Heating options

Hey All ~
I'm brand new to the world of ball pythons.. although this dream was 40 years in the making!! I have my new girl, Willow, all settled into her new home for about a month now. She's doing great and eating well. But I've been doing some research and have found that her tank is not warm enough. Right now I have a 29 gallon tank with a small UTH and a day/night light at the top. Got a thermometer with a probe and it's way too chilly... 74 on the cool side and only 78 on the "warm" side. Guess this is why she's spending so much time in her hide?? I've been researching but I'm overwhelmed with the options... ceramic heat lamps, UTH mats, strips, day bulbs, night bulbs, basking lamps... Can someone help a newbie with ideas of what I should use??? :O Thanks!

Hello and welcome! Glad to see you're trying to make Willow's home as happy and healthy as possible. The short answer is: follow this tutorial. Those instructions are a time-tested way of achieving proper conditions in your tank.

The long answer: the most popular option for a tank seems to be a UTH for the hot spot/basking area (90 deg), and a heat lamp to maintain overall ambient temperatures (80 deg.). Your BP doesn't really need a day/light night - just the proper heat and humidity! What size UTH are you using and how is it regulated? You may need to increase your UTH size and get a thermostat in order to make your hot spot warmer.

PS. Are you monitoring your humidity levels as well?

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Originally Posted by Elisa616

Hey All ~
I'm brand new to the world of ball pythons.. although this dream was 40 years in the making!! I have my new girl, Willow, all settled into her new home for about a month now. She's doing great and eating well. But I've been doing some research and have found that her tank is not warm enough. Right now I have a 29 gallon tank with a small UTH and a day/night light at the top. Got a thermometer with a probe and it's way too chilly... 74 on the cool side and only 78 on the "warm" side. Guess this is why she's spending so much time in her hide?? I've been researching but I'm overwhelmed with the options... ceramic heat lamps, UTH mats, strips, day bulbs, night bulbs, basking lamps... Can someone help a newbie with ideas of what I should use??? :O Thanks!

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It's great to see that your snake has been eating. Ideally, when a snake is happy and healthy, they hide all day. Something that snakes do however, is thermoregulate. It seems though that your tank doesnt get warm enough for the snake to ever venture over to the cold side. It sounds like you may want to up the wattage on your nighttime bulb.

Something else that helps keep heat AND humidity in, is covering the screen with aluminum foil. I have my tanks covered with aluminum foil and have a strategic hole cut out for ventilation and for the lamp to actually shine light through. I have it literally taped to the screen ON THE OUTSIDE so that it doesnt move. This helped my humidity and heat issues IMMENSELY. I was having the same conditions as you did prior to doing this, and now I have my big tank with a 100 watt bulb on a timer or else it gets too hot and dry in there. The aluminum foil insulates and reflects heat back into the tank.

With your UTH (your heat pad), are you using a thermostat or rheostat?

Thank you so much! Your step-by-step was incredibly helpful! I've made a list and will start gathering my supplies. I already got the exact thermometer you recommended so I can monitor my humidity levels as well. Willow and I thank you again! :)

Didn't know about the thermostat until today, but I have it on my list of things to get! Thanks!

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Originally Posted by Elisa616

Didn't know about the thermostat until today, but I have it on my list of things to get! Thanks!

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Move the thermostat to the top of your list. An unregulated heat pad can have the temps get up to 120 degrees. That's the point where snakes get burned. A snake could even suffer brain damage if they're kept at too hot of a temperature. The purpose of belly heat is to aid in digestion, and provide warmth while in the hide. It isn't supposed to heat the whole tank. Check the temperature of the glass and substrate directly above the heat pad. It should be under 95 degrees, but ideally in the 88-91 degree zone (on the top of the substrate).

If you decide on a uth, get one with a temp dial. BP's get burned really easy because they can't tell from underneath whether they're hot or not. Some sphagnum moss is great to have on hand. A good heat lamp, and a well secured tank. Make sure you have a very good hide for them (one with only one entrance is best, just big enough for your snake to fit, but not overly large).

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Originally Posted by MontyAndMelissa

If you decide on a uth, get one with a temp dial.

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A temp dial?

Does that mean a thermostat or a thermometer?

Both should be used but I don't know a uth that comes with either.

They are fairly rare. I have only ever seen one and it was online. I guess its technically a thermometer, just a dial that tells you how hot or cold the heater is.

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Originally Posted by MontyAndMelissa

They are fairly rare. I have only ever seen one and it was online. I guess its technically a thermometer, just a dial that tells you how hot or cold the heater is.

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So you have one? Ive never seen one.

The main thing, the most important thing, to have with a uth is a thermostat. I would say a build in thermometer is not needed and only adds a device to break on a unit that is fairly simple and does not need to be made complicated. How would you see it anyways? The tstat monitors the temp at the uth and the thermometer would be used to monitor the hot spot inside the cage. Having one on the uth is really not needed.

Plus if its rare and hard to find why recommend it? Especially without adding a link.

