Heating a 55 gallon tank for my bp!!

[wolverineandrew]

ok i have already gotten one guys opinion on this but i figured i would see what every one else has to say about this. i have a 2 year old ball about 2 and a half feet long. and i am having trouble heating the cage. i know you think i shouldnt have a 55 gallon but i have to keep it. so what are your ideas to help get it much warmer. i have a heat pad and a safe heat rock and a light on top. but its still too cold in there. PLEASE help. cheaper the better lol

[Nate]

Step 1: Unplug the heat rock and never plug it in again. They're definitely NOT safe...

do you have a heat lamp on top? or just a fluorescent light?

[wolverineandrew]

well my cage needs SOME heat. i have one light of each on there

[waltah!]

I would lose the heat rock...never heard of a "safe" one. You can use a heat lamp to warm it up. Remember that it will also kill off humidity in the tank, so covering the top with foil or acrylic would help you with retain heat and humidity. Maybe a pic of the setup would help.
Oh, and welcome to the site!

[wolverineandrew]

actually. i have a 2 uv lights on there. i dont have a che cause i cant find the money for that yet. . . .

[waltah!]

A CHE will really dry it out. Standard heat lamp should help as long as you compensate for the lost humidity.
You can see glass tank setup here http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?t=56846

[wolverineandrew]

just a heat bulb?? i need it WAY warmer then it is now though. . . .

[wolverineandrew]

oh and how do i throw a pic up on here?

[waltah!]

What kind of temps are you getting now, and how are you reading them?
You can use Photobucket to post a pic. Upload there and copy the IMG code here in your post.
Sometimes people are using analog thermometers which are generally pretty far from accurate.

[Nate]

well my cage needs SOME heat. i have one light of each on there

of course you need heat Just solving one problem at a time

55gal is big, and may not really be cheap to heat. The best heating methods are usually the priciest. You will need a good Thermostat to regulate the heat. Spyder Robotics has some great T-stats, and you can buy some cheaper ones at Reptile Basics. Reptile Basics also has Flexwatt - for a 55gal tank, I would suggest a pre-wired 1ft of 11" flexwatt. Or, check out the radiant heat panels and ultratherm heat pads...I've never used those two, so I don't know how affective they are.