Who makes the best display tank?

I posted this in the general bp forum, but the thread has kinda died. I'm hoping for some better luck here...

I've looked at several different sites (Animal Plastics, Boaphile, Repti-Racks, Reptile Basics), but I want to make sure I choose the right tank for my BP. I'm thinking of getting a 36x24x12-15. I want something that will look nice, provide space for me to create a natural looking envirment, last for his entire life, and most importantly hold heat and humidity very well (since my house gets very cold in the winter & a large aquarium just won't cut it).

I also want to know what the best methods of heating are in these tanks. I realize many of you don't have these enclosures, but if you were going to get one in my situation which would it be?

Any advice even remotely related to this would be awesome.

majestic makes sweet display enclosures, big bucks though

you can also try this place. they are on the pricey side, but I think worth the money in the long run. I plan on getting a few of those at some point.

showcase cages

animal plastics all the way. i got a t 10 for $250 and it'g gonna last my girl her whole life. they've got good stuff and sounds exactly like what you're looking for.

here it is- assembly required but it's pretty easy
http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a3...2/100_9715.jpg

personally ive been looking at animal plastics they seem the easiest to work with accoring to options and price.

christina- what options did you get with yours?? What are you doing about uth, and just temps/ humididty in general if you dont mind me asking?

i got the uth with mine and the swing doors instead of the sliding. i thought the swing looked nicer, but it's got less of an opening to get stuff out, which can be a pain sometimes. i didn't get any screens on the top because i don't use lamps at all. i got locks, just to be safe, because i don't trust the little plastic guards that come with it. then for temps, since i can't afford a nice thermosat, i bought a $20-25 foot dimmer for a lamp at ace hardware. it works well, i just have to keep my eye on it constantly. and as for humidity, i'm not doing anything for it because mine's a bit high right now. it holds it really well. i have to see how it does in the winter because it gets dry here, but as of right now, i'm trying to figure out how to keep it down...and they threw in a basking shelf for free...and she just likes to wedge herself in between her hide and the shelf, so that's cool. i hope i answered all of your questions. if you have any other ones, lemme know!

i think that about sums it up thank you very much

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jdmls88

personally ive been looking at animal plastics they seem the easiest to work with accoring to options and price.

christina- what options did you get with yours?? What are you doing about uth, and just temps/ humididty in general if you dont mind me asking?

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I've got the T-10 as well and I use the belly heat on the hot side and a radiant heat panel on the cool side. This is THE way to go. I used to use a lamp, then changed to a CHE, and now the RHP and I no longer have to spray the tank, ever. I posted pics of my cage with the heat panel and also did a review of it a while back. My Ball's cage has the sliding glass doors, and my corn has the swinging doors, which I think are better for thinner snakes because they can't squeeze between the glass (like on the sliding doors). Def get the locks, just for peace of mind, when friends or family come over and inquisitive little ones want to poke their hands where they don't belong.

BDI,
Do you have different thermostats controlling the UTH and the RHP? I was under the impression that they both need to be regulated?

Any advice would be awesome, I'm still in the process of getting $ together but I'm getting nervous about heating since it getting cold up here and I'm having trouble keeping my 10 gallon tank warm enough at night.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BigCeC43

BDI,
Do you have different thermostats controlling the UTH and the RHP? I was under the impression that they both need to be regulated?

Any advice would be awesome, I'm still in the process of getting $ together but I'm getting nervous about heating since it getting cold up here and I'm having trouble keeping my 10 gallon tank warm enough at night.

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Yeah, different thermostat for each heating element.

I have two Boaphiles and they're great :gj:

I use the 2x belly heat plus radiant heat panel. They are installed on the same side, so a single thermostat can control them both. Humidity is awesome, and cleaning is easy.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BD1

Yeah, different thermostat for each heating element.

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Man... it was hard for me to get the 1 thermostat that I already have $:($. What brand do you use?

As you know, the winters are cold here and I'm afraid of having a tank that's too cold so I may use your same set up (except in a T3).

However, I couldn't get into your review of the RHP for some reason...
if you get a chance I'd love to know what size? and where you bought your RHP?, as well as where? and how it's mounted in your cage? As well as where your probes are placed?

Sorry for all the questions I just trust your set up the most since we have the same climate and this is my first winter w/ my BP. If possible I'd like to duplicate it.:please::please:

http://stores.ebay.com/Custom-Wood-Reptile-Cage-Company

This place sells alot of nice looking cages and I considered buying one from them until I realized my cousin was married to a carpenter :) I use a homemade wooden enclosure with plexi front doors and a RHP. It holds heat/humidity great!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BigCeC43

Man... it was hard for me to get the 1 thermostat that I already have $:($. What brand do you use?

As you know, the winters are cold here and I'm afraid of having a tank that's too cold so I may use your same set up (except in a T3).

However, I couldn't get into your review of the RHP for some reason...
if you get a chance I'd love to know what size? and where you bought your RHP?, as well as where? and how it's mounted in your cage? As well as where your probes are placed?

Sorry for all the questions I just trust your set up the most since we have the same climate and this is my first winter w/ my BP. If possible I'd like to duplicate it.:please::please:

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Disregard all those questions, I finally managed to get into your review and they were all answered there. Thanks:gj:

You did say in your review that the RHP was on the warmside of the cage. Did you change the placement? or was that a typo?
Do you have the rectangular screen? or the two circle cut outs on top? I'm assuming you have 2 helix tstats.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BigCeC43

Man... it was hard for me to get the 1 thermostat that I already have $:($. What brand do you use?

As you know, the winters are cold here and I'm afraid of having a tank that's too cold so I may use your same set up (except in a T3).

However, I couldn't get into your review of the RHP for some reason...
if you get a chance I'd love to know what size? and where you bought your RHP?, as well as where? and how it's mounted in your cage? As well as where your probes are placed?

Sorry for all the questions I just trust your set up the most since we have the same climate and this is my first winter w/ my BP. If possible I'd like to duplicate it.:please::please:

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I tried to search for that review also but I think it may have been trashed. I'll see if any moderators know how to get it back, if possible. This is who I ordered my RHP from: http://www.pro-products.com/. Since my cage is much larger, I don't know what size panel you will need, but I called them directly, described the cage, what was being housed in it, etc (they will ask you a bunch of questions about what the average room temperature is, what other heating you are using and so on)
I'll see if I still have the pics of my setup on my camera or on disk and I'll repost them for you so you can see what I did.

I have a Herpstat controlling the belly cable and a Helix that controls the RHP. I actually just hang the probe down the cool side of the tank through the ceiling cutout hole. It is actually just hanging straight down, but it is almost touching the floor, where the snake is. It is only measuring the ambient temps on the cool side and since it hangs in the cage, my ball can bump it with his head or body and it will still hang in the same spot. Give me a couple days and I'll work on getting those pics up for ya.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BigCeC43

Disregard all those questions, I finally managed to get into your review and they were all answered there. Thanks:gj:

You did say in your review that the RHP was on the warmside of the cage. Did you change the placement? or was that a typo?
Do you have the rectangular screen? or the two circle cut outs on top? I'm assuming you have 2 helix tstats.

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Yeah the RHP is on the warm side because I was going to try heating only with the RHP and not using the belly cable, but I never got around to testing it out. I have one circle cutout over the cool side, that I regret getting, but have since covered it with the cutout piece from AP and have covered the entire top of the cage with hard foam insulation to help prevent heat loss.