water dishes

so ive been looking for something cheap but a little heavy to use as water bowls for my hatchling BPs. i have some lighter bowls in theur tubs but they keep knocking them over. so i was at home depot tonight and found some PVC caps that are in the shape of bowls and are pretty heavy but i wasnt sure if PVC is toxic..... i assumed not since they are used for plumbing in homes. so i went on line and tried to find some info and all i found was that some "PVC" is used in place of some rubbers and the way the make it more pliable is to add a potentially toxic chemical. but as far as normal PVC i couldnt find anywhere that said yes or no to my question..... so does anyone know if it is toxic (when used as a water bowl) or if any one has any suggestions for a heavier, yet cheap, water bowl. thanks for reading my long *** post

I've seen quite a few people use a short peice of PVC as a base to hold a deli cup. They can't knock them over and for larger collections it's easier and more cost effective to throw away and replce the deli cups than spend the hours cleaning bolws.

PVC is typically used for drainage in residences, not supply. Pex, copper, galvanized steel, quest are what delivers water most of the time. Not sure if it's toxic though. I've seen people use it for rat rack plumbing ...

I will take a picture but I get these round baking dishes from the dollar tree for a dollar. They are round and very easy to clean. I also buy my hides from there.

PVC is used in place of quest lines sometimes and is used in watering systems for racks. I dont know about the toxicity but for our dishes we purchase the heavier ceramic ones. They are a little bit costly but I was at Marshalls this weekend returning some items that I didnt need since we didnt attend a funeral and saw some dishes for Cats & Dogs... I looked at the price and bought them. Aside from the cat and dog designs on them they make GREAT snake bowls. lol. They were only $4 each. The ones we usually purchase at animal jungle or pet paradise are $4+ depending on the size.

We had this similar issue before and found the heavier ceramic bowls work best. I never thought of checking out the Dollar Tree but that's a really good idea Nick.

I use PVC couplings to hold deli cups. Works great.

Here is a pic of the dollar tree bowls I use. They weigh just under 500g. They aren't big enough to soak in but perfect for wrapping. In the background, you can see the hides I also get for a dollar. Because of the angle it appears to be smaller than it actually is. Also very easy to clean.



The only pain I've had with this dishes, is it's hard to tell how much water is in the bowl but my room stays pretty dark. It also keeps me in the habit of changing the water more. I haven't had one tip over.

One day someone will make a bowl thats wide at the bottom and smaller at the top. no tipping and a good sure footing.

BTW, after reading this thread, I did some research and PVC is completely fine for supply lines in homes, just not hot water. It had me concerned because I don't want to put anything in with my snakes that could cause harm. After doing the due diligence on PVC, I'm fine keeping things as is.

We use PVC things at work with our rabbits, rats, mice, shrews, chickens, pigs etc as toys dishes and stuff and we have never had any toxicity problems, not sure about reptiles though.

Lokielani wrote:

We use PVC things at work with our rabbits, rats, mice, shrews, chickens, pigs etc as toys dishes and stuff and we have never had any toxicity problems, not sure about reptiles though.

yeah, ive used it for rodents and even in my home made aquariums.... but never with reptiles, i was just curious. thank you all for your input, i think ill use nicks dollar store bowls.

I've had luck with one of those rock dishes.