Podcasts are an excellent way to keep up-to-date on what is going on in herpetoculture!
We’re all about supporting the community and very much appreciate the following podcasts having Stephen and I at Focus Cubed Habitats on to chat about enclosures, reptiles, and life! Huge thanks to Trap Talk Reptile Podcast, Mutation Creation Canada, Modern Medusa Podcast, The Reptile Gumbo Podcast, GTP Keeper Radio, Big Reptile Talk, Chondro Bar Room, The Herpetoculture Network, and Corallus Radio!
It is a rainy day here in Texas as we get going on building two 8x4x4 water monitor enclosures today! Stay tuned to Stories for our antics, and maybe a vlog drop soon. In the meantime, take a few minutes to check out this EPIC comic book themed enclosure we sent to Reach Out Reptiles for Felix the African House snake!
Subscribe to the Wild World TV channel while you’re there!
Imagine your most valuable investment besides your home, hovering over what as near as makes no difference – the void.
The void. The empty space below two borrowed forklifts and a stranger whose name you don’t even know.
Yesterday was a masterclass lesson in overcoming fear, the kindness of others, and belief in that little thing called fate.
The stage leading up to this moment had a lot of stairs to climb. Almost exactly three years ago we bought our first hobby CNC to make not reptile enclosures, but PC parts.
The computer parts didn’t happen and we left our consistent careers working maybe 50 hrs a week to start a little garage business we eventually named Focus Cubed Habitats.
As Stephen and I quickly learned, those wonderfully short 50-hour work weeks were as much a part of the past as our childhood safety blankets.
Fast forward to the week that will go down in history not only because of this moment pictured but for what others had to offer to make it all happen.
Now for the meat and potatoes. Our new CNC showed up not only a month early of the estimated delivery (late December, early January 2023), it showed up a day earlier than the scheduled delivery day of Friday.
You know what else happened to be scheduled for the new CNC delivery day of Thursday? The beginning out our extensive home repair process. I’ll leave the lovely details of this saga for another time, but imagine foundation, plumbing, drywall, and broken appliances all in one.
Family stepped up to help babysit the workers at the house. Ok, one panic attack down. That left the question of HOW to get the ever-approaching 4800lb CNC machine off the trailer. All forklift rentals were booked. We reached out to a neighbor we’d seen with a forklift. Sure enough, he was willing to let us use his. Problem? We didn’t know the fork size or the weight. Cool. But, we didn’t have any other option other than to believe it would work. We didn’t sleep Wednesday night.
Thursday morning dawned bright and sunny. The neighbor’s 8000lb forklift was indeed heavy enough to lift the load, but she had 4-foot forks. We needed 6-8ft ones to reach under the behemoth of a CNC machine. Insert expletive here. In a pinch, we knew we had some 6ft fork extensions collecting dust in a corner. Time to dust those puppies off.
We worked through the day machining, assembling, and shipping orders until a delivery driver wandered in the shop at 2 pm. Right on time, “I have your machine. Where do you want me to park?”
We lay eyes on the shipment for the first time and all blood drained from our faces. It was HUGE. Stephen silently gets in the forklift to approach the mountain sitting on the trailer. There’s no way….
The very sweet driver unchained the beast, removed the snow packing, and motioned for us to unload it.
Once positioned, lifting began. Then immediately stopped. The fork extensions fit perfectly on the other side, nice and stable. But, the gantry centered on the machine stuck out so far that the load was too far out towards the tips of the extensions. As Stephen lifted they bowed, the machine hovered on three corners, but the fourth remained seated on the trailer.
No go. There was no way we were going to risk any more. What now? Our backup plan was to call a wrecker with a boom crane or rollback, but that would take a few hours for them to arrive. The nice, tired driver looked at us resigned to his fate of not getting any sleep that day.
In a last-ditch idea I left Stephen and the driver standing in the road and ran down the block to another business I thought I’d seen a forklift months earlier.
I arrived at their front door looking like a prey animal, wide-eyed and wiry, “Hi. Strange question. Do you have a forklift??”
The men looked at me quizzically, “Not a weird question. We get asked all the time. And yes, we do, come look!”
I chanted in my head, “Please have longer forks, please have longer forks, please….”
The door opened, and a gleaming new forklift sat looking shiny. Four. Foot. Forks.
Damn. I explained to the guys what was going on and that we were their crazy neighbors at the end of the row trying to unload a CNC that didn’t want to budge.
“What if you used… two forklifts? One on each side. Would that work?” one of the men asked.
I looked at them and not so quietly shrieked, “Brilliant idea!”
The next couple of hours had our hearts in our throats and tears streaming down my face. Stephen and the unnamed man lifted our future off the trailer as I directed the patient driver to pull the trailer out at the right moment.
Then, ever so slowly, the dance began. It isn’t so difficult to understand the mechanics of the process. Lift CNC, pull out the trailer, lower CNC onto ground. The reality of the amount of trust we had to place on others and the emotion of the situation was crushing.
