Opinions on PVC

[NH93]

Hello,

I am just wondering if anyone has tried the PVC-style cages for ball pythons (and other snakes), and what their opinions are on them.

I am planning on getting 1 or 2 this week - but I am unsure if I should get two stacked upon one another, or one with a built-in divider. I have one ball python and one corn snake. My only concern is the heat source. My ball python has needed a heat lamp along with the UTH + thermostat or course, because the ambient air drops without it, which is why I was thinking one cage with a divider would be best.

What does everyone think?

Thanks!

[Raven01]

Love them. Check Herphouses.com since you are in Ontario. I believe you can get them with RHP's and LED light installed to save you some time just, a thermostat some hygrometer and thermometers and you are good to go.
I only have misted once or twice between substrate changes when the ambient air was exceedingly dry and a snake was going into shed otherwise, the water bowl maintains humidity very nicely.

[Raven01]

I haven't found them to lose heat any quicker than they lose moisture. They tent to be mostly low airflow designs making cleaning that much more important. On the plus side the PVC is very easy to disinfect.

[jason79]

I believe PVC is the best material for cages. Its relatively light weight, easy to clean and disinfect, and does not rot over time like wood will. The only down side is price but I believe its worth the extra cost.

[patientz3ro]

I haven't found them to lose heat any quicker than they lose moisture. They tent to be mostly low airflow designs making cleaning that much more important. On the plus side the PVC is very easy to disinfect.

You can also run tubing from an aquarium pump to get a little better air circulation. It's not going to eliminate cleaning (obviously) but it does increase fresh air.

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[NH93]

Interesting, thank you those who have replied!

Thank you Raven01 for the suggestion I have found someone else already who I will be buying from in Ontario.

I'm wondering now if it would be best to buy the side-by-side enclosure rather than the stackable enclosure - to save money, as well as control the heat better (since I have two different species with different needs, stacking could be tricky). My worry is that the ball python will be too cold. Right now he's got a heat bulb on him... mind you, he's in a glass vive with a mesh lid so none of the heat stays in. If I were to get stacking vives, even though they save a lot of space, I don't know how I'd integrate another heat source for him. I don't think a second UTH would be sufficiant for his ambient air temp.

I have no other concerns with the corn snake, though

Any other advice would be appreciated!

[satomi325]

Ambient temp can be heated by a radiant heat panel(rhp). It doesn't destroy humidity like a lamp would and most people use RHPs in PVC enclosures.

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[NH93]

Can I purchase RHP at reptile/pet stores as well? I have not heard about them before!

[satomi325]

Not in pet stores. Reptile Basics sells them.

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[Jughead915]

So far I've used two different PVC cages; my first was a Vision and now I have an Animal Plastics.

With the Vision I used an UTH for hot spot and a CHL for overall ambient temp. The model Vision I had was built with a large vent down the top-middle of the cage (very poor design in my opinion), and this, along with the CHL, made maintaining humidity very difficult. I ended up misting at least once per day, during shed as much as two or three times. Temp wasn't bad, but definitely not optimum with the large vent.

About a month ago I made the move to the AP T-8 with sliding glass doors. Upon the recommendation of Ali at AP, I contacted Pro-Products about a RHP. The owner answered the phone and was EXTREMELY knowledgeable about heating all types of cages, and made a recommendation for the T-8 after asking questions about the room my ball would be in, the room ambient temp, and if I would be splitting the cage. I had the panel shipped directly to AP, where they installed it and shipped the entire cage to me. Initially I began using 100% cypress substrate, due to the humidity issues I experienced in my Vision cage. This was a big mistake; my humidity spiked to 100% (with condensation on my glass doors). I then replaced about half of the cypress with substrate that wasn't moist, and slowly my humidity began to decrease. After about two weeks it was pretty much stabilized between 50-60%. I am no longer using an UTH or CHL; the Pro-Productions RHP is doing an awesome job. The ambient temp on the cold side is holding at 80, with a hot spot temp between 89-92.

With the humidity spike I saw initially in my T-8, I agree with those that say airflow can be an issue. I would think a general cleaning once per month should be fine. For ease of keeping good humidity and heat, I love the PVC T-8. I don't see myself moving away from PVC at any time.