Getting the right temp

[Stroppy]

Hey all!

I'm still new to all this and need some help setting up,, particularly in regards to temp control.

My enclosure is a pine cabinet dimensions-- 51/2 x2 x11/2
Perspex front for viewing

I have a Sunvic electronics thermostat cranked to 32 degrees centigrate hooked to a 40 w heat lamp.

the ambient or room temperature is around 15 degress,

in anticipation to purchasing my first snake i cranked it up in readyness,, after about 2 hrs the temp inside the enclosure hasn't risen above 25 degrees,, and i'm wondering if in an attempt to reach ideal conditons of around 27 to 31 degrees it would be advisable to get some heat cord to increase the temperatures within the enclosure.

I have four(4) ventilation slots 2 1/2 inch by 5 inch which are pretty much at ground level.

I have one rather largish ventilation slot about 10 inch by 4 inch high up in the enclosure.

By blocking up the high ventilation slot i would assume a lot of the heat dissipation would be solved however i'm not too sure on how much ventilation any type of pythons would actually need.

I know lots of people aren't too fussed about temperatures providing they have some sort of basking area for their snakes like a heat rock or lamp or even heat chords,, however seeing i'm new at this i'd like to started on the right foot so to speak.

Will say a 40 watt heat chord increase the temperature in the enclosure sufficiently,, i was thinking of raising the ground level by about half an inch with blocks and running a heat chord underneath it also allowing for some ventilation so i don't start a fire or anything,,, never been too keen on roast snake.

Any pointers would be muchly appreciated

Cheers

Olaf

[junglepython2]

A 40wat lamp wont have enough guts if the ambient room temp is 15 degrees. The easiest option is to either increase the wattage of the lamp or add another globe.

[MrBredli]

Yep, get yourself a 60W globe and see how that goes. If that doesn't do the job effectively, then try a 75W. You really only want the basking spot to be at 32 degrees. The middle of the cage should be around 27-28 and the cool side should be about 24-25.

[MrBredli]

The heat cord under the bottom of the cage, only one half of the cage though, might be a good idea due to the size of the enclosure. Quite often with large cages, the floor remains quite cold and if the snake spends a lot of its time on the floor it will be susceptible to RI and other health complications. So if you can have half the floor heated to 28 degrees, that wouldn't be a bad thing.

[Stroppy]

ok thanks for that jungle python2,, my question still remains that i've come across numerous keepers that simply provide a basking area thru heat chords,, heat lamps,, heat rocks etc and not worry too much about ambient temps. Lets face it temps in the wild vary incredibly,, although the climate of the snake i'm anticipating is rather warm,, so is it critical to strive for ambient or all round temps,,,,, i've also experimented with fan forced heaters hooked to the thermostat to increase temps,, but not sure if this is a recognised or allowable solution to my problem


cheers

P.S. some say if it works then just do it

[MrBredli]

The thing to remember about snakes, is that in the wild the daytime temp may reach 35 degrees, but that doesn't mean they should be kept at 35 degrees. In the wild they have access to that 35 degrees, but they also have access to much cooler temps should they choose, and they often do. So providing them with that same choice in captivity is the best thing you can do.

[Stroppy]

Mr bredli,, thanks for your reply,, damn i like this site,, i barely get a chance to make a quick cuppa an there's all these responses,, kinda makes you feel all warm an fuzzy... heheheheh,, thanks for all the info,, i think i'll increase the wattage of the heat lamp and introduce a heat chord to half the cage seeing that i'm almost close to getting near ideal temps on the cool side of things.

I was looking at getting a Darwin with a great nature,, hence the reasoning for the size of the enclosure

Cheers

[junglepython2]

Steer clear of fans they will just destroy any gradient. If it's an adult python as long as the hot end is around 32 and they have a cool end the ambient temp and gradient should take care of itself. The only problem is if you have a a small python in a large cage it might have trouble finding the hot spot especially if it feels insecure due to the cage size. If this happens it will stay curled up in the cool end which isn't good.

[Khagan]

Please never ever use that blue text again . Id say block off your top vent and bump up globe wattage.

[Ramsayi]

Originally Posted by Stroppy

ok thanks for that jungle python2,, my question still remains that i've come across numerous keepers that simply provide a basking area thru heat chords,, heat lamps,, heat rocks etc and not worry too much about ambient temps. Lets face it temps in the wild vary incredibly,, although the climate of the snake i'm anticipating is rather warm,, so is it critical to strive for ambient or all round temps,,,,, i've also experimented with fan forced heaters hooked to the thermostat to increase temps,, but not sure if this is a recognised or allowable solution to my problem


cheers

P.S. some say if it works then just do it

In the wild snakes have the option to get away from the cold (and heat) by going underground etc where temps are much more stable.

Fan forced heaters would be a terrible option as they would also make the air bone dry.

As has already been stated experiment with larger wattage globes,also I would aim to get a decent basking spot of around 35C not 32 as long as we arent talking about diamonds.

[Stroppy]

Just out of Curiosity to all of you seasoned vets out there,, am i at least on the right track on providing adequate information to the questions i pose,,,,,,,,,, don't want to sound like like i know lots,,, but don't want to appear ignorant either

Thanks all

[Stroppy]

sorry khagan the blue text is gone,, gawd thats the least of my worries............lol

[Stroppy]

thanks junglepython2.... no need to fear the darwin i got my heart set on is somewhere near 5 1/2 foot,, hence the size of the enclosure,, which should see it thru for a while to come

[Stroppy]

thankyou ramsayi,,, the fan forced heater idea has been abolished,, gone finito an forgotten,, thanks for your imput..... oh an yes its a darwin

[Stroppy]

by the way khagan,, in hindsight i looked at the blue screen an a thought occurred to me that if i had epileptic tendancies then the blue screen might indeed set it off,, hell i get migraines and the blue text does nothing to help me read it...........APOLOGIES!!!!!!!!!!