problems regulating temperature in tank

[josh1234]

Hey everyone after some advice..we have recently moved house after 4 years of living in one house.

Have moved a 6 year old coastal carpet python with us, she never had a problem with temperature in the previous room in this enclosure but this house gets a lot hotter..

She seems alright after a week but isn't as active as she previously was. She's in a 6 foot old glass aquarium with a heat mat at one end and marine carpet as the base. When we first moved in 10 days ago she was sprawling out and relaxing at the non heat mat end, but now she spends 90% of the time on the heat mat even on a 35+ degree day. I have the thermostat set to around 30 as it is under the glass, as it always has been. Her breathing seems normal but can occasionally seem to become erratic.

Just after any advice as to how I can regulate the temp better and what I should be looking out for in regards to breathing? Trying to avoid relocation of the tank or buying a new one to suit conditions.

Cheers

 

[arevenant]

The 6ft glass aquarium is your problem - when its cold it loses too much heat to fast, and when hot, will magnify heat.
Getting rid of the tank and switching to a solid enclosure will be your best solution.

 

[Burgo89]

If the days are getting that hot is the heat mat even coming on? If not she may just prefer that end. Some info about where in your house you have your set up might shed some more light?

 

[Wokka]

If the tank setup is the same but the ambient temperature is higher than the previous location then you heat should be warm enough. Previously she was spreading out at the cool end, but now there is no need to move as there is no cool end. I would certainly find it uncomfortable constantly living at 35C . If a cooler location is not possible then air conditioning is a costly alternative.I would also consider environmental factors such as location of the tank and traffic, as moving the tank may require some time for the snake to adapt.

 

[Bluetongue1]

Does the 30[SUP]o[/SUP]C you mention come from the thermostat setting? The temperatures actually inside the enclosure are what are important. What are the cool end and warm end temperatures in the enclosure like? It helps to know the day/night range. A max/min thermometer (fairly cheap at Bunnings) placed at one end for 24 hours, then the other, will give you that. Otherwise measure the internal temps at say 6am and hourly from 1 to 5pm.

As Wokka pointed out, there could be other changes that are affecting its behaviour. As he pointed out the visual environment for the snake has changed completely and things like traffic and noise may also have. There may be other less obvious changes e.g. windows and lighting, other pets now present, humidity, different air flow in the room. After such a long time being used to one environment, these changes may have an effect. However, snakes are fairly adaptable, so give it another week or so and it should be used to these (except maybe other pets present).