Cheap heating...

[craig.a.c]

Is it cheaper to heat snake enclosures using heat cords rather then lights?

[cris]

yes, lights waste alot of energy making light, not sure on the percentage but it would be a considerable amount.

If i had to pay the power bill i wouldnt use lights in any of my snake enclosures.

[Rossagon]

From speaking to Matty at Animal Attraction, I'd say yes, but then again it depends on the types of enclosures you are heating. I haven't tried them yet, so I can't give you an answer confirmed by myself. Matt and Tim Mensforth use heat cords underneath those moulded vivariums with varying degrees of success. Although I think they use them with a combination of spotlights for different species, so the answer to your question is an underlined Maybe? from me.

Sorry about the rant. Cheers Rossco.

[theplantguys]

i have used many tyoes, i decided a while ago any new cages would be heat cord based, i think these work the best in my mind.
cheers
chris

[The Devil]

According to a show on Discovery the other day, with normal light bulbs something like 90% of the energy used goes into producing heat, only 10% produces light.
That would make then great for heating cages except with bulbs you are also heating the air.
Using heat cords could be better depending on the type of snake as the animal would be laying directly on the heat source. One 25W heat cord will keep a pretty big snake toasty warm.

[Pythoninfinite]

Definitely far cheaper to use heat cords for heat, and if you want to light your cages as well, you can go fluoro or low wattage incandescent to save on ongoing costs. Snakes enjoy the gentle, even warmth generated by heat cords sub-floor, and I also use them as a "heat panel", woven onto mesh and fixed to the underside if the cage-top. Easy to do and very effective. If I could figure out how to post photos here, I'd like to show how I use them in 2 or 3 different ways.

They should be controlled by a thermostat though, but this is very easy to do. Even the lower wattage ones can generate serious heat in warm-hot weather.

Jamie.

[JandC_Reptiles]

Radiant heat panels.
1c per hour constant running

[Pythoninfinite]

Yup, they're excellent, but reasonably expensive initially.

J.

[AGAMIDAE]

yes I believe it is, not only that they last longer than bulbs bring the cost down more....