out of coroplast and they actually are working quite well. They will have to be replaced more, but its quite easy to cut them and shape them into a deep pan, you can also make small pans for the upper shelves. I got 2 levels and 2 shelves out of one big sheet that I got for about $15.
 
SQ said:
If you try an American rat forum, you might find out if there is anywhere in your country you can buy them.
That way you will not have to worry about possible duty, brokerage fees, etc
Click to expand...

I didn't think about that. :-/ I e-mailed them for a shipping quote so I guess I will see what they see and in the meantime, see what else I can find. :)
 
Mrsbeccabear55 said:
I had this problem with my girlies as well. :p I, however couldn't afford to get the metal pans. :/
I've made some out of coroplast and they actually are working quite well. They will have to be replaced more, but its quite easy to cut them and shape them into a deep pan, you can also make small pans for the upper shelves. I got 2 levels and 2 shelves out of one big sheet that I got for about $15.
Click to expand...


Thats awesome! Is there anyway you could take some pictures for me to look at? How exactly did you shape them into the pan? What did you use to attach the sides together?

Thanks so much!
 
Lol, no problem. It's actually quite simple to do. I use corroplast for my guinea pigs cages so I learned a lot from their site. http://www.guineapigcages.com/howto.htm
It tells you how to cut and score your corroplast and then fold up the edges. I used clear plastic tape as my girlies don't ever touch it. But if you find your rats are chewing on it you can also use hot glue to glue the sides together.
I like them a lot because you can choose how tall you want your sides to be. I'll put up some pics of the girls cage.

522018_10151462957040065_896455064_23587443_112393798_n.jpg

^this is the whole view of one of the levels. It would be easy to make the corner where your cutout would be, just literally cut it out. :p

555032_10151462958140065_896455064_23587463_582575646_n.jpg

^this is how I made/attached the upper trays. Just with little zip-ties. :D

383442_10151462958560065_896455064_23587471_2072112718_n.jpg

^you can see the corners of the corroplast better in this one. They just wrap around the sides and then I taped them down.

The one thing I would say if you were going to do this is MEASURE TWICE... or three times. I actually just put the black tray over the corroplast and traced it so I would know I measured right. After it's been scored, it's very hard to score and fold it in a different place. :p
If you need any more pictures just send me a PM and I'll upload more. But that gpigs website helped me a whole lot. :D
 
I'm so depressed! I have been trying to find affordable coroplast and have had success thus far. :-(

Everything seems to be sold in cases of 10 or 12 online (super expensive). The only sheets I found that were affordable were on ebay and were smaller than I need. I have not been able to find any stores around me selling small quantities. :-(

I got the quote from the pan in canada and it will be another $30 to ship it. :-(

The only one I can find in the U.S. needs to be painted and cured so even if they ship it quickly it will still be a while before I can put it in their cage.

I can't wait that long with the issues im having with poop ending up all over my floor. :-( I am picking up poop and vaccuming all the time and my 17 month old son still finds some occasionally. Understandably, I am super concerned about this.

I am thinking of buying the "scatter guards" that I have seen sold for ferret nations. They have mixed reviews though...anyone have any experience with them? Or any ideas how I can make my own? (Besides cardboard...my girls will rip through that in 3 minutes....)

Thanks!!!
 
Personally, coroplast has not worked for me. My guys/girls go through it so quickly its ridiculous. I made a pan when my boys decided it would be fun to chew through the bottom of their plastic bottom cage and it was gone the next day (and that was after they were out for over an hour to run around). Its a great idea, as long as the little stinkers don't find out how "fun" it is to destroy it :giggle:

lol Mrsbeccabear55, I love the cage, I wish my guys didn't demo the coroplast so quickly! It look so nice and clean.
 
crumbilina said:
Personally, coroplast has not worked for me. My guys/girls go through it so quickly its ridiculous. I made a pan when my boys decided it would be fun to chew through the bottom of their plastic bottom cage and it was gone the next day (and that was after they were out for over an hour to run around). Its a great idea, as long as the little stinkers don't find out how "fun" it is to destroy it :giggle:

lol Mrsbeccabear55, I love the cage, I wish my guys didn't demo the coroplast so quickly! It look so nice and clean.
Click to expand...

Haha, unfortunately this seems to be the case with most ratties, I'm very lucky that my girls don't even pay attention to it. It's unfortunate because it is so easy to clean.. I hated the black plastic pans because they were textured and hard it made it hard to clean all the urine off. :/

Horselo, I'm sorry you're having such a tough time finding some. D: I have to go about an hour away to get mine. I think I have seen someone with cardboard scatter guards that they covered in duct tape.. I think? But I feel like your rats would chew through that too. :thud:
 
Oh well! lol Thats life, right? :-D

I decided to order the guards that you can attach to the CN pans.....they had mixed reviews, but I am hopeful I can make them work! :)

Spent waaaay more than I should have because (of course) since I was placing an order, I had to look for any good deals on new toys and treats for my girls. lol
 
Almost started a new thread before I saw this one. I've been thinking about purchasing pans from Bass Equipment. After having the Midwest scatter guards for less than two months, I've decided that I absolutely LOATHE them! :rant:

Bedding gets behind and under the guards, so I have to completely remove them during my weekly cage cleanings. I want to be able to clean my big CN cage like my Super Pet cages. Scoop the bedding out with a brush and dustpan, then give it a wipe down (unless it's unusually messy, then I disassemble the entire cage). I've already tried coroplast and my girls destroyed it. I noticed that that Bass Equipment has come out with plastic pans for some of their rabbit cages, but don't have any in the CN/FN size. It appears I'll be stuck with metal...

So my question is: Who here has Bass pans and how do you like them? What do you use to coat them, and how easy is it?
 

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