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Question on ceramic bulbs

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  • 10-16-2018, 12:09 AM
    Dylan_
    Question on ceramic bulbs
    So i kmow u would need a thermostat hooked up for a cerakic bulb but heres my questions 1. How many watt would i need for 54x long 22-23w 25h terrarium glass.
    2. Where would u place the thermostat probe.
    3. Would 1 bring up my ambient tempatures on my entire tank or would i need 2 ceramoc heaters?
    Currently i have an exo 150w red basking bulb amd a 100w exo terra red basking bulb reason i use exo terra bulbs is they dont tend to get as hot as zoomed im not really looking to get more basking areas in the cage lol i have a uth for basking im just looking for bringing up the floor and ambient temps on my cool side seeing as they can drop as low as 74 73 thinking of putting another 150 on cool side seeing as floor gets about 80-84ish with the 150 on hot side im not usimg thermostat on these bulbs tho because the temps havent gotten high if anything sometimes they drop to low

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  • 10-16-2018, 12:10 AM
    Dylan_
    Re: Question on ceramic bulbs
    Sorry for all the typos phone can be difficult tk type on ever since i got this tempered glass my buttons dont want to work properly lol

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  • 10-16-2018, 12:20 AM
    BPGator
    Re: Question on ceramic bulbs
    Unless I’m misunderstanding, I don’t see why you need anymore heat sources. I think you’re saying your air temp is mid 80s on ho side and mid 70s cool side and you have UTH for belly heat. That sounds sufficient to me.


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  • 10-16-2018, 12:27 AM
    Dylan_
    Re: Question on ceramic bulbs
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by BPGator View Post
    Unless I’m misunderstanding, I don’t see why you need anymore heat sources. I think you’re saying your air temp is mid 80s on ho side and mid 70s cool side and you have UTH for belly heat. That sounds sufficient to me.


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    Thought your never suppose to let the temps drop below 80? My cool side with temp gun on ground ranges from 73 to 75 some places 77

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  • 10-16-2018, 12:51 AM
    BPGator
    Re: Question on ceramic bulbs
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Dylan_ View Post
    Thought your never suppose to let the temps drop below 80? My cool side with temp gun on ground ranges from 73 to 75 some places 77

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    Your enclosure is over 4ft long. If it’s too cool for your snake he won’t go over there, but he’s got plenty of room to find the right temp for him.


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  • 10-16-2018, 12:53 AM
    Jakethesnake69
    I would use a 150 watt CHE and ditch the basking lights. BP’s don’t bask. They are crepuscular or nocturnal meaning dusk until dawn. The CHE will get your ambient where you want them. My probes in my tanks are at snake level under the CHE. My thermostat is set for 82. It could go up to 84 but sits right around 81-82 and 77-79 on cool side. The UTH is really just belly heat and does help the digestion. I also have the hot side at 87-89 and cool side is about 77 on the surface (at the glass) 75 is minimum.
    As far as temps getting to low, is that with lights off at night? A CHE can be used around the clock and temps should always be regulated. BP’s should see a regular daytime/night time lighting condition. Bulbs get hot, with my cheap Century thermostat, it’s an on/off system that sees over 250 degrees at the source. Think about a little girls easy bake oven and how a regular bulb bakes brownies. Could be your snake.
  • 10-16-2018, 12:58 AM
    MennoA
    Re: Question on ceramic bulbs
    Unless I did a miscalculation ( and your size is in cm instead of inch), you got the same size tank as me, only mine is made out of wood.
    I've got an 100w exoterra che hooked up to an thermostat. It keep my tank at 85 nicely on the hot spot and the cold side at 77ish.


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  • 10-16-2018, 11:11 AM
    Coluber42
    What you need for heating also depends very much on the temperature of the room you're in. Without that, no one can tell you whether you need more or not.

    But yes, if your cool side gets too cool even when your hot side is at the right temperature, then you either need an additional heat source or you need to insulate the cage. You can make a pretty big difference in a glass tank by putting foam insulation board around three sides of it plus whatever parts of the screen top are not occupied with lamp fixtures. That alone might even make for enough less of a temperature dropoff from one side to the other that you don't need another heat source.

