Insulation

Hi Everyone. I'm new to the ball python world, I've had my boy dince last saturday... so yeah, I'm very new.

I want to ask you guys about insulation. I live in a veeery old apartment (almost 80 years old :O) with no heating or AC. In my country humidity is always around 80%-85% and temps vary a lot during the day. In winter, it ranges between 50 F-25F and in summer, between 104 F-90F. This is something I did not take into account before buying my boy, which I know I should have. Is insulation going to help me prevent temperature changes in the enclosure? I'm not worried about winter/autumn, as I am planning on getting a second UTH/thermostat for the cool side. Summer worries me the most as I am not sure how to get the cold side to stay cold if the ambient temp is of 100F... :confused:

What worries me the most is the fact that as the weather changes constantly, temperatures can drop or increase 20F in a matter of hours, and I am not home 24-7 so as to vary the amount of temperature my boy receives.

Sorry for the long post :weirdface

I use rigid insulation on my tanks and cages since where I live the temps change drastically from day to night; the insulation helps mitigate these changes a lot!!

To fix the temperature drops, etc when you are not home, try getting a thermostat. The thermostat will supply the right amount of power to the heating elements to keep the temperature where it needs to be (presuming it needs heating, and not cooling) For the summer, maybe a fan system will help keep it cool, or at least moving. I live in Michigan, so keeping it cool is not usually an issue.

I do have a thermostat, but if it is 104F outside, even if I have the t-stat set at 92F, it will be hotter than that... or if it is 30F, I will need to set the t-stat at a higher temp to achieve 92F, that is what I meant. And I am not home during the day to make those changes, I was wondering whether insulation will help me prevent temperature variations in the enclosure...

Thanks for the imput guys!

She implied that she has a t'stat and UTH when she said she'd be getting a second one.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by alyssa_lennon

I do have a thermostat, but if it is 104F outside, even if I have the t-stat set at 92F, it will be hotter than that... or if it is 30F, I will need to set the t-stat at a higher temp to achieve 92F, that is what I meant. And I am not home during the day to make those changes, I was wondering whether insulation will help me prevent temperature variations in the enclosure...

Thanks for the imput guys!

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I'm wondering if instead of another UTH you might want to get a radiant heat panel and put it on a timer and t'stat for the ambient temps for the evenings.
Gosh, this is really a tricky situation.
In the summer where I live day time temps average around 80-85F and drop to 35-40F at night. The ball pythons are all in the warmest room of the house to help with their ambient temps at night. My boas all get RHP's since they are in the living room where it is chillier.
I'm thinking that a combination might be best for your situation- though I am far from certain.... :oops:

I had the same issue... room got to like 95 in the summer and its in the -'s here in upstate NY... For the summer we bought an air conditioner with a thermostat built in... If the room got above 80 it would turn on... For the winter we did the exact opposite and got a oil based heater to heat the room... I keep mine set at 69 which gets my cool side temps around 78-80... Id keep the UTH and work on finding other ways to heat/cool the tanks... In all honesty an air conditioner for the summer is probably your only choice... in the winter you can go with an oil based heater or maybe hook up a ceramic heat emitter to a thermostat to keep cool side/ambient temps around 80. Good luck, I knows its a pain in the arse... ive been there:)

So, what if she can't afford the cost or electricity usage of an air conditioner? Any other thoughts?

Nope, I tried just about everything I could think of... Unfortunately its merely impossible(other than with an air conditioner) to cool something down when the ambient temperature is your problem. I shut the shades, turned on fans, put ice cubes in a bowl and put them in the tubs... anything and everything be it ridiculous or plausable... in the end I broke down paid the $$ for an air conditioner... When youre only trying to keep a room @80 the air conditioner isnt really on much... I'm not sure how much of a difference it would be for her with temps in the 100's and mine being in the 90's but I found no other solution.

It really is a sticky situation, thank you guys so much for your thoughts and your help. I doubt I'll be able to purchase an air conditioning as I am a student living on financial aid LOL! I just want the best for my ball python, it saddens me to think that I might not be able to give it the PERFECT environment to thrive in, and that perhaps my excitement clouded my judgement. I bought everything I had to, you know, UTH, tstat, hides, the whole thing, and I will do anything it takes for the ball to lead a happy, healthy life...

again, thank you for your help, it does mean a lot to me

So, here's this: Our temps soared to the low 90's for the past 3 days and the ambient temps in tubs and cages only went to 86F. I have them surrounded by rigid insulation which is, I still think, a good thing to do. (We don't have air conditioning and won't get air conditioning.) I wonder if it was the insulation that moderated my temps?
In the winter (isn't it going into the winter now?) you might want to look into a radiant heat panel since that will warm the tank bottom as well as keep the ambient temps up. RHP's are just as good for ball pythons as belly heat.

I think I will be looking into insulation, you are right, I think it is a good option. Mind if I PM you with questions on it??

I believe radiant heat panels are not sold down here... I had the hardest time finding a UTH, the pet store had to have it shipped from another country... :( wouldn't a light be another option for me? I mean, if it dries out the enclosure, it will not be an issue at all as humidity here's always above 80% no matter what... nad it'll help me keep my temps up in the cold side...

In florida the temps can soar in the summer to 100 degrees as well. I know a breeder here that has no ac in one of his ball pythons areas he uses fans. The snakes are of course in the shade (inside) and the air moving keeps them from getting to hot. He has no problems that I know about, I would think as long as your enclosure is not in the sun, you have a fan circulating air and a big enough water bowl for the snake to get in if needed they should be fine. Winter is what i would worry about.

Thank you kelly, winter worries me a lot, but I find it easier to increase temps than to decrease them, I know that no matter how cold it gets, I can get them up with a 2nd UTH and a 2nd thermostat... summer worried me because I had always heard of people having problems keeping temps up, not down... thanks kelly, the fan idea is a great idea and a cheap one too :)