Herp Room Temperature Problems

Anyone with a dedicated herp room may be able to help me.

This is a basic breakdown of my problem.

My herp room is a basement room. In the summer when the air conditioning is on in the house the room stays at a nice 72-75 degrees. The lights on the enclosures help bring the ambient cage temps to right where I need them. My under tank heating is controlled by a thermostat and is constant.

When it starts to cool down outside and the a/c stops running or if we have to turn the heat on in the house my herp room temperatures quickly become too hot. In past years it hasn't been so bad but now I have several more enclosures and I have recorded a max room temp. of 82.

I have reduced some lighting and am running a fan and that has helped a little but the room is still uncomfortable to be in.

There is no window in that room, but the laundry room has a basement window. I was thinking of modifying a window fan to push outside air into the room and out a vent. I could control the fan with a thermostat. Is this a good solution?

82 for a herp room is not to hot. Depending on what your keeping. Most Geckos and snakes 82 is spot on. I keep my room at or around 80-85 with oil filled heaters and just some corner fans. But 82 is fine. As far as circulating air just get you some fans and you should be fine.

What types of snakes are you keeping that cannot stand 82 degrees as an ambient temp. I would think that is perfect for a herp room and that with the AC on your temps are too low?

82 is the room temp. You have to think about the lights on every enclosure. They heat the ambient temp of the enclosures up to where they match the under tank heat, thus eliminating a thermal gradient.

If I have to I will just shut off the cage lighting and use a single flor. strip in the room. You thin that will provide enough light?

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Originally Posted by chimpkin

82 is the room temp. You have to think about the lights on every enclosure. They heat the ambient temp of the enclosures up to where they match the under tank heat, thus eliminating a thermal gradient.

If I have to I will just shut off the cage lighting and use a single flor. strip in the room. You thin that will provide enough light?

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Well first you could close the vents that pipe in heat from the house that might stop some of it. Flor. lights will cut down on the heat. but at 82 your hot side should be 10 hotter. Yea you might have to keep the lights off in the tanks/tubs or what ever.

There are actually many more factors as you might have imaginied. I just gave a basic break down of the issue. I keep some snakes like rubber boas that I like to keep in tubs with an ambient of 72-75. Then the snakes that need it to be warmer I use under tank heat for the hot spot and supplement with lighting to raise the ambient.

It is an elaborate system that I have constructed and it normally works perfect. I screwed it up by adding 6 more enclosures, a rack, a computer to run Degei and I wired some new track lighting in the room. Just too much extra heat.

I am sure I will figure it out. I am expirimenting with the lighting today and running a fan during the day.

try switching all of your bulbs to the energy saving bulbs. They produce a lot of light, and almost no heat. Then invest in a oil-filled heater to heat the room to the proper ambient temp in the summer when the AC is on, and close and seal the heat/air vents so they're not messing with your temps so much.