Housing Problem

Hey everyone, this is my first post but i have used the site for a while for some great info.

I do have a problem with my setup though. It seems that to get the tank hot enough, I dry it out. My current setup is a 10 gallon tank, aspen substrate with 1 UTH under the right side and a 40 watt infra-red heat lamp. With this setup my temps on the left side are around 75-78 degrees and on the right side 85 degrees.

The problem is that because of the heat lamp my humidity is low. I have a humidifier on the floor next to the enclosure and I have been misting twice a day but i know the humidity is still too low because my snake recently had a bad shed.

I was thinking about getting a ceramic heat emitter but I wasn't sure if the CHE would dry out the tank any less than a red bulb. I also put in a larger water dish to help.

Heres a quick picture of the setup:

https://ball-pythons.net/gallery/fil...379_631358.JPG

Any help would be appreciated.
-- Zach.

put lamp on a thermostat. then you can put it much closer to the top of the tank, and it won't be on all the time. use mulch or bark instead of aspen. cover the top of cage with foil and duct tape with exception of whole for light. put water bowl directly uner light. don't have to do all these things, they are just what worked for me.

you must have 2 hides. one on the cold end, one on the hot. preferably identical hides.

You also shold have 2 digital thermometers with probes. the ones you are using are VERY inacurate. One on the cold, one on the hot

Mike

Quote:

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With this setup my temps on the left side are around 75-78 degrees and on the right side 85 degrees.

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I would recommend you to adjust your temps (80-84 on the cool side and 90-94 on the warm side)

I would also suggest to get rid of the dial thermometer and hygrometer (those are not accurate). You can find this http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p...Acu-Rite_T.jpg digital thermometer/hygrometer at walmart for $12

Not sure how big your BP is but make sure to provide 2 tight (all side touching your BP's body) identical (so your BP does not chose security over thermo-regulation) hides.

Heat lamp will dry out your enclosure so you can either do the following

Switch to a substrate holding humidity better (Cypress Mulch, Repti-Bark)
Spray your enclosure
Have a humid hide
Place and additional water dish on the warm side above the UTH
Partially cover the screen top of your enclosure

This thread will also help you http://www.ball-pythons.net/forums/s...004#post569004

Or you can also replace the heat lamp by an additional UTH and thermostat, so you have a UTH and a thermostat providing 90-94 on the warm side, and you have a UTH and a thermostat providing 80-84 on the cool side

Thanks for the responses and the help guys. I finished renovating her cage today and things look pretty good. I switched to Repti-Bark and covered 60% of her tank with foil and some duct tape for extra humidity. I also put in two identical hides on opposites sides.

The left side is the hot side and it has a 40 watt red bulb thats hooked up to a dimmer. The right side is the cold side and it has one UTH that covers the right side of the tank. The hot side stays around 86-87 degrees with a basking spot on top of her hide thats 90 degrees. The cold side is about 81 degrees. The humidity stays pretty constant at 55% on all sides.

Here are some pictures post-renovation:

https://ball-pythons.net/gallery/fil...379_724835.JPG

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https://ball-pythons.net/gallery/fil...6/DSC00380.JPG


Im looking into getting a good thermastat and cork board to surround her next cage. Thanks again for everyones help.

--Zach