In a tense minute, our CNC gently lowered on cool, firm, lovely concrete. We all let out a whoop in celebration. Yes, Stephen and me, the unnamed man, and the kind driver all celebrated the moment of teamwork.
As we all unpacked the shipment to check for damage since now we were bonded as a team, I learned the driver’s son was going to school to be a CNC operator and this was a big moment for him to see such a machine, and Justin, the unnamed man, had been wanting to get a CNC to work on his side woodworking hobby. A small world full of amazing people and stories.
Our journey is woven into these posts, videos, and most importantly, intertwined with your own story. Indeed, your faith, support, and encouragement have helped create something more than simply just a reptile enclosure manufacturing small business. Like the helpful stranger on the forklift and the kind delivery driver, we’re working together with you to lift the reptile-keeping world to new heights.
Our Heretic, a modified Apex model 3x2x4 enclosure, bucks convention by boasting 10 inches of substrate area, staggered side windows, carbon fiber perches, and computer-controlled misting and humidity management.
This Heretic is built with a wide range of heating and lighting components. Programmable Jungle Hobbies Advanced LED lighting, Arcadia Shadedweller UVB, 50w Acadia Halogen, and 100w ProProducts RHP are all a part of the wide array of UVA and UVB offerings for the reptile, live plants, and isopods living in the enclosure’s ecosystem.
Starting from the bottom, this deep substrate dam is filled with 144qts of BioDude TerraFirma soil which is visible through the clear Heretic logo CNC milled into the front of the enclosure.
Planted within are two Bromeliads, one Mass Cane (dracaena fragrans massangeana), one Auntie Lou Cordyline (cordyline fruticosa Auntie Lou), one Dracaena, and some Golden Pothos for floor cover with leaf litter sprinkled throughout. The back wall is sheeted by a large Universal Rocks background.
Cascading frosted acrylic perch mounts are bolted to both side walls between the staggered windows. Carbon fiber perches of varying outside diameters are fitted to these mounts allowing for climbing opportunities throughout a wide range of temperature and humidity gradients. The 35″ interior width coupled with a variety of perch placements in this enclosure offer basking areas under Halogen heat, Halogen/UVB, UVB/RHP, or just RHP.
Both left and right walls of this enclosure are fitted with 1 hygrometer/thermometer each to control either an automated misting system or a 4-inch inline fresh air intake fan. There is one forced air intake grate located on the right wall in the lower rear portion just above the substrate offset by a small exhaust fan on the left side in the upper front wall corner.
The hygrometer on the right side of the Heretic is used to trigger a 4-inch inline fan with a charcoal air filter to limit maximum humidity. When this system is triggered the inline fan gradually pulls in fresh ambient air from outside the enclosure through the charcoal filter and down an exterior hose where it enters through the lower side grate.
The moist air is expelled through the exhaust fan in the upper left wall until the desired humidity level is reached. This system cycles on and off as needed to limit maximum humidity parameters. The ventilation programming display shows temperature, humidity level, and current fan speed so the user can monitor the internal conditions without the aid of any additional thermometers/hygrometers.
However, two additional mounts were added towards the side centers to help map the temp and humidity gradients via Bluetooth SensorPush units.
The left side of the enclosure features the sensor and controls to add humidity to the environment. A 5th generation MistKing with HT-24 Hygrostat monitors the humidity levels lower down near the substrate and live plants.
When the moisture level falls below the set threshold, the MistKing will pull water from a 5-gallon reserve located in a two-foot-tall stand upon which the Heretic sits. Ceiling-mounted misting nozzles add moisture to the enclosure until the minimum set level is reached. Water accumulates on perches and plants which drips down to the soil.
If too much aerosolized water remains in the air, the humidity management system slowly ramps on to bring the level back in check. The HT-24 Hygrostat displays both temperature and humidity levels for the left portion of the enclosure.
The roof of the Heretic is the primary mounting location for the majority of the electronics. All heating and lighting elements are internally mounted with the exception of the Advanced LED system. The large size and potential heat generated by this particular element require it to be placed on top of the enclosure over a clear window.
This light is biased towards the front leaving room for the air filtration and inline fan to be mounted behind it. All internal ceiling cords as well as all probe cords are covered to keep down the potential for unwanted climbing activities.
This is our first test of a fully automated enclosure. Optimizing the blend of heating, lighting, and overall environmental controls will require diligent monitoring as we refine the Heretic. We look forward to the insights gained and the evolution of our contributions to reptile keeping.
Would be really cool of you to subscribe and share to show your support for the future of our hobby!
AND BONUS VLOG EPISODE – Ever wonder what it is like hanging around the Focus Cubed Habitats shop and home? Well… here is a small 24-hour window where we shoot for the USARK channel takeover video, receive our super dwarf retic from Reach Out Teptiles, finish packing 30 enclosures, pick up and unload a pallet of PVC, and head to the airport to welcome my mom for the weekend!
