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Molly039

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We have a heat lamp for our new snake. The previous owner turned it off at night. The snake tank goes cold. They've done this for 1.5 years.

Should I continue doing this or buy a heat cord to help keep the hot temp at night?


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Hi Molly039
Could you please provide more details , for example, What type of snake ? and do you live in a cold climate ?. It would be much easier to help.
 
Sorry about that

I have a 3 year old Stimson python male
I live in Brisbane Australia
The tank is in an open long room
I think the tank is not right for snakes. It have lots of ventilation.
View attachment 329177

I just bought a heat map to put underneath and I think I'm going to put some cardboard on the sides to maybe close it up a bit and keep some warmth in.
It's all meshed on top too

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IMG_1051.jpg
 
Sounds like you have the right idea. When you install the heat mat , make sure you have the correct temps day and night by possibly running it through a thermostat. You may have to use a little less subsrate to be effective though. Good luck
 
Sorry about that

I have a 3 year old Stimson python male
I live in Brisbane Australia
The tank is in an open long room
I think the tank is not right for snakes. It have lots of ventilation.
View attachment 329177

I just bought a heat map to put underneath and I think I'm going to put some cardboard on the sides to maybe close it up a bit and keep some warmth in.
It's all meshed on top too

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

View attachment 329176
Defenitly take some substrate out if ya got a heat mat.. you cant run that heat lamp and heat mat on that thermostat i have the exact same one pretty sure it just works on one heat source

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Why can't I have that much substrate? He seems to bury a bit.


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Only because it may be to deep for the heat mat to be effective, I could be wrong , it depends what wattage heat mat you use, and what type of substrate . Set it up, and if the heat mat doesn't seem to heat the enclosure enough , take some substrate out and see if that helps. Good luck
 
I agree you could take out the substrate if you're using a heat mat.

I have a "Y" shape stick on a slant, leaning against the glass of my Stimmy's tank, so the Y is up near the heat lamp. My Stimmy will get up close and sit right under the heater when he's too cool. His hide is about 50% under the heater.

In winter I swap out the globe to a 150W, while in summer it's a 50W. I find he likes it warm, even in summer. Only rarely do I find him on the other side of the tank (avoiding the heat). For better or worse, I tend to leave the heat on all the time, only turning it off for mid summer heatwaves.

I agree with getting a thermometer or thermostat. I tried the auto thermostat ones (it turns your heater off and on with thermometers in the tank) but I blew so many globes it cost a fortune. Now I just use a thermometer when the weather is changing to get it about right.
 
Hi Susannah
You could try running the bulb through a dimmer switch , it would probably last longer (unless you run it at maximum all the time) and you wouldn't have to swap bulbs to suit the seasons. Just a thaught.
I agree you could take out the substrate if you're using a heat mat.

I have a "Y" shape stick on a slant, leaning against the glass of my Stimmy's tank, so the Y is up near the heat lamp. My Stimmy will get up close and sit right under the heater when he's too cool. His hide is about 50% under the heater.

In winter I swap out the globe to a 150W, while in summer it's a 50W. I find he likes it warm, even in summer. Only rarely do I find him on the other side of the tank (avoiding the heat). For better or worse, I tend to leave the heat on all the time, only turning it off for mid summer heatwaves.

I agree with getting a thermometer or thermostat. I tried the auto thermostat ones (it turns your heater off and on with thermometers in the tank) but I blew so many globes it cost a fortune. Now I just use a thermometer when the weather is changing to get it about right.
 
Hi Susannah
You could try running the bulb through a dimmer switch , it would probably last longer (unless you run it at maximum all the time) and you wouldn't have to swap bulbs to suit the seasons. Just a thaught.
I've not considered a dimmer switch before - didn't even know one was an option! I've just been swapping between 50, 100 and 150W globes through the different seasons. I find (even with a power surge protector) they blow regularly, maybe every 6 to 8 weeks. So I have a ceramic heat lamp to swap out if I don't have a spare globe. Weird - I find that he *doesn't like* the ceramic heater nearly as much as the infrared heat lamp - I think the ceramic heater is more drying on him and it messes up the humidity. Using the ceramic heater is the only time he's failed to shed in one piece. (This has happened twice now and only when using the ceramic heater. Not really a bother as I've just bathed him to help remove the rest of his shed. He doesn't seem to mind a swim or me helping to remove the extra flakes, but it does mess up his eating for a while!).
 
Do you use a heat mat or heat cord ? If not , I would get one as they are much more efficient and cheaper to run. You can also run them through a dimmer switch to get the required temps.
 

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