    If you do need another heat source, a CHE will work. If in doubt, get a higher wattage one and the thermostat will dial it down as needed. Just make sure the fixture can handle whatever wattage you get! For overhead heat sources, I like to leave the thermostat probe dangling down so that it can't be sat on or peed on, which would throw it off. Since the probe will likely be a bit off to the side and not directly under the CHE, you might need to set it for a somewhat lower temperature than what you actually want under the CHE. Just check it several times in several places to figure out exactly how you need to set it to get what you want.

    Re. basking: First of all, "crepuscular" is not the same as nocturnal. Crepuscular means most active around dawn and dusk, nocturnal means most active during full dark.
    But also, ball pythons do occasionally bask during the day, both in captivity and in the wild, either openly or cryptically. Cryptic basking means the animal is mostly hidden, but some parts of the body are sticking out into the light. They're maybe more likely to bask if they have basking areas with visual cover, so they can still feel somewhat hidden from view. So providing a basking area with branches or leaves (fake is fine) or walls or something near and around it might make it more attractive.

    They don't require it for survival the way many lizards do, but it's not correct to say they never do it.
  • 10-16-2018, 12:13 PM
    Dylan_
    Re: Question on ceramic bulbs
    I was told ches need certain lamp fixtures i will probably just get another 150 watt exo or just hook my space heatrr up in my room to bring my room temps up i already covrtrd 3 sides i have blocked top off with aluminum foil and tape to secure the aluminum foil down not sure why my temps wont higher seeing as i have 150w on warm side and 100w on cool

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  • 10-16-2018, 12:23 PM
    Dylan_
    Re: Question on ceramic bulbs
    I use red bulbs because i was told they dont mess with the snakes day/night cycle that you can leave them on 24/7. Maybe im missing something that isnt insulating the inside of tank ill double check before i upgrade the bulb

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  • 10-16-2018, 12:28 PM
    Dylan_
    Re: Question on ceramic bulbs
    With ceramic bulbs can u use a regular hest lamp or do u need a different lamp? And does it need to be controlled by a thermostat?

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  • 10-16-2018, 01:15 PM
    ryknoll3
    Re: Question on ceramic bulbs
    They can be used in any lamp that is rated for the wattage of the bulb. Also, I would suggest only using lamps with ceramic sockets, not plastic.
  • 10-16-2018, 02:01 PM
    Dylan_
    Re: Question on ceramic bulbs
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by ryknoll3 View Post
    They can be used in any lamp that is rated for the wattage of the bulb. Also, I would suggest only using lamps with ceramic sockets, not plastic.

    Okay thanks i believe mine is ceramic how do i tell 100%

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  • 10-16-2018, 02:25 PM
    Helonwheelz383
    Re: Question on ceramic bulbs
    The back side of the fixture where the wire goes in will be ceramic. It's about an inch and a half or 2 inches around. I use one of those with the ceramic bulb that puts out only heat and no light. I've got it hooked up to a dimmer and it stays on all the time. I just open the blinds for the day to let ambient light in.
  • 10-16-2018, 02:57 PM
    Jakethesnake69
    Re: Question on ceramic bulbs
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Coluber42 View Post
    What you need for heating also depends very much on the temperature of the room you're in. Without that, no one can tell you whether you need more or not.
    Re. basking: First of all, "crepuscular" is not the same as nocturnal. Crepuscular means most active around dawn and dusk, nocturnal means most active during full dark.
    But also, ball pythons do occasionally bask during the day, both in captivity and in the wild, either openly or cryptically. Cryptic basking means the animal is mostly hidden, but some parts of the body are sticking out into the light. They're maybe more likely to bask if they have basking areas with visual cover, so they can still feel somewhat hidden from view. So providing a basking area with branches or leaves (fake is fine) or walls or something near and around it might make it more attractive.

    They don't require it for survival the way many lizards do, but it's not correct to say they never do it.

