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Plastic storage bin?

Idril

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I am going to build my two guinea pigs a cage. However, the whole coroplast thing seems so complicated and I have a feeling I'll have to travel to a store 45 minutes away just to buy this stuff. So I thought, as an alternative, I could use a shallow but large transparent plastic storage bin and put the wire cage inside of the bin?

Such as this one: (but of course with no lid and a much bigger one)



I was wondering if it's safe or if it would grow fungus or something funky like that.
 
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Percy's Mom

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I'm not sure what's complicated about the coroplast. 45 minutes away doesn't seem like that far to get supplies to me. I'm generally stupid about construction type things, and it seemed pretty straight forward to me. As far as the bin goes, I doubt you're going to find one big enough, especially if you plan on putting the cube grid walls inside it. I have several of those type bins for storage, and I have yet to find one that has straight enough walls or is large enough to use for the base of a cage.

How many pigs do you have?
 

Slap Maxwell

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Plastic storage bins will absolutely not work. Number one, they are way too small. None of the underbed ones or meet the size minimums, and the ones with sides over 6" or so have ventilation problems and are still too small.

I traveled 35-40 minutes to get my coro. It's not a huge deal, and I am sure you can find a sign store closer than that. Just look in the Yellow Pages.

Look on the homepage for size minnimuns. You want a 2x4 for 1-2 pigs, bigger if more.
 

Idril

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Alright, but my parents will not be willing to drive more than twenty minutes to get some specific kind of plastic to build a new cage for two five year old guinea pigs. That's the problem.
 

Slap Maxwell

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What is your zip code? I can look around online and try and find a sign shop.
 

Idril

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Thank you :) Anywhere near 94598.
 

Slap Maxwell

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Closest place I can find is Dean's Signs on 1717 University Ave, Berkeley. Another place is Sign & Sign Again on 219 9th, in San Francisco.

Also look in your local phone book in the yellow pages under "signs".
 

Idril

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Thank you very much ^^ My parents might take me to Berkeley but probably not San Francisco. Thanks!
 

Percy's Mom

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(broken link removed)

Here are the results from your zip code off of Yahoo yellow pages. I hope that helps some.
 

Idril

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Would I be able to find coroplast at a hardware store?
 

Percy's Mom

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Possibly. Try hardware stores or Home Depot as well. Good luck.
 

Ly&Pigs

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You actually aren't likely to find coroplast in hardware stores unless it's Home Depot where a few members have found it. Call sign shops and print shops. Most print shops make large signs so they carry it.
 
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aqh88

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You can always use linoleum or build the base of something else like wood and glue or nail on sheets of plastic laminate. Neither are as good as coroplast but they are far better than storage bins and possibly easier to get than coroplast.
 

nonamian_girl

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Look into art stores as well, call them and ask if they have coroplast. If you're in high school, ask your art teacher where they get their supplies, and maybe that store will have some.

Cage building may look complicated, but once you get the materials and know what they're talking about, it's not that hard to figure out.

Just make sure you have a sharp exacto knife, because otherwise it's really painful when you're trying to score the coroplast. Also, they don't mention this on cavycages, but when you're scoring it, the point is to cut through the top layer of the coroplast, so the bottom layer can be bent back, but be careful to not cut all the way through.
 

Idril

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Okay, thanks everyone! Turns out that I am going to an art store today anyways to get some stuff. :) Then I'll drop by the hardware store.
 

jdomans

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I did everything to avoid making a C&C cage and when I finally cried 'uncle' it was the easiest thing to do and I felt so stupid for not doing it right off the bat.
 

ilovemykisses

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A few places have plastic bins that would suit half of a 2x4 cage, but you'd have to get two, cut one end off each one and meld them together. The only place that I know that has plastic bins big enough is Fred Meyers, but not all Fred Meyers have them as different stores carry different items.

It'd be alot easier to get coroplast... as a last resort, you can construct a base out of cardboard and line it with stick tiles or linoleum.
 

Ball Lightning

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Indeed, even in the dreaded country of the Netherlands, where C&C cages don't exist and pet store cages rule the world, I managed to get a C&C. I googled, googled, and googled, tried 10 hardware stores, gave up hope, read this site again after a tip hor to get the cubes and then I read that I should check out sign shops (I overread it the first time)... Well, one phonecall and a 5 minute drive gave us 2 nice black sheets of left over Vikuprop (Coroplast with another name) of 100 x 140cm for 15 dollars. In the end it really was that simple. I paid a HUGE amount on shipping cost for 30 black grids (25 dollar for the rids, 48 dollar shipping:eek: ) but overall it was still more cheap than the cage we wanted to buy.

Conclusion: just go for the Coroplast. It really isn't that hard to find. If I can find it, you can too!
 

Ly&Pigs

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A few places have plastic bins that would suit half of a 2x4 cage, but you'd have to get two, cut one end off each one and meld them together.
Who would want to do all that when coroplast is a much easier alternative and not as hard to find as most people believe. We do NOT advocate any type of plastic bins as bases for C&C's on this site.

as a last resort, you can construct a base out of cardboard and line it with stick tiles or linoleum.
You could use plain untreated wood with peel and stick tiles laid over all exposed areas or you could use linoleum as a base. You don't need cardboard.
 
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