Boaphile/RHP questions

I would LOVE a Boaphile for my boa. I am looking at the 421D model with a lock added (for my son's safety, last thing I need is my ex husband telling people I keep a large snake in the house unsecured :rolleyes:)

Now, I contacted Boaphile via the email address provided on the website about 2 weeks ago, and from other posts I've heard they kinda suck at getting back to people about questions :rolleyes: but I still really want one so maybe it's worth the wait. Is this size good enough for a male BCI boa? Now, eventually I will need one for my female boa, should I look into the 6421D 6' cage for a female? I'd assume they'd need more space than a 4' cage. However, they do make 5' cages too.

Also, I only use flexwatt and UTHs. I have zero experience with radiant heat panels. How exactly do they work? Do they work inside the enclosure like a UTH but made for being inside the cage? Is it for belly heat? Back heat? I don't know, any info on RHPs would help a lot. Include whether or not a thermostat is needed and how they are hooked up :)

The RHP is mounted on the top of the inside of the cage and used IR radiation to heat things below it. They should have a thermostat but the risk is far less than with UTH's.

I prefer animal plastics over Boaphile but either way I would go with a 6' cage.

Oh yeah I forgot about them! So the RHPs get mounted on top yet still provide "belly" heat?

It's not exactly belly heat, it's more like using a heat lamp, but air temps and humidity aren't effected too much (IR radiation heats things with mass) so the bottom, any cage decor, and the animal get heated.

Okay that makes sense. I'm sure worried about not having belly heat for them I guess.

In my animal plastics cages I have both, flexwatt to provide the hot side, then a RHP to maintain the ambiant/cool side temperatures.

And the flexwatt penetrates the plastic??

Animal Plastics cages are made from 1/2" thick PVC, Boaphiles are made from much thinner plastic (I don't remember the exact thickness either 1/4" or 1/8") if my flexwatt wasn't regulated by my Herpstat the cage floor would easily get up to 110. It takes awhile for the heat to initially penetrate the plastic, but once it does you are in business.

I have a 4x2x2 Boamaster enclosure with a RHP. RHP is attached to the top. I have a Herpstat HD thermostat. My girl has been in hers since I got her. The breeder sells the enclosures. He talked us into going a head and getting one. He suggested that we just put her in tubs inside the enclosure until she gets big enough for it. That has worked out for us great so far. I slide the tub so one side is under the panel so she can lay under the heat if she wants.

RHP work just like the sun. If you run a cool room then you need to supplement the RHP with flex watt or a uth. If your room is hot then the RHP will create a nice hot spot for you.

I would go with the 6' cage and if need be block off part of it till she's big enough to use the whole cage.

Be sure and call them if you need info. I know some people said they had issues but I have called several times when I was getting my first rack and they answered everytime and answered my questions. My Herp Buddy has as stack of the 421's with the heat panels and they are great. He also has a stack of the 6' cages and has never had any issues with either. The way they are built inside makes them very easy to clean. I personally have not seen the AP cages in person so I cannot speak for them.

What I do with my AP cages is I order the divider with the cage and use it to split the cage until the snake is big enough for the whole cage