Bulding my own frame. Please help!

So I'm going to build my own frame for the cages in my rabbit barn. I want something that my cages will slide in and out of. I've been searching online for plans of some sort to give me an idea of what I need to do, but can only find plans to build hutches.

I have five 24" x 24" cages that I want in one frame, and two 30" x 30" and one 30" x 36" that I want in one frame.

Any help is greatly appreciated!!



Chellie

Here are the plans I have drawn up. They're not very extensive, but I think theyget my thoughts across. I don't have plans for trays yet, although I should be able to add them easily to this, if I decide to use them. I will probably end up putting in trays so I can have storage space beneath the cages. I plan on putting some kind of counter on top of both frames, since I don't have any counter space in my rabbit barn, just an old table.
Any ideas, thoughts, comments, etc., are more than welcome and greatly appreciated.

I keep thinking of things to add after it's available to edit!! Grr!! Anyway, this is the setup I have now, so you see why I need a frame or something. The cages are resting on 2 x 4's to keep them off the ground so the bottom of the cages don't get so yucky. It's a major hassle to clean, because I have to move the cages to get underneath them, another reason I need a frame. And if you look in the back left corner, you can see my table, rickety old thing, where I groom and palpate and such. Yikes!


Sorry it's so dark. I took it last night, so I only had the one overhead light.

Hmm. I would think that instead of putting the cages on solid wood (I assume that's what your drawing means) and pulling the cages out that you'd want to suspend them over a tray that can be pulled out. That would help with the mess and shavings.

Right, the bottom wouldn't be solid wood. I'm probably going to draw a bottom view, but basically there will just be four pieces of wood around the outside bottom of each cage. That way their "messes" will still fall through to the floor, or tray when I get those put in.

here is my quick and dirty drawing of the bottom of the frame (minus the legs lol). Sorry about the lack of quality in my drawing, I'm a photographer, not an artist. lol

So I built a better "blueprint" for my 24" cages on Excel, still working on my other one. I'm going to post two copies, one with gridlines and one without, just in case you can't tell with the gridlines. Sorry I'm posting so much I just REALLY want opinions on this.

On the gridline copy, one square equals one square inch.

Also, the faded or dotted lines are the outlines of the cages.

It looks good.

The best, cleanest, easiest way to stack wire cages is to use the stacking leg kits:

Stack-a-hutch kits http://www.bassequipment.com/Cages/Stack-A-Hutch+Kits/default.aspx

We've also used steel rebar as cage legs.

For one story of cages - simply hang from the ceiling. Makes cleaning much easier!

Pam

I checked into the frames, and decided I really don't want my rabbits one on top of the other. I like having them all at the same level. Even though their cages are a few inches apart, they still "talk" to each other. lol I also didn't like the hanging cages because I'm a worry wart and I would never get any peace thinking my cages were going to come crashing down. But great ideas, though, thanks!!

Your drawings look just fine! Here are a couple of ideas for consideration...

I have solid plastic for the bottom of my cages. It's a lot easier to get really clean. If you pay attention to where the bunnies like to do their business, you can put a litter box in that corner and that will take care of most of it. Then, I just run a damp paper towel over the plastic bottom of the cage to get out the spills and leftover bits of food. Most days, I also wipe with a disinfectant wipe. (I would do that 1st so that the damp paper towel gets off excess bleach.) If you just let the "stuff" drop through the wire mesh, and a bunny gets sick with something contagious, then you have to clean really thoroughly. I find it difficult to get the wire really brushed off and clean. Maybe I am just not a good cleaner, but I have trouble getting all that gunk off.

The solid bottom cages are also better for bunny feet. They can get sore if they spend too much time on a wire grid. Linoleum works great and so does old kitchen countertop. The way you have them now, their feet are supported because the wire is not too thick and it is flush with the boards. If the wire was suspended over air so that stuff could fall out, you would need to be sure there was some place that they could get onto something solid.

If you want the bunnies to see each other, just don't put a solid "wall" between the cages. You will need support, so use a 1x1 or a 2x2 or something similar front and rear. Be sure to allow some extra room so that you can get the cages in and out easily.

Please post what you finally come up with. I am always looking for new ideas!