First snake

[Bl69aze]

Very small holes for a children’s hatchling. I use a small diameter soldering iron.

@Bl69aze i was going to do an experiment with a spare 7w reptile one I got of eBay but it doesn’t have an Australian plug on it and it has a dial on it. Devastated bummer.
Anyway no more advice from me on the forum.

You can buy x to australian power adaptors

 

[pythoninfinite]

Gee, sounds like a lot of dangerous hit & miss advice here. Anything that raises the temperature to over 35C for even short amounts of time poses a serious risk of killing a small snake - they don't have the mass to absorb high temperatures before it kills them. Heat mats, even a 5W heat mat, CAN scorch wood and cause fire if not managed properly and installed with adequate ventilation. Relying on a thermostat to manage the heat from a heat mat is risky too - if the thermostat fails it will just let the heat soar totally uncontrolled. Also, having a heat source that you need to remember to turn off at different times is just asking for you to forget one day and bingo - dead snake.

By far the best form of heating for a small snake would be a 15W heat cord. You'll have a bit of excess cord if you're only going to heat one small tub, but used properly you won't need to rely on a thermostat and it will pose little risk of overheating if you set it up properly. I currently have an 8 month old GTP in a tub with a 15W heatcord & no thermostat, which I used throughout the summer without it getting hotter than 32C, and currently it is running the tub at around 29-30C.

Only 1/4 to 1/3 at most should be heated under a tub, because conduction will ensure that more than that proportion of the floor will be heated to some extent.

When making holes in a plastic tub, make sure the snake cannot get its snout into the holes or it will end up chaffing the skin where the head broadens out if it tries to push its way through the holes. This can leave permanent scarring.

Jamie

 

[Magee]

I went straight to heat lamp (ceramic globe). Mine outgrew the click clack pretty fast! (8y/o now)

 

[Delphy]

Purpose of taping the heat mat click clack?. I’m just wondering, it is plugged into the wall after all. The click clack will need cleaning the heat mat should not be sumerced in water.

If you don't tape the heat mat to the bottom of the click clack, once it's raised on the spacers the heat mat would just sit on the table/bench/whatever so it's 10mm or so away from your click clack and you aren't getting the airflow you need to keep it from overheating. Obviously if you are going to "wash and submerce" the click clack you would remove the heat pad first.

That's my take on it anyway.

 

[Bl69aze]

never taped any heat mat to anything and i was getting more than the temps i needed

 

[Neil j]

Fair enough mate. I stand by my way of doing it alothough I wouldn’t recommend it for a first time snake keeper. A gap in heat mat and tub with a good layer of breeders choice substrate would hum along nicely.
[doublepost=1528175737,1528173329][/doublepost]Anyway not here to Argue and sorry for the bum advice if you see it that way. I’m even using a pulse thermostat turned all the way up on my rack from now on. Taped directly to the heat mat.


[doublepost=1528176597][/doublepost]Edit I will tape the probe to base of a tub cause that’s not hot enough.
[doublepost=1528177727][/doublepost]And not having a go but regardless of wattage even a heat cord shouldn’t run flat out. It’s only the length that differs. I use an on off thermostat taped directly to the cord set at 38c using two runs.

In saying that I have used heat cords flat out in the grips of winter but only using one run on stacked click clacks.
[doublepost=1528178935][/doublepost]Also snakey excellent choice in first snake I can’t help but pick my children’s up for a handle when I open their tub.
[doublepost=1528179328][/doublepost]

never taped any heat mat to anything and i was getting more than the temps i needed

I use heavy duty sticky tape along the sides and haven’t had a problem. Running flat out they don’t even melt the adhesive. The only wear coming from tubs sliding over which is virtually non existent. I don’t know if you’ve seen these sterilite tubs but they have a gap built in.