Thermostat settings and placement with a heat mat

[aza9999]

I'm setting up a tank for a spotted python once he's ready to move out of his click-clack.

I've got a 90cm long x 40cm wide x 60cm high, exo-terra glass raised enclosure that i've put a self-adhesive heat mat under and i was checking out temperatures.

With no substrate or thermostat the mat gets the glass up to 45 (using an IR thermometer). When i put a light layer of coarse kritters crumble over the top and leave it for a few hours the top of the substrate gets up to 32.

I'm planning to put three hides in, one at the hot end, one middle, one cold end. The question is do i set the thermostat to 32 and bury it under the substrate near the glass (meaning the heater cuts out at 32 and the substrate probably won't get that high, or do i sit it on top of the substrate meaning the glass underneath the substrate that the snake might dig under could get higher than 32.

I'm also considering heat lamps to raise the ambient temperature at the hot end as needed but NT temps aren't that bad even in the cold months.

 

[graeme.ouzman]

Place probe between glass and heat pad so that the actual surface temp of the glass matches what your thermostat is set to. This make take a day or two to stabilize. Don't get a heat lamp. They dry out the air and cage too quickly.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[aza9999]

Thanks for the reply!

The heat mat is one of those self adhesive ones that stick to the underside of the glass so i can't get the probe between them, however i currently have it sitting directly on top of the glass on the inside of the enclosure under the substrate. I'm thinking that maybe i should use a small piece of that silver metallic air-con ducting tape to hold it down flush against the glass, but i'm concerned about whether the adhesive would give off fumes.

EDIT: So after some research it seems any sort of adhesive tape is a bad idea because if the snake can lift an edge it can get stuck to the tape and tied up. Hot glue is apparently the adhesive of choice as it's low/no fumes and easy to remove with a razor if needed.