cheap ledges??

[xoxoimhis]

anyone know where we can find cheap chinchilla ledges?? kind of like the lava ledge but wooden would be fine too. we want to replace all the "ramps" with ledges to hop on so the bars don't hurt their little paws. but everywhere we go online or in stores, it would cost us sooooo much money!! we would at least need 6 of them for now. preferably big enough for 2 chin-chins!!

also if anyone makes their own for a cheap price let me know!! ^_^

 

[greychins]

I'm sure there's a ton of places that can make and ship you ledges, but the shipping would probably run you a fortune. For example, I make and sell wooden shelves, and I just shipped out a few shelves to someone only a few hours drive away... and it cost them $15 in shipping, cause the shelves weighed something like 10-11 pounds... it might be worth your while to try to make some yourself? Some hardware stores will cut the wood for you, and it's not hard to make the shelves. I think there's even a thread floating around that talks about how to make shelves if I'm not mistaken...

 

[Brittany]

Here's a great thread on how to make shelves. perches are the same, you just cut them shorter. If you or your hubby have any muscles whatsoever you won't even need powertools. I usually have my uncle or boyfriend use a hack saw. I did it myself once, but I'm just not strong enough.

http://www.chins-n-hedgies.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9311

 

[ChinnyMom]

when you go get your kd pine boards from somewhere like home depot, often they will cut it for you for a small fee or for free (in my case it was free, because it was just a few cuts). just make sure you know your cage measurements beforehand if you want shelves that run the length of any of the cage sides.

then you'll need hanger bolts, washers, and wing nuts. and a really good pair of pliers! take a look at the tutorial here about installing shelf hardware, it's pretty good. http://www.chins-n-hedgies.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9311

 

[liewwan]

Home depot cuts them for free. I just stopped there the other day to pick up the supplies to make 10 ledges and 3 shelves and spent less than $20. It also doesn't take long to make it, I'm coloring mine with food color so right now they are just drying.

 

[xoxoimhis]

oh wow so much information!! thank you all SO SO MUCH!! and i'm curious about this food coloring!! how does this work?? id like to see the finished product if you have photos!!

thanks so much everyone!!

 

[xoxoimhis]

OH!! and also what is the BEST wood?? that thread says pine or poplar boards. but which is the sturdiest / safest??

 

[ChinnyMom]

pine boards are just fine. chins don't weigh much (even the chunkier ones are usually less than 2 pounds), so as long as you have your hanger bolts into the wood good and they are tightened securely on the cage, you'll be fine.

 

[xoxoimhis]

pine boards are just fine. chins don't weigh much (even the chunkier ones are usually less than 2 pounds), so as long as you have your hanger bolts into the wood good and they are tightened securely on the cage, you'll be fine.

are there any types of wood i should definitely avoid?? like any that could kill them or make them ill?? i would hate to get them something poisonous.

 

[greychins]

I'd personally stick to just the pine or poplar. Keep it simple and you can't go wrong. The other woods that most hardware stores have are woods like cedar - which is unsafe, fir (which some say safe, some say not), and so on... I would think the grand majority of people with wood shelves have some sort of pine shelves... because it's known to be safe and its reasonably priced.

 

[xoxoimhis]

I'd personally stick to just the pine or poplar. Keep it simple and you can't go wrong. The other woods that most hardware stores have are woods like cedar - which is unsafe, fir (which some say safe, some say not), and so on... I would think the grand majority of people with wood shelves have some sort of pine shelves... because it's known to be safe and its reasonably priced.

thank you so much!! ^_^

 

[liewwan]

oh wow so much information!! thank you all SO SO MUCH!! and i'm curious about this food coloring!! how does this work?? id like to see the finished product if you have photos!!

thanks so much everyone!!

I used the food coloring found in the baking isle from the grocery store. Got the neon pack. Comes in 4 colors. Below is a link of pictures I put up, the first picture of Sparkle on the pink ledge is the one I made.
http://chins-n-hedgies.com/forums/showthread.php?t=27012
I painted the food color on with a paint brush, just follow the instruction on proper mix of water and food color. Make sure you sun dry it outside for a day though.

 

[ChinnyMom]

and get your pine boards from the moulding section, not the regular lumber section. quite often the pine in the lumber section is SPF (Spruce/Pine/Fir) and it's all mixed and even the home depot employees don't know which boards are which.

i go straight to the moulding section whenever i'm buying pine boards. they are nice and smooth sanded too, because the boards in this section are used for finishing work inside homes.