ceramic heat emitter

I've got a Zoomed ceramic heat emitter for my BP and that thing gets hotter than a hot rock an roids! I am putting it in the cage and I don't want my snake to burn himself on it. I was thinking of a metal cage thingy around it, but that would get hot, too, I would think. What do you guys think of what I should do to keep him from touching it? Thanks a lot!

I think I posted this in the wrong place.:oops: It should go under the caging forum. Sorry about that.

Do you have a thermostat controlling it?

I've got one ordered and it should be here within a week or so.

There is really nothing you can do to control the temps until you actually have a control in place.. As for the element getting hot itself, ybou can buld a bulb guard out of hardwire cloth..

Is there anything else I could use to cover it, even if it is just temporary? I need something just to make sure that he doesn't touch it while I am sleeping. I wasn't thinking and I stuck my hand on it, and don't want Olaf to do that, too. (It blistered my hand a bit even after running it under cold water and holding an ice pack, and as far as I know, snakes don't have icepacks.)

There's no way to put it outside the cage, so it's not able to be touched?

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Originally Posted by PrincessErica

There's no way to put it outside the cage, so it's not able to be touched?

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That is correct. There isn't any screen lid or anything for the heat to get in. I will eventually make a cover for it, I just need something temporary. I guess I could take it out for the time being, But then it might get too cold in there.

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Originally Posted by justcage

There is really nothing you can do to control the temps until you actually have a control in place.. As for the element getting hot itself, ybou can buld a bulb guard out of hardwire cloth..

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How far from the emitter will the wire need to be in order not to get burnt or anything bad? Will the screen need a frame to support it?

The cloth should be self supporting if made right. Just take your time and it will be perfect.. Also wear gloves as the cloth will poke the crap out of you as your building it. As for the distance, I honstely am not sure. You will have t test to see how it functions:)

We love ceremic heat emmiters over here. But I would never, ever suggest one in the cage, your snake will thank you if you are able to find a way to build a better top and utilize a ceremic exterior lighting system. Those bad boys get very hot. They are great for room size enclosures and ambient temp up keep. I really wouldn't use one inside a cage. Just get an under tank heater for now. They are cheap and very usefull.
Just my two cents
Rusty

I have already got a UTH to keep the belly temps up. I would be able to recess a whole in the wall and put one of those metal dome covers over it to direct the heat into the cage. How well do those direct and keep heat? I can either do it that way or in the cage with a screen around it. If I put it outside the cage, I'd still put screen over it, of course. Which do you think would be better- outside the cage with a screen covering it, or inside the cage with a screen cage around it?

Never mind my last post. I decided to go with it in the cage. It was a wire caging around it and has no sharp edges.:)

i got the cage built, and this is what it looks like:

https://ball-pythons.net/gallery/files/2/0/2/3/c7.JPG

Wouldn't the cage around the bulb be extremely hot?
Rusty

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Originally Posted by Rusty_Reptiles

Wouldn't the cage around the bulb be extremely hot?
Rusty

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Nope. I got it hooked up to a thermostat, and it doesn't need to be on that long. The only place where it does get warm is around the outside of the circular part (where it is closest), but I can hold my hand there forever. Once it turns off, it cools down quickly.:D