bucket wheel feel apart

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E.dante

Active member
Joined
Mar 19, 2009
Messages
27
Location
Lebanon, IN
I went to clean my bucket wheel today and decided to take it apart becouse it was starting to make some noise agian. Well when I did the metal inside the wheel came out and it was extreamly rusty. I have been needing to get a new one becouse dante has caused the bucket part to warp. It isnt really a circle when he runs anymore. So now im looking for a new wheel to put in his cage that is really easy to clean and supper quite. I am unsure what to get i have heard of the cake walk wheel, the flying saucer wheel, stealth wheels and so many more. What is a good wheel? As for how big it is dante is a small boy living in a ferret nation cage. So im not to worried about the size.
 
i'm also debating wheels. i'm torn between the comfort wheel and the flying saucer. i'm not sold on the saucer yet. it just looks to me like they couldn't run properly or would fall off. :hmm:
 
I have the flying saucer for Annabelle - she really seems to like it. (Of course I have never used any other wheel for her, so I have no basis for comparison.) But she doesn't seem to mind its uniqueness - I've never seen her tumble off or anything. My only complaint with the flying saucer is that its grooves make cleaning difficult - the poop tends to dry over them, and can't just be wiped off. At least it has aesthetic appeal. ;)
 
After trying 3 different kinds of wheels (Comfort, bucket, and cake walk), my favorite is the cake walk wheel. It takes literally less than 2 minutes to clean no matter how big the mess. Also, the ball bearings are on the outside, so you don't have to worry about water getting in there and rusting them when you clean, so it will last longer. It's very safe and sturdy and will hold even the bigger hedgies.

The only downside is that it is fairly large and could take up a lot of room in a smaller cage, but that really shouldn't be a huge problem if the cage is the recommended size. Also, you couldn't have it on the base and have a litter box directly under the wheel, but you could just attach it to the side of the cage. Although, personally, I just stopped using the litter box because it was so much easier (not to mention cheaper) to just clean the mess off the base.

The bucket wheel is my second favorite, only because of the slight inconvenience of the rusty bearings, having to scrub it, and the sagging under the weight.

I did not really care for the Comfort wheel because the grooves were terrible to clean, the bar in the middle kept hitting my hedgie after she started growing (I did have a medium size, though; maybe a large would be better), it had to be attached to the side of the cage to keep from tipping, and even at that, the wheel would come off and fall on my hedgie - which was not safe. But, that's just my experience, maybe somebody else will tell you differently, I'm not sure. I haven't have a flying saucer, so I can't tell you about that, but I haven't heard any horror stories about it yet at least.

Hope that helps! Good luck! :thumbsup:
 
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Oh - didn't get this in on time, but if you're looking for quiet, then cake walk is the best! It is completely silent!

Next quietest is the bucket wheel. The Comfort wheel is very noisy! I even put a hair bow on it to make it quieter, and it helped, but still kept me awake all night because it was so squeaky and rattly.
 
If you are cleaning a bucket wheel correctly you shouldn't be getting any rust. I have been able to soak the wheels and scrub and everything with out getting water on the metal pieces and if you do you need to make sure it get dried properly after. I have had my bucket wheels for over a year and not had an issue. The only sound I hear is the pitter patter of tiny hedgie feet on the plastic. This is the sound of happiness in my house.

I have the comfort wheel. And it is a pain in the butt to clean. I hate the ridges and it is louder with the feet.. There is no squeaking from mine though.

Haven't tried the cake walk maybe that will be the next one should my bucket wheels ever go bad.
 
dante has a bad habbit of throwning his poop when he runs. It gets all over the bolts and things. so the bolts end up getting wet becouse im cleaning it off. thats the reason why its gottin rusty. Although i have tried to see how he does that and apperntly hes a shy runner. Stops every time I try to watch.

One question to those who like the flying saucer. I have heard that they fall apart. Is that true? How do you stop it if its true?
 
Winston is on a flying saucer at the moment, though he's getting his cake walk this week, so we'll see which he prefers. As for the flying saucers falling apart, they don't. There's only 2 pieces, the base and the saucer, so unless it cracks, there's nothing to fall apart. There is a little white piece that holds the saucer to the base, but if that ever pops out (rarely on mine), I just put it back in the hole. I'll try to keep you up to date on if Winston likes the cake walk wheel

Kendra
 
Winston is on a flying saucer at the moment, though he's getting his cake walk this week, so we'll see which he prefers. As for the flying saucers falling apart, they don't. There's only 2 pieces, the base and the saucer, so unless it cracks, there's nothing to fall apart. There is a little white piece that holds the saucer to the base, but if that ever pops out (rarely on mine), I just put it back in the hole. I'll try to keep you up to date on if Winston likes the cake walk wheel

Kendra

thanks. I am much interested in seeing which one wins out.
 
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