Heating?

I was wondering what would best for heating a cage that is 24" W x 18" D x 16" H? It is a custom PVC cage for a baby ball python. I was wondering if just a basking lamp would suffice for ambient and a basking spot because of the small size of the cage. I do not own the ball python yet so don't critizise(sp?) that I am housing my snake wrong. I am asking this so I can provide the best care for my snake.

Thanks,
Jon

The best way to decide is to set up the enclosure, turn the lamp on and measure your temps. Is the whole enclosure PVC? I honestly prefer UTHs, as they don't mess with humidity, but they can't be used in every enclosure.

The most important thing about an enclosure is that the BP has enough room to thermoregulate. If you can get the right hot/cool side temps in that size enclosure, especially for a baby, I say go for it. Good luck!

Over the years, for me, radiant heat panels have done the best for heating cages (for rack systems I use heat tape). Quality radiant heat panels provide a more powerful heat for cages than heat tape, are safe to the touch (unlike lamps or CHE's), and are don't dry out the air as bad as lamps.

Hope this helps.

-adam

Either a UTH or a heat panel will do you cage right. Now a UTH will do very little if anything for your air temps. So a Heat panel might be better if this is your first snake since it will less of a math problem at to what should be where and at what temps..
-Matt

Where would I put the basking bulb if I used a radiant heat panel?

You woudl not need a basking bulb is uging a panel... Just think of it as a "basking panel"

what heat source would anyone recommend for a wooden enclosure??

Julian,

When I got my 4 year old cornsnake he came in a wooden cage with a glass door facing the front (not on top) that locked with a window type lock. There were no air vents and a light
bulb inside the cage. Well, that bothered me as I didn't want him wrapping himself around the bulb and getting burned.
So I took out the bulb and cut the corn on the back. I disguised it with plastic plants.
But to answer your question, I got one of the inside the cage mats that you put under the substrate and they sit right on the wood. My wood is painted white and the inside mat worked fine. I did have to drill a hole for the cord and we put a new plug on it as the plug obviously wouldn't fit through the little hole.
It worked fine for him until I got him a larger tank. I had also cut a hole in the top and covered with screen for some air and a heat lamp that sat on the screen.
After cleaning and disinfecting it, I later used it for a gopher snake that I had for a short time and it worked fine.
So that is what I would do but there may be other ways that people handle that.

so you just put a heating pad under the substrate?

I'm not a big fan of putting anything electical on the inside floor of a ball python enclosure.

-adam