My shelving unit

[sammer021486]

To conserve space in my apartment I built a shelving unit that uses sliders to conserve space and allow me to have more tanks on one shelf. I left it as its natural wood, without stain because I like the looks of the natural wood and its now winter up here so I have no way of safely staining the shelf.

I am using Visionariums for my 4 crested geckos, on the top shelf. I had them in larger tanks, with plenty of coverage but they just sat at the bottom of the tank all the time. Bought a Visionarium and now they are running all over the place in them. I am using a Mist King Automatic misting system to provide them with their daily mistings.

Second from top shelf has my 2 Blizzards in the breeder tanks as they are called by my family.

Second from bottom I have 3 normals (2 are het 100% blizzard) and my TUG Phantom.

The bottom shelf is for my supplies and feeders.

 

[Bellalee]

Thats an awesome idea. Like it.

 

[Tony C]

That is awesome, I love it.

 

[OneFootedAce]

love the look of it! and i really like the idea of the sliding shelves!

 

[project1]

sweet looks like my old beardie rake! the sliders are nice arent they! i hope you checked the weight rating for each slider. all and all its freekin sweet!

 

[Srt14292]

Thats a cool set up fella!

 

[gitrdone0420]

Wow, what a great idea! I may steal it from ya ;-)
Would it be affordable to work on for someone who doesnt have a terrible lots of money to blow?

 

[adam&nikki]

wow i love this set up this is one idea i might take since im starting to run outa room i have 12 tanks in my living room as it is and this idea would be perfect to cut down on some room

 

[sammer021486]

sweet looks like my old beardie rake! the sliders are nice arent they! i hope you checked the weight rating for each slider. all and all its freekin sweet!

I love the sliders, I had a difficult time finding them though. I eventually found them from www.specialtysupplies.com for a little less than $14/ea. They are 24" accuride sliders that support 100lbs per pair. Before installing the sliders I had to pull each of the 10 gallons out and I was afraid of them falling off of the shelf when I was cleaning them so I decided to put sliders in after only 1 week of building the shelf.

Wow, what a great idea! I may steal it from ya ;-)
Would it be affordable to work on for someone who doesnt have a terrible lots of money to blow?

Not a problem that is why I posted it up. I ended up spending $70 for the wood (more than was necessary because of a wood quality error), $20 for the bolts and screws, $50 for the sliders. Without the error on my part for the quality of the wood. I would have ended up spending $100, $50 for wood and $50 for the sliders. I didn't have my saws so I just used bolts and washers to extend the shelf so the sliders would fit. If I had my saws I would have just cut the lower shelves to fit the sliders.

wow i love this set up this is one idea i might take since im starting to run outa room i have 12 tanks in my living room as it is and this idea would be perfect to cut down on some room

I live in a bachelor's apartment so space is a big issue for me. I originally built the shelf without seeing the apartment, just went on what my parents said it looked like. I was out of town when the landlord had the apartment open for showing. So after learning the space and then seeing the place, I had to add the sliders for the safety of my tanks and to make it easier to clean tanks.

All the 10 gallons are ran by the bottom Ranco and I have plugs mounted under the shelf that I can expand to include as many plug-ins as I like. The top Ranco runs my two breeders.

 

[biggiy05]

How will the wood hold up over the years with a UTH or heat tape on it or do you have the tanks elevated so they don't touch the wood?

 

[sammer021486]

How will the wood hold up over the years with a UTH or heat tape on it or do you have the tanks elevated so they don't touch the wood?

I use the rubber feet that you get with the exo-terra heat mats. I use them also to keep the cord from being pinched, which could cause a fire. Heat tape is not insured in Canada so I am limited to heat mats, cable or lamps. The wood should be just fine, the mats are not really that hot to cause damage to the wood.

In my melamine breeders I have the mats on top of the melamine and then slate on top of the mat, been like that for almost 4 yrs now.

 

[LizMarie]

Samuel this is a GREAT idea! I actually read Nevin's rack tutorial and thought it was pretty simple and have most of the measurements since my rack isn't much of a rack but an idea of a modified box shelf. I'm not very handy so I'm hoping that the hardware store I go to will be more than willing to cut the wood for me. And is was what I was looking for but I have no idea what size to buy, lmao.

Anyone want to help? I'm using plastic containers and the shelves themselves should be 23 (front) x15 (sides) inches so I don't need the heavy duty ones, there are so many options, lol. Did they come with their own hardware or did you have to buy your own?

 

[sammer021486]

Samuel this is a GREAT idea! I actually read Nevin's rack tutorial and thought it was pretty simple and have most of the measurements since my rack isn't much of a rack but an idea of a modified box shelf. I'm not very handy so I'm hoping that the hardware store I go to will be more than willing to cut the wood for me. And is was what I was looking for but I have no idea what size to buy, lmao.

Anyone want to help? I'm using plastic containers and the shelves themselves should be 23 (front) x15 (sides) inches so I don't need the heavy duty ones, there are so many options, lol. Did they come with their own hardware or did you have to buy your own?

Hi, I am not too sure, but I think that you are referring to the sliders. Mine did not come with the mounting hardware, but the only hardware required were screws to mount the slider, which I had plenty of. If the shelf is only 15" deep then I would recommend a 14" slider. Home depot carries them for around $5 per pair like the style found on desks for your keyboard. These sliders can handle 55lbs per pair, which you probably will not meet using plastic tubs.

At home depot, as well, I think that mine gives me 5 free cuts and then charges $1 per additional cut. The store employees are pretty good for waiving that fee if the store is not really busy or there are not a lot of cuts to make. The best way to do the cutting at the store is to bring the whole plan of the shelf/rack with you so you have the measurements and if the employee is good with plans may help get the most cuts out of the material reducing the cost and material use.

I am not sure if you have chosen a building material, but depending on the price melamine or plywood that is 1/2" thick will be required to use the slider idea. Melamine would be good because of its water proof capabilities, but plywood and some stain may cost less and possibly weigh a lot less too.

 

[Tommy13b]

Very cool, i love how they slide out.