Concerns of a New BP Owner

I’d also insulate the tank if your house gets as cold as the low 60s. Get some foam insulation from Lowe’s and cover three sides and probably part of the top as well aside from any overhead heat you might be using.


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Ok, since I had to fuss with his tank, I went ahead and weighed him using our kitchen scale. He weighs 187g! I am in the process of moving the stat probes between the mat and glass beneath the tank as directed.

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Originally Posted by jmcrook

I’d also insulate the tank if your house gets as cold as the low 60s. Get some foam insulation from Lowe’s and cover three sides and probably part of the top as well aside from any overhead heat you might be using.


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I am only using belly heat. I have a mesh top lid, so I have a piece of foam board covering that to provide insulation. I will set about covering the sides with some foam as well.

Sorry for the scatterbrained abundance of posts, I don't know how to edit my previous posts lol- but anyway, putting the probe between the bottom of the tank and the UTH helped DRAMATICALLY. Wow. It's coming up to temperature right now. I think his tank was colder than I thought it was, and that was probably why he was refusing and such a bad eater in the first place. I've added insulation on the back of his tank and one of the sides with the leftover foam I already had. Hopefully the temperature issue will resolve itself now that adjustments have been made. So glad I made this post. :)

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Originally Posted by smakemom

Sorry for the scatterbrained abundance of posts, I don't know how to edit my previous posts lol- but anyway, putting the probe between the bottom of the tank and the UTH helped DRAMATICALLY. Wow. It's coming up to temperature right now. I think his tank was colder than I thought it was, and that was probably why he was refusing and such a bad eater in the first place. I've added insulation on the back of his tank and one of the sides with the leftover foam I already had. Hopefully the temperature issue will resolve itself now that adjustments have been made. So glad I made this post. :)

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Awesome to hear and I'm glad you were open to everyone's advice! Make sure you take several temperature readings to make sure you have it where it needs to be.

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Originally Posted by smakemom

Sorry for the scatterbrained abundance of posts, I don't know how to edit my previous posts lol- but anyway, putting the probe between the bottom of the tank and the UTH helped DRAMATICALLY. Wow. It's coming up to temperature right now. I think his tank was colder than I thought it was, and that was probably why he was refusing and such a bad eater in the first place. I've added insulation on the back of his tank and one of the sides with the leftover foam I already had. Hopefully the temperature issue will resolve itself now that adjustments have been made. So glad I made this post. :)

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So is he....:snake: You aren't the first to put the probe in the wrong place & I'm sure you won't be the last. ;)

FYI, you only have a short time to edit your posts on this forum...like about five minutes (I've never timed it) after which the edit button (lower right of each post) disappears.

Insulation can be many things besides foam board, & if this is a glass tank, you can put up scenery first & insulate behind it if you like, not that your snake will care, lol. :gj:

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

So is he....:snake: You aren't the first to put the probe in the wrong place & I'm sure you won't be the last. ;)

FYI, you only have a short time to edit your posts on this forum...like about five minutes (I've never timed it) after which the edit button (lower right of each post) disappears.

Insulation can be many things besides foam board, & if this is a glass tank, you can put up scenery first & insulate behind it if you like, not that your snake will care, lol. :gj:

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He does have some scenery, haha. My parents surprised me with a glass tank, some basic snake stuff, and a roll of desert wallpaper. I was also gifted a PetSmart card to buy the rest of his stuff with (there was a LOT they missed, but I'm delighted with what I got). I originally planned on getting a tub, and when he grows out of this tank I will probably switch to a tub.

I have one other concern now, though. Both thermostats are set to 98º but the hot side temp reads at 86-88º and the cold side temp reads at 76-78º. The temperature fluctuates much less now, but should I be worried about the heat mats I'm using since there's a 10º difference in setting on the hot side, and 20º difference in setting on the cold side? Or should I just leave it, since the correct temperatures have been achieved and appear to be stable? (I'll continue monitoring the temperatures throughout the day.)

My snake, Smake, ate! I added a dimmable ceramic heat emitter to the top of his tank. I've been controlling it manually but will look into getting a timer. I have it set to emit only a bit of warmth to lift the ambient temp up, and I turn it off at night to avoid disaster since I can't control the lamp's temp if I'm unconscious. After that, I offered him food a night later. He ate quickly and happily. It seems we're doing fine now! :)