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Originally Posted by KMG

So you have one? Ive never seen one.

The main thing, the most important thing, to have with a uth is a thermostat. I would say a build in thermometer is not needed and only adds a device to break on a unit that is fairly simple and does not need to be made complicated. How would you see it anyways? The tstat monitors the temp at the uth and the thermometer would be used to monitor the hot spot inside the cage. Having one on the uth is really not needed.

Plus if its rare and hard to find why recommend it? Especially without adding a link.

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Perhaps a thermostat is the word I'm looking for. A way to gauge (in the case that you don't have an expensive temp gun) how hot the pad is. I know that in my area I can't find a temperature gun for less than $50.

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Originally Posted by MontyAndMelissa

Perhaps a thermostat is the word I'm looking for. A way to gauge (in the case that you don't have an expensive temp gun) how hot the pad is. I know that in my area I can't find a temperature gun for less than $50.

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Are you telling me that you don't have a tstat? Not knowing what the difference between the two tells me you don't.

Thermostat= Device you plug the uth into that regulates the amount of power to the uth to produce the desired temp on the mat.

Thermometer= Device that monitors and displays the temperature of either the air or surface depending on the type of thermometer used.

Temp guns can be had on Amazon dirt cheap. Much less than $50. I would link the one I bought but its no longer available.

I don't have a uth under his tank, I have a small one on the side of the tank. I prefer not to use uth's because they can cause burns on BP's. I use only heat lamps. You can tell me it's the wrong way or the right way all you want, its the way I do it.

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Originally Posted by MontyAndMelissa

I don't have a uth under his tank, I have a small one on the side of the tank. I prefer not to use uth's because they can cause burns on BP's. I use only heat lamps. You can tell me it's the wrong way or the right way all you want, its the way I do it.

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I have no problem with you using heat lamps alone. I do have a problem with you giving information about something that you don't know anything about and have not done yourself.

Also having an unregulated uth on the side of the cage can still burn your snake if it lays along the glass where it is. With heat lamps providing what the snake needs a uth on the side of the tank is not needed.

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Originally Posted by KMG

I have no problem with you using heat lamps alone. I do have a problem with you giving information about something that you don't know anything about and have not done yourself.

Also having an unregulated uth on the side of the cage can still burn your snake if it lays along the glass where it is. With heat lamps providing what the snake needs a uth on the side of the tank is not needed.

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The uth is too small to emit enough heat to burn him. The side of the tank where the heater is is only 82(f)

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Originally Posted by MontyAndMelissa

The uth is too small to emit enough heat to burn him. The side of the tank where the heater is is only 82(f)

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So you have a thermometer probe on the glass? Without a probe on the glass or a temp gun you don't know the temp of the glass. I have the smallest uth out there and it can really cook just like its bigger brothers.

Uth's do not heat the air.

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Originally Posted by KMG

So you have a thermometer probe on the glass? Without a probe on the glass or a temp gun you don't know the temp of the glass. I have the smallest uth out there and it can really cook just like its bigger brothers.

Uth's do not heat the air.

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I have a friend with a heat gun she uses for her bp. She brought it over recently so I could make sure my thermometer is reading correctly (because it was reading cold) and we checked the area with the heat pad at the same time. Everything was on point so I got a new ceramic bulb, which seemed to be the problem

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Originally Posted by MontyAndMelissa

I know that in my area I can't find a temperature gun for less than $50.

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Home Depot in Gilroy has Ryobi temp guns in stock (5 of them) for 29.97

http://m.homedepot.com/p/Ryobi-4-to-...001/100674438/

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Originally Posted by Tragic Image

Home Depot in Gilroy has Ryobi temp guns in stock (5 of them) for 29.97

http://m.homedepot.com/p/Ryobi-4-to-...001/100674438/

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Must be a special for Christmas. I'll go pick one up tomorrow.

Regular price. Check for Lowes as well. Home Depot was just my first search. Use the key words "temp gun" instead of "heat gun"

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Originally Posted by Tragic Image

Regular price. Check for Lowes as well. Home Depot was just my first search. Use the key words "temp gun" instead of "heat gun"

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Whoa yeah temp gun and heat gun are two TOTALLY different things :O

Infrared temperature gun: takes accurate long distance spot reading of temperature

Heat gun: blow dryer on steroids, used to shrink wrap stuff and in various other craft hobby applications!

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Originally Posted by Lizardlicks

Whoa yeah temp gun and heat gun are two TOTALLY different things :O

Infrared temperature gun: takes accurate long distance spot reading of temperature

Heat gun: blow dryer on steroids, used to shrink wrap stuff and in various other craft hobby applications!

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We use them to solder at work... 1200 degrees...

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Originally Posted by Tragic Image

We use them to solder at work... 1200 degrees...

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Dang that's a lot of heat! Most people I know who have them use them for cosplay stuff haha.

http://www.steinel.net/Professional-Heat-Guns/HG2510ESD