Flexwatt On both sides?

you can get 3" flexwatt for the cool side but then you create only another surface temperature. your ambient temperature will still be whatever your room temperature is and it will still be too low.

you will have 11" on one side creating a surface temp of 90-94 and 3" on the other side creating another surface temp of 80-82. the surface temp of the middle of the tub will be room temperature and the ambient temp of the entire tub will be room temperature as well.

i know people who keep snakes in their basements and dont up the ambient temp and only use uth or flexwatt and tell me that its fine.

but me personally i feel that the health of my bps require the ambient temperature to be where its supposed to.

i was dealing with this issue when i was switching to rack systems and i concluded that a space heater is definately needed.

just trying to share my experience with you. hope it helps!

I thought you could not plug a piece of 3" flex into a thermostat that is also plugged into 11". :confused:

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you will have 11" on one side creating a surface temp of 90-94 and 3" on the other side creating another surface temp of 80-82. the surface temp of the middle of the tub will be room temperature and the ambient temp of the entire tub will be room temperature as well.

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I agree, you would need to cover the entire bottom of the tank a 3" would probably be not enough (Cause the center would get cold). As for ambient temps, the hides I use, where he spends 95% of the time, have an ambient temp of mid 80's because they trap the heat rising from the floor. Also the air throughout the rest of the tank has a heat gradient going from the floor to the top. The bottom third is low 80's, the top two-thirds is just above ambient room temps 72-75, in my experience.

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I thought you could not plug a piece of 3" flex into a thermostat that is also plugged into 11".

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Correct me if im wrong but thermostats are rated in wattage, as long as the two flexwatts do not exceed the wattage of your thermostat then you should be all set. Mine has two outlets for different heat sources.

I knew I saw this somewhere.

http://www.ball-pythons.net/forums/s...light=flexwatt

It hasn't really answered the question, so it would be interesting to see if any results were conclusive.

Might be worth a new post.

I have a extra piece of 11 inch flexwatt and a homemade dimmer. Maybee il try that on the same thermostat but on a dimmer so that the cold side is getting less power then the hot. And put a blanket on the tubs to keep the heat in.

Also im going to build a rack soon do racks realy help to keep heat in?

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Originally Posted by ivylea77

I thought you could not plug a piece of 3" flex into a thermostat that is also plugged into 11". :confused:

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there are thermostats out there that can control multiple heat sources but in this situation we were talking about using a thermostat to control the hot side(11") and another thermostat to control the cold side(3").

i thought about this option but i feel it doesnt work because it only creates surface temps not ambient temps. in my opinion a space heater is needed to provide proper climate control for the proper care of these animals!

but thats just me!;)

anyone else??

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it only creates surface temps not ambient temps.

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You could very well be 100% correct (I am new at this) but I look at it from three perspectives (because I have this exact setup):

1) Many breeders/caresheets claim that BP's only need belly heat. I trust them.

2) From a scientific point of view the BP spends 99% of its time 0-5 inches above the substrate. At those heights the UTH would provide sufficient ambient temperatures regardless of the room temperature (heat rises). I would agree that tree boas would not do well with only a UTH. The top of the tank is probably not very warm at all.

3) From a health/medical perspective, the main reasons for the temperature is digestion, oxygen transfer in the lungs and the immune system. If its too cold these processes dont function well (causing RI's etc.). As long as the organs are warm, its okay! Think of it this way: what would cause hypothermia in humans quicker? Submersion in an icy lake or being outside in the cold air? Obviously the lake, because water tends to suck a ton of heat away from your body very fast cause its a liquid. The same goes for snake heating, laying on warm substrate will raise the snakes organ temperature much faster than inhaling warm air. Likewise, if the snake inhales colder air (65 degrees, for example) that air will warm up 100's of times faster than the snakes temperature will decrease.

I am so glad I am dating a chemical engineer, she has taught me so much about thermodynamics! I hope I am not just trying to justify my husbandry. Please correct me if I am wrong on any of this rambling :)