Heat Panels

I have a red bulb attached to the ceilings for basking, and most heat needs. And I have a human heat pad inside the cage set to low or medium, depending on the heat needed. No, they never touch the bulbs. The heat pad is under newspaper, never gets too warm, and is water proof.

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The heat pad is under newspaper, never gets too warm, and is water proof.

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I'd wondered if anyone does that...

Thanks for the ideas and input everyone, much appreciated...

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Originally Posted by The_Godfather

The heat pad is under newspaper, never gets too warm, and is water proof.

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Where'd you get a waterproof heating pad? Maybe that would solve my wooden cage heating problems...

the only water proof heat pads i know of are kane heat mats .. which are just as expensive as heat panels.

It is possible to use flexwatt inside of a wooden cage. You do have to take certin steps to do it safley though. I have use them in 8 footers and makes an excellent basking sopt as usual. I covered the flexwatt with the right size of lexan and used half dome acrylic balls throudhout the bottom to provide stablility. Also yo have to seal the lexan and make sure it is watertight.

oh and you can use UTH's under wood caging depening on the thickness of the wood..

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Originally Posted by justcage

It is possible to use flexwatt inside of a wooden cage. You do have to take certin steps to do it safley though. I have use them in 8 footers and makes an excellent basking sopt as usual. I covered the flexwatt with the right size of lexan and used half dome acrylic balls throudhout the bottom to provide stablility. Also yo have to seal the lexan and make sure it is watertight.

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This is possble , But I wanted to also add that with set up where you completly seal in the heat tape that a very reliable thermostat be used to regulate the tape

I actually agree with Robert on that one.. Proportional woul dbe the best choice for this application...

I always use small fans that are build into the system to move the air around. this works great to move the air as well as insure that the panels or lights are creating more even temps and not just hot spots in the terrariums and vivariums i build.

would the panel be able to be managed in this way also?

also, why would one want the hide temps to be above 90 degree F?
I know the ambient temps are high as is the humidity in the natural habitat for royals but their burrows and termite mounds rarely exceed 87 d F. that's one of the coolest things about a termite mound, their actually engineered to allow air movement, bringing in fresh air from out side.

anyway, i think the panels are better from what i've heard as a problem with under the tank heat could be really hard on the snakes. besides, it's not normal for the ground to be hot like the air.

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Originally Posted by Deven

also, why would one want the hide temps to be above 90 degree F?

I know the ambient temps are high as is the humidity in the natural habitat for royals but their burrows and termite mounds rarely exceed 87 d F.

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They have access to natural basking areas in the wild that are greater than 87 degrees. In captivity giving them a place to feel secure while they bask reduces their level of stress (especially when a cage is in a "high traffice" area.

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Originally Posted by Deven

that's one of the coolest things about a termite mound, their actually engineered to allow air movement, bringing in fresh air from out side.

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Exactly, that's why I like Freedom Breeder rack systems. They allow large amounts of fresh air to flow into and out of the enclosure.

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Originally Posted by Deven

anyway, i think the panels are better from what i've heard as a problem with under the tank heat could be really hard on the snakes. besides, it's not normal for the ground to be hot like the air.

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Anyone who's ever been field herping knows that the best place to find snakes on a cool night is a hot black topped road. Many snakes bask on rocks or ground that has been heated by radiant energy from the sun. This is natures UTH and works very well for snakes in captivity. I'm not sure what problems you've heard of associated with UTH, but many many healthy snakes are kept on UTH (especially ball pythons) with no ill effects.

-adam