ventilation size and places

[Shane_Fino]

hey guys im new posting but have been reading in this for a while now, and as im making an enclosure i think it would be best to ask a few questions first before i get too carried away...​

i will be turning the middle bit of the tv cabinet into an enclosure for a yearling carpet python if that helps and on one side im thinking of possibly a childrens and on the other side dividing it into 3 seperate enclosures for some geckos.​

but for now the question im asking is with the larger middle part. it is roughly 900 long 970 high and 550 deep and im thinking the ventilation will have to go in the back of it because i cant put it in the sides, one down low and one up high.. but what size roughly should they be?​

i think ive done this right and the pic will come up. thanks for any advice in advance​

shane.​

 

[pythonmum]

Wow - nice big cabinet. Here are my suggestions:
1. Put a board across the top and bottom for symmetry. You need it across the bottom as a litter/water barrier. You can mount tracks and glass or build doors - your choice. (I know that wasn't the question.)
2. I'd put a vent at the bottom in the corner opposite your main heat source. You will get a vertical heat gradient and some aspects of a horizontal one, too. Something about 10-15 cm wide would do - it doesn't have to be exact.
3. I've found that the most efficient heating comes from a heat source underneath a basking shelf, so my preference for a carpet would be a basking shelf in the corner opposite the vent with your heater attached to the underside of the shelf. A branch mounted under the heat source offers the snake a choice of receiving heat from below (on the shelf) or above (on the branch). Mine usually like the belly heat, so this is where I put my thermostat probe.

If you still aren't sure of the vent, you can always install the heater and then cut a hole for a smallish vent and run the heater for a while, checking out the heat gradient. If it's not great enough, cut a hole for a larger vent or add a second vent. The heat profile will depend on the type of doors you use, the heating option, the room, etc. It's a bit of a difficult call. You could always go for a bigger vent and then block off part of it from the back where no one sees.

 

[Shane_Fino]

thanks muchly on that, ill take pics along the way and upload them when im done.ill be going with doors to make for easier access i think. and a lino floor for ease of cleaning with the substrate ontop of it. i havent decided on the substrate as yet but ive got a while to think about that anyway. i think i can start with some cutting and stuff now once again thanks