Confused for best heating option.

Hi so as of now I plan on buying two AP t8's one for my corn and I plan on going to the next show near me and buying a BP for the other tank. I'm a new owner for snakes and I've been browsing around for the best heating options for my future BP. But as I've browsed more and more posts I keep getting so much variation in the answers whether to use an RHP or a UTH or both in my room on the normal days it's usually about 71 degrees F but on the very cold days in the winter the lowest I've seen my room drop was to 69 so probably 68 at the coldest part of winter. I plan on stacking the corn tank on top. All of these different answers has left me a jumbled mess but what is my best option and if an RHP is involved any recommendations? Please help!

It looks like they are made of 1/2 plastic and from my experience that would be hard to heat through, I could be wrong tho. So I would see rhp as a far more viable option.

AP T8s are designed to work well with either heat tape or a RHP. They even manufacture a slot to run the probe and wiring to the unit underneath. However, I have come to really like Using radiant heat. It's the safest and most reliable option that I have found.

For your situation a 40 watt RHP from RBI or 65 watt from pro products would likely do great. Your corn doesn't need much heat, and the bp will get plenty.

I personally switched to using ambient only heat in my snake room via an oil radiant heater. Since switching my snakes have been noticeably happier and have better sheds. I hold temps at 82-83 deg. Point is radiant heat is all you need IMO. Both heating elements would be major overkill.

I have a RHP and I love it. Over the years I've used CHE's, incandescent heat lamps, assorted UTH's, and a hot rock (yes, I know, bad... it's long gone, although nothing bad ever actually happened with it) and the RHP is the best by far. What I really like about it is that its heat output is spread out over a larger surface area, so it gives off plenty of nice, even heat without ever getting hot enough to burn you if you touch it. FWIW, the room where my snake lives gets down to around 55 in the winter sometimes, and the RHP keeps him nice and toasty.

Ok thanks so much everyone. It sounds like RHP only is the way to go, so does it just cover half of the tank to make the necessary temperature gradient?

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Originally Posted by goceres

Ok thanks so much everyone. It sounds like RHP only is the way to go, so does it just cover half of the tank to make the necessary temperature gradient?

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Bp don't need a temp gradient to thrive. If your using an RHP you can set the temp to 84 and the whole cage will be 84 and he will be fine. If you want a hot spot you can put a tile under the hot hide and it will absorb more heat from the RHP making it hotter for a hot spot. Its not necessary though. Idk about your corn snakes though. But for the ball you need a RHP that reaches from one end to the divider. If your not going to use a divider then you need one that goes the whole length of the cage.

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Originally Posted by chrid16371

Bp don't need a temp gradient to thrive. If your using an RHP you can set the temp to 84 and the whole cage will be 84 and he will be fine. If you want a hot spot you can put a tile under the hot hide and it will absorb more heat from the RHP making it hotter for a hot spot. Its not necessary though. Idk about your corn snakes though. But for the ball you need a RHP that reaches from one end to the divider. If your not going to use a divider then you need one that goes the whole length of the cage.

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While this is true, in order to do it successfully I recommend that a person is famiar with the particulars of BP behavior and be able to adjust accordingly when necessary. For new keepers, a gradient provides an easy way to give their snake exactly what they need at all times while learning about their animals in the process.

Would I need to get a divider or could I put a young BP in an AP t8 and fill it with hides and plants? With it not being too terribly stressed. If so won't that complicate the radiant heat panel dilemma needing 2 different sizes and switching them when taking out the divider?

You will probably need a divider. My super pastel will be a year old and he is in a vision 400, which is about the same size as a t8, I thought the v211, about same size as half a t8, was to small so I bought the v400 and moved him. I probably shouldn't of done that but he has adjusted to it now. You don't realize how big a v400 or t8 is until it arrives at your door. I would take it on the safe side and get the divider. Plus those dividers can be put in any spot in the cage that way you can gradually make it bigger.

As far as the rhp I've read on another thread that you can cut a slot in the divider and run the rhp through it. When you cut it you would have to make sure that the snake can't get between the rhp and divider but also that there is a small gap so the rhp isn't sitting against the divider.
You could also get one that runs from one end of the cage to the divider and then when you open it up get the same exact rhp for the other side and run it on the same thermostat but recommend that you have separate thermostat for each or 1 thermostat that can take multiple heat sources. If your purchasing a young bp it will be in half the t8 for some time so when time comes to remove the divider you could purchase a longer rhp. I know its another expense but it will be a little bit down the road so its not like you have to buy the bigger and smaller one right now.