We built our first prototype C3 3x2x2 months ago, with the original idea behind it formed years back. Finally, technology and material availability met for an amazing match in these fresh builds for the one and only Bill Stegall of @phoenix.reptiles
To start, the first upgrade that catches your eye is the HDPE wood grain front. These two HDPE pieces are both aesthetic and structural components. While they look great they also provide support for sliding tracks to accommodate 1/4″ tempered polished glass. Similar to musical instrument neck construction, the sliding bases feature multi-component assembly utilizing both wood-look HDPE and a 1/2″ PVC backing plate. Not only do they look phenomenally clean, but they’re also incredibly rigid.
To further accent these pieces we added a recessed, floating, frosted Focus Cubed logo encapsulated by a bolt-on viewing window. While being ridiculously cool, this unique component pays homage to the next generation of enclosure ventilation.
Mounted in the upper rear wall (cool side) of these enclosures is one variable speed fan. This fan allows for airflow on demand by pulling outside ambient air through the bypassing front doors across the cool side/hotside transition. There is a second probe cord cover located next to the fan where a hygrometer/thermometer probe can be mounted to monitor or automate internal conditions.
Along with these wicked upgrades, you can see some of our favorites like the dual ceiling mounted PlantClamps, 15/20/20mm carbon fiber perch combo resting on HDPE mounts, 32″ LED with cord cover, and 80-watt heat panel. This unit even features a thermostat probe guide with an adjacent thermostat probe cover to allow for probe installation/removal without the need to pull apart any walls or roof panels and no drilling of any access holes.
Get a closer look and video walkthrough with this C3’s Enclosure Talk on the Focus Cubed Habitats YouTube channel, link in Stories. Also, keep an eye out for MJ’s vlog of our delivery to Bill’s place & our very own Making Of vlog!
Moving right along with our NARBC weekend model release recap – meet the Yin & Yang C2 Slider 2x2x2 build!
Stephen tossed around several ideas for these two foot Sliders and landed on the concept of Yin and Yang – the matching opposites. The first C2 features a red front and holographic logo with the gray build featuring a chrome red logo.
Each of these matching opposite builds has a variable speed fan like the ones we included in the sister C3 Sliders featured in our post yesterday. This fan allows for airflow on demand by pulling outside ambient air through the bypassing front doors across the cool side/hotside transition. Also included is a second probe cord cover located next to the fan where a hygrometer/thermometer probe can be mounted to monitor or automate internal airflow and humidity.
Continuing with the tradition, each C2 is optioned with dual ceiling mounted PlantClamps, 12/15/20mm carbon fiber perch combo resting on HDPE mounts, 22″ LED, and 40-watt heat panel. Some very cool design ideas Stephen machined into these are the thermostat probe guide with an adjacent thermostat probe cover to allow for probe installation/removal without the need to pull apart any walls or roof panels and no drilling of any access holes.
Get a closer look and video walk through with these C2’s Enclosure Talk on the Focus Cubed Habitats YouTube channel.
What can we say, we’re incredibly excited to share our KINOVA Special Projects reptile room Focus Cubed Habitats enclosure build and two-day journey with you! Few people know it, but my first snakes were pied ball pythons and the little girl inside had a dream come true working with and visiting KINOVA.
Follow along with us as we unload the materials, machine, build, pack, and travel cross-country to deliver to one of the premier reptile breeding facilities in the Nation. Stephen and I drove straight through the night from Texas to Georgia, met with the amazing Summer, Justin, and crew, unloaded enclosures, and then headed BACK to Texas for another overnight drive to pick up our pups from boarding. Intense – that’s how we do it here at Focus Cubed Habitats!
Also do us a favor and go check out KINOVA’s Hetflix Episode 176 of their Special Projects room update, subscribe to their channel, and show your support to the KINOVA team!
On a rare Sunday post, I wanted to share the story of my dad recently taking his first step into becoming a reptile keeper!
About this time a year ago our world was turned upside down. After a whirlwind of uncertain weeks in the ICU, surgeries, and hospital visits followed over the next 8 months he got to spend some time with our reptiles.
Now, he is no stranger to them; my parents were the champions of my love of reptiles and he grew up catching wild snakes in rural Texas as a boy. But he’d never kept a reptile in his life.
Stephen, me, and some close friends had the wonderful opportunity to begin his choice of builds recently in preparation for his new reptile!
Once we decide on when his new family member arrives we’ll get live plants and a clean-up crew added, but he is oh so proud of his new setup and that is the fundamental reason why we do this. Keeping reptiles is a whole experience!
Whether it be with your family, friends, or pets…take a moment to share some joy together.
Reptile rooms are an experience. A way to bring the beauty of these amazing creatures into our homes. A zen space for some, a place of excitement for others.
Over the last three years we’ve prototyped and tested our models in the pursuit of making not only enclosures that function well, but ones that create an experience.
Where do they go?
Welcome to our reptile room!
Well…one of them at least. Here you can see a progression of models and working prototypes we’ve built over the years. At half completion, Stephen and I are thrilled to continue testing ideas that will benefit keepers like you and the animals you love.
They may not know it, but our reptiles have quite an important career. Some take the day shift, some prefer the night shift – and all of them have great benefit packages
