Oliver's tank set up

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/12/06/sa3ugame.jpg


I think that I got this mostly right. I have the UTH installed, heat bulb, repti-bark for substrate, a cool climbing/basking hide, a plain 1/2 log hide (not in photo), 2 vines, and a therm/humidity thing. I just plugged everything in, and my numbers are

Temp 68.4 F

Humidity 87%

I expect the heat will rise as everything warms up......http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/12/06/9e9ute3u.jpg

Oliver's coming home carrier has the hide and paper towels in it. I have heated seats in my car to warm him for the 20 minute trip home.

How does everything look? Any life-saving advice about something major that I've missed?

Thanks,
Pamela


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I would have the water in the middle and a hide on each side. Each hide should be of the size where the BP will look like he barely fits in for security. This allows abilitry to thermoregulate without having to choose one side over security.

I have heard that a half log is not sufficient as a hide as it is open at both ends but this is just speculation, not something I have experienced myself.

I can't tell if you've covered the back and sides, if you have then great, if not I recommend you cover these with something as simple as paper.

I like your set up, it's very aesthetically pleasing :) Is the probe directly under the heat source too?


*I'm still a newbie so take most things I say with a grain of salt, just commenting on things I have read/seen or experienced*

What is reading 68.4? That is too low! Sorry, just realised.

Temps should be hot end of around 88-90 and a cold end of 82 (26 degrees ish - trying to convert into farenheit from celcius so may be slightly off)

High humidity isn't always a problem but low temps and high humidity can lead to RI's. Try to aim for 40-60% normally and bump up to 70% for shed.

Many thanks! I'm a nervous wreck, lol...... I have all of these other animals, but oliver is the one that I'm the most nervous about bringing home because he's the most delicate. Cats, dogs, and macaws are pretty hardy....

I know about covering the back and sides..... my daughter will help with that when she gets home from school :-) I'll pick up a smaller hide for now to help Oliver feel safe - he's so small......

Cheers,
Pamela

If you have a thing he can hide under on each side, be it an actual hide, or just a pile of aspen bedding, they will be happy in either spot. In your case, just add more shrubs at the base of the plants and he'll have a nice place to hide as well.

It looks good! A few notes: you may have a humidity issue with it being a screen top and using a lamp, the humidity will drop as the bark dries out. The one thing that I didn't see was if you had a thermostat hooked up to your UTH, they can get really hot, expecially on a glass tank with no air flow underneath and will burn your snake, it should be regualted with a Tstat, if you have one then ignore what I just said. Also how thick is your substrate, it should be less than half an inch for the UTH to heat it up and be effective.

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Originally Posted by pbyeerts

Many thanks! I'm a nervous wreck, lol...... I have all of these other animals, but oliver is the one that I'm the most nervous about bringing home because he's the most delicate. Cats, dogs, and macaws are pretty hardy....

I know about covering the back and sides..... my daughter will help with that when she gets home from school :-) I'll pick up a smaller hide for now to help Oliver feel safe - he's so small......

Cheers,
Pamela

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I use small plastic bowls with doors cut out for my little ones but you have such a lovely natural set up! Read my post re temps and humidity :)

I put the thermometer in the wrong spot..... it's closer to the UTH now and the temp jumped to 80. I also plan on adding foil to the sides of the top screen :-)

Yeah, you want to be aiming for a hot spot of 90-92 degrees and the cold side dropping a few degrees :) I know it can be frustrating getting it spot on, I remember having a right go at trying with my first set-up; I was so clueless!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by pbyeerts

I put the thermometer in the wrong spot..... it's closer to the UTH now and the temp jumped to 80. I also plan on adding foil to the sides of the top screen :-)

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But do you have a thermoSTAT hooked up to your UTH to regulate it?

Also, from my experience do you have any air gap or spacing under your tank? The reason I ask is when I was experimenting with an old glass tank I had one with an unregulated UTH (NO SNAKE IN IT JUST EMPTY WITH SUBSTRATE) and it actually got hot enough having no airflow to crack the glass and leave some sharp edges. If you regulate it with a TSTAT it may not be an issue just a thought.

Definitely need a thermoSTAT, not thermoMETER, connected to the UTH. My UTH came with little rubber feet to put under each corner of the tank, to lift it off the ground and provide air circulation. I didn't have a thermostat controlling my UTH & it got to 120 degrees! And it was just a small one. :/

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Also, where is your thermoMETER probe placed? It should be UNDER the bedding, ON TOP of the UTH.

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Ok, now I get it about the thermostat - I'll get one tonight. The temp in the tank is 98. I have the temp probe over the glass where the UTH is and substrate over it. I have the basking light on as well. I will unplug the UTH so that the tank doesn't get too hot until I get the STAT. I turned off the light for a while, and the temp didn't drop, so I believe the UTH is too hot and needs to be regulated. Yep, it does have the little feet on it.

The humidity is now 75%




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I would put the heat lamp toward the center and on a lamp dimmer to raise the ambient temps, you getting temps anywhere in the cage at 68 degrees is too cold.
Read through this link if you haven't already: http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...-With-Pictures!
Good luck!

Yeah thermostat is one of the most important elements otherwise you can deal with burns. All heat elements should be regulated. Best of luck! :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by tlich

I would put the heat lamp toward the center and on a lamp dimmer to raise the ambient temps, you getting temps anywhere in the cage at 68 degrees is too cold.
Read through this link if you haven't already: http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...-With-Pictures!
Good luck!

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x2

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