    Not sure why I wrote nocturnal and crepuscular like they are the same, not what I meant to say however BP’s have been referred to as both

    The wattage is irrelevant because it’s going to be more about the surface area getting warm. Larger wattage bulbs having more heated surface area than lower wattage so bigger is better. It’s only going to get so hot if regulated that’s my support for larger bulb comment.

    They dont require light like lizards and some other snakes because the vitamins that basking in sunlight gives them comes from their prey.

    Ball Pythons require 12 hours of day and 12 hours of night. A red light on a dimmer is giving off light. In my book light is light. I don’t use red lights or any color at night. Exceptions being requirements for immediate issues or needs I must have light for. My male goes right back in his hid eye when his cage is lit up.

    Never been to Africa where BP’s come from but like mine have shown me light means find darkness. Really doubt they hang out in the sun particularly during the main hours of daylight. I have read a lot about these and other snakes.
    Agreeing to disagree
  • 10-16-2018, 03:22 PM
    Jmarshall
    Re: Question on ceramic bulbs
    It sounds to me that you have enough of a heat source and the enclosure just needs to be better insulated to trap the heat. That will definitely help with ambients.


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  • 10-16-2018, 05:18 PM
    Dylan_
    Re: Question on ceramic bulbs
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Jmarshall View Post
    It sounds to me that you have enough of a heat source and the enclosure just needs to be better insulated to trap the heat. That will definitely help with ambients.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

    Yeah im going to figure somethjngnojtni came home after work to check on her cause its getting cold out and my room is at 70 i turned space heater on now the thermometor is saying 74.8 its a memory one so i checked min temp it was in the 60s last night ugh i got to insulate this way way better also thank god for her uth what was reading 88 she hid in her hot side probably all night thats where she was when i found her im starting to worry about these temps in my room i live in a basement and i dont have controlnof thermostatn up stairs so im leaving space heater on till i can figure something out thankfully temps are at 75 now on cool side

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  • 10-16-2018, 05:25 PM
    Jmarshall
    Re: Question on ceramic bulbs
    When I had my guy in a rack.. I set a space heater up to a thermostat which would kick it on whenever it got below 78.. just make sure the thermostat can handle wattage of space heater.


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  • 10-16-2018, 05:26 PM
    Dylan_
    Re: Question on ceramic bulbs
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Jmarshall View Post
    When I had my guy in a rack.. I set a space heater up to a thermostat which would kick it on whenever it got below 78.. just make sure the thermostat can handle wattage of space heater.


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    Dont have an extra thermostat dont have any money to get one right this moment

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  • 10-17-2018, 01:21 PM
    Coluber42
    Re: Question on ceramic bulbs
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Dylan_ View Post
    Dont have an extra thermostat dont have any money to get one right this moment

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    If you're on a budget, don't use a space heater. You can buy them for not too much and you might even have one already, but add up a few months of electric bills and heating an entire room when you really only need to heat a few cubic feet of it makes a lot less sense. That's even more true if you start talking about raising the thermostat in your entire house.

    A 1500-watt space heater run 24/7 could cost $3-4 per day. Even if it only has to run half the time to raise the room temperature to where you need it, that's still at least $1.50 per day or $45 per month. People complain that RHP's are expensive, but a 80-watt RBI panel costs the same as running that space heater for only two months. Obviously the 80-watt panel isn't free to run, but running it 24/7 is still barely more than a tenth of the cost of running a 1500-watt space heater 12 hours per day. A space heater is a fine band-aid solution for when your equipment fails or you're waiting for shipments or whatever, but it is NOT a long term budget solution!

    The reason I recommend to err on the side of a higher wattage CHE if you're unsure is that it's better to have more capacity than you need just in case the room temperature drops more than you think. If you need ~45 watts of output to get the temperature you need most of the time, then most of the time a 50 watt CHE will be fine. So will a 75 watt one, or a 100 watt one. They'll all work, because the thermostat will regulate it, so it won't really matter much which one you have. But if it gets colder and now 50 watts of output isn't enough, the thermostat can't turn your 50 watt bulb into a 75 watt bulb. It's cheaper to just buy the 100 watt one in the first place than to buy the 50 watt one, discover that on the coldest days it isn't enough, and then go buy another one.
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