Backstory and Breeding Progress/Questions

[RXLReptiles]

The incubator in the video I described doesn't use a standard thermostat, the aquarium heater is set to the specific temp you want the incubator to be and the heated water provides the temp. Regulation is automatic via the aquarium heater used. I personally recommend the Aqueon Pro series aquarium heaters. They just have a dial to set the temp on the top and you monitor the heat and humidity in the incubator/egg box with an accurite. You definitely want to set it up in advance to allow time to come to temp and adjust as necessary, but once the heater is set and temps are right you shouldn't have to ever adjust again.

I know the concern is whether the aquarium heater will provide the heat needed, but a 50 watt heater can heat 10 gallons of water from 70 degrees to 80 without breaking a sweat, so a 50-100 watt heater heating that little amount of water will definitely work. And since the water in there holds heat so well there should be very little temperature variation from set temp as the water will average the heat input to mitigate hotspots.

Lastly, I know the idea of an incubator without a herpstat is a terrifying idea, but the aquarium heaters need to be able to keep temp very specific in an aquarium setup, and after several years I haven't had an aqueon heater overheat one of my fish tanks. They are incredibly reliable.

[mdb730]

The incubator in the video I described doesn't use a standard thermostat, the aquarium heater is set to the specific temp you want the incubator to be and the heated water provides the temp. Regulation is automatic via the aquarium heater used. I personally recommend the Aqueon Pro series aquarium heaters. They just have a dial to set the temp on the top and you monitor the heat and humidity in the incubator/egg box with an accurite. You definitely want to set it up in advance to allow time to come to temp and adjust as necessary, but once the heater is set and temps are right you shouldn't have to ever adjust again.

I know the concern is whether the aquarium heater will provide the heat needed, but a 50 watt heater can heat 10 gallons of water from 70 degrees to 80 without breaking a sweat, so a 50-100 watt heater heating that little amount of water will definitely work. And since the water in there holds heat so well there should be very little temperature variation from set temp as the water will average the heat input to mitigate hotspots.

Lastly, I know the idea of an incubator without a herpstat is a terrifying idea, but the aquarium heaters need to be able to keep temp very specific in an aquarium setup, and after several years I haven't had an aqueon heater overheat one of my fish tanks. They are incredibly reliable.

I have a incubator setup with an aquarium heater and I still use a thermostat with a probe out of the water and a fan to circulate the air. I do not trust it because the heating element and the thermostat are combined in aquarium heaters. Separate units in an incubator are much better at keeping a temperature constant. Better to be safe than sorry specially since you can get a decent thermostat fairly cheap.

[RXLReptiles]

I have a incubator setup with an aquarium heater and I still use a thermostat with a probe out of the water and a fan to circulate the air. I do not trust it because the heating element and the thermostat are combined in aquarium heaters. Separate units in an incubator are much better at keeping a temperature constant. Better to be safe than sorry specially since you can get a decent thermostat fairly cheap.

True story, I'm in no way saying you can't use a thermostat, but the design doesn't need one, and I believe shouldn't have one.

The idea that an external t-stat is better than the internal in the aquarium heater is debatable. Hundreds of thousands of aquariums across the U.S. use internally regulated aquarium heaters, and while not all are created equal, most of them provide more than adequate control of heating the water in the tanks that they are in. Because they are heating water, the temps are generally more stable than anything we can provide our snakes, as temps remain more stable in water.

I've used Aqueon aquarium heaters in all my fish tanks for years and have had no reason to doubt that they will control temp.

That being said the possible issues I see in using an external t-stat are that they measure air temp, which isn't the medium the aquarium heater is in. I feel that is similar to putting your t-stat probe in your snakes tank/tub instead of on the heat tape/mat. If you set the aquarium heater as described in the video, and use a Accurite thermometer to monitor the egg box, the design works perfectly fine.

I'm all for thermostatically regulating our animals, and making sure that they are given the best care possible. But adding a t-stat over another t-stat is a little much. Would you hook the t-stat that controls a snakes enclosure to another t-stat before plugging it into the wall? At what point is too much?

[Weremey59]

My concern at first was the thermostat in the aquarium heater as well but the logic is sound. My buddy has OCD and breeds massive amounts of fish so if he would be ok with it, it should be good Haha. If it would bug anyone it would be him. That Igloo cooler the guy uses in that YouTube video, would two 50watt work or should I get something more powerful? If I wanted to go much bigger and use an old 4' square freezer I have at home, what problems would I face? Would it still work in a larger application?

[RXLReptiles]

My thoughts would be that a single 50-100 watt heater should be more than enough. In the video he says the only reason he has 2 is that one is a backup heater. In all reality you aren't heating that much water in this design, but one thing to definitely make sure you use is a good power head, that's the part that circulates the water you have in there and keeps the temp even across the cooler.

As for the freezer, I assume it could work, I'm not sure if the extra height would have an effect on how well this works, due to more airspace to heat. The other thing is you would want a larger heater because I can only assume the freezer will need more water. If you know you want to go bigger than the cooler (which holds like 6 clutches if I remember right), a chest freezer is probably the only thing I can think of that would be larger and water tight. But some experimentation may be necessary to determine validity of the idea.

[Weremey59]

Another random question. My sister in law is going for her vet tech currently but her final goal is to be a veterinarian one day. She came back from a week long seminar in which she spent time working with alot of exotic animals. Of course she had a whole bunch of "advice" on keeping, raising and breeding snakes. I take it all with a grain of salt. Apparently tubs and racks are not the proper way to house snakes........ we got into the conversation about UVB light and she is in the corner of all reptiles REQUIRE UVB light to help with there vitiman D and bone development. (I'll say now I've read everything on this site and have even found a study suggesting otherwise)

Here is my question, when babies are in the eggs developing and growing to hatch, would UVB light in the incubator reduce the chances of kink or other bone related disorders?

[Godzilla78]

Another random question. My sister in law is going for her vet tech currently but her final goal is to be a veterinarian one day. She came back from a week long seminar in which she spent time working with alot of exotic animals. Of course she had a whole bunch of "advice" on keeping, raising and breeding snakes. I take it all with a grain of salt. Apparently tubs and racks are not the proper way to house snakes........ we got into the conversation about UVB light and she is in the corner of all reptiles REQUIRE UVB light to help with there vitiman D and bone development. (I'll say now I've read everything on this site and have even found a study suggesting otherwise)

Here is my question, when babies are in the eggs developing and growing to hatch, would UVB light in the incubator reduce the chances of kink or other bone related disorders?

I am not 100% sure, but I believe that pythons get vitamin D from their food. I could be wrong, I have not researched this in depth. One thing is for certain, a person can be very “educated”, but they may have been misinformed, and miseducated.

[paulh]

....
Here is my question, when babies are in the eggs developing and growing to hatch, would UVB light in the incubator reduce the chances of kink or other bone related disorders?

I have not researched this either. However, my opinion is that the chances would not be reduced. This opinion is based on the fact that incubating snake eggs are concealed in the wild rather than exposed to sunlight (and to predators).

The studies that I have seen say that extra vitamins are beneficial for breeding females, including trout, chickens and humans. Snakes were not included, but I very much doubt that snakes are different. Extra D3 can be given to snakes by exposing live or fresh killed rodents to raw sunlight for 15 minutes or so before feeding them to the snake.

[Godzilla78]

According to this scientific experiment, there is no link between UVb light exposure and vitamin D or calcium in ball pythons.

https://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/content/173/14/345

[Weremey59]

I sourced the same study Haha. Anyone have the entire study?