Light for heat

[bbb100]

I keep my considerably new ball python in a 20 gal glass tank. At first, I had her on a 75 watt white light for heat, but would only heat up her cage to 80° F, which obviously wasnt cutting it. I needed it to be at least 90. With more research being conducted each day, I learned that ball pythons would rather NOT have light, as they don’t like it. But I need a light, as the heating pad wasn’t doing enough for her. I decided to switch over to a red, 100 watt light and it’s been heating up the tank perfectly. She’s extremely active at night and somewhat active sometimes during the day. She loves to explore her tank. Therefore I think that the red light does not bother her. I only keep it on a 12hr cycle, and even then, the tank does get a little cold at night considering I keep my house cold, but unfortunately a red light is still visible to snakes which is why I turn it off at night. Should I keep doing this? If so, what changes should I make?
Because I keep her in a glass tank with a screen top, it is harder for me to have the correct amount of humidity, but I’ve finally stabilized that with putting wet towels on the screen and occasionally I spray the enclosure if it’s just too low. I enjoy seeing her explore, so I’d rather not place her in a bin. I’m focused on giving her the best life possible and she seems to be perfectly healthy and fine with what I’ve established for her. But because she can’t talk, I’m not sure if she’s completely comfortable. I keep the humidity about 50-60% but occasionally it gets lower than that, again of course because she’s in a glass tank with a screen top. I do my best to handle this and within a few hours the humidity is back to where it should be. The hot spot seems to stay at a steady 92°F when her light is on. She has 2 water bowls and 2 hides, along with many fake plants. She doesn’t seem stressed, as she eats like a champ. I believe that the substrate I used, which was only pure coconut fiber and some sphagnum moss, is not soaking up the moisture like other substrates can. One lesson learned so far.

[Albert420]

[QUOTE=bbb100;2724116]I keep my considerably new ball python in a 20 gal glass tank. At first, I had her on a 75 watt white light for heat, but would only heat up her cage to 80° F, which obviously wasnt cutting it. I needed it to be at least 90. With more research being conducted each day, I learned that ball pythons would rather NOT have light, as they don’t like it. But I need a light, as the heating pad wasn’t doing enough for her. I decided to switch over to a red, 100 watt light and it’s been heating up the tank perfectly. She’s extremely active at night and somewhat active sometimes during the day. She loves to explore her tank. Therefore I think that the red light does not bother her. I only keep it on a 12hr cycle, and even then, the tank does get a little cold at night considering I keep my house cold, but unfortunately a red light is still visible to snakes which is why I turn it off at night. Should I keep doing this? If so, what changes should I make?
Because I keep her in a glass tank with a screen top, it is harder for me to have the correct amount of humidity, but I’ve finally stabilized that with putting wet towels on the screen and occasionally I spray the enclosure if it’s just too low. I enjoy seeing her explore, so I’d rather not place her in a bin. I’m focused on giving her the best life possible and she seems to be perfectly healthy and fine with what I’ve established for her. But because she can’t talk, I’m not sure if she’s completely comfortable. I keep the humidity about 50-60% but occasionally it gets lower than that, again of course because she’s in a glass tank with a screen top. I do my best to handle this and within a few hours the humidity is back to where it should be. The hot spot seems to stay at a steady 92°F when her light is on. She has 2 water bowls and 2 hides, along with many fake plants. She doesn’t seem stressed, as she eats like a champ. I believe that the substrate I used, which was only pure coconut fiber and some sphagnum moss, is not soaking up the moisture like other substrates can. One lesson learned so far.[/QUOTE

What are you using for substrate atm ?

I would take out the red light out and put in a ceramic heat emitter, this eliminates all light, which is best , now this part is very important. get a wire screen cover that goes around the CHE to keep your ball from getting to it then this must be hooked up to a temperature controller (thermostat).

The probe of this thermostat should be installed in the enclosure where it wont be obstruction for your snake and the probe must not be touching any surface . This is so that the probe can give accurate results and set thermostat to 80 degrees Fahrenheit. This will switch the CHE on and off as needed and your temps will always be on point.

Next : mist your enclosure then close the top of the screen partially with foil sheets to keep humidity in , but keep parts open for fresh air flow, the wet towels will make it cold and will eventually start to stink and attract funny unwanted bugs etc.

[bbb100]

Thank you so much for your response! Unfortunately I am on a budget at the moment and a CHE is expensive along with a thermostat I do have her heating pad connected to a thermostat though, because I know those things can get really hot. I also make sure to use warm water to make the towels wet, and I wash them every few days to avoid mold & bugs.

[TopazEye]

Thank you so much for your response! Unfortunately I am on a budget at the moment and a CHE is expensive along with a thermostat I do have her heating pad connected to a thermostat though, because I know those things can get really hot. I also make sure to use warm water to make the towels wet, and I wash them every few days to avoid mold & bugs.

I use lamp dimmers for my CHE's and a two pack is only around 16 USD.

[WhompingWillow]

Personally I use infrared bulbs on dimmers for all of my snakes that are in glass tanks. The lights stay on 24/7. They all eat and shed and act like they're supposed to, meaning the balls are lumps under their hides most of the time lol. I do have plans to switch the balls to a rack so I have more space for display cages for the carpets and boas, but everyone has been fine on the red lights.

[Bogertophis]

You can still buy black or red incandescent bulbs that furnish heat with minimal light...I like & use them (with rheostats, aka lamp dimmers) for my snakes that like to
bask or to raise ambient temps. in cooler months. (they are NOT the only heat source in my tanks, fyi- I use UTH on all) Since technology is changing to LED's etc to
save energy, I'm not sure how long these light bulbs will be available though, just saying. So far they're easy to find in my small town -even the grocery store carries
them. They work best in metal-dome light fixtures to help direct the heat downward, & because heat does rise it's not the most efficient way to heat a tank, but they
can help. CHE's are also helpful, heat without the light. Just be sure to check & monitor what temps you're actually getting on the floor of the enclosure...I personally
find that snakes appreciate "belly heat" from UTH for digestion, to simulate laying on the sun-warmed ground outside, but every situation is different. If your tank is
too tall, very little heat from overhead lights (or CHE) will reach to where the snake is laying, but for snakes that love to bask on branches, it can still be effective- BPs
aren't much for branch-dwelling though. I don't see any indication that my snakes are at all "bothered" by red or black lights, but all are dimmed quite a bit
anyway, & if "lights" are your only heat source, they'll need to be on "24-7" (all the time) unless the ambient temperature in the room where your snake's cage is kept
is 80* all night long...?

[bbb100]

Thanks for your reply! I do have a UHT currently but that is unfortunately not enough.

[Absololol]

You can try adding a bigger water bowl for aiding the humidity. Which substrate are you using? Some holds moisture better than others. I use forest floor and coconut husk and have no issues with low humidity despite the fact that I use a ceramic heat emitter. If the under tank mat isn't getting hot enough honestly I'd say the easiest solution is either to supplement with a CHE or just get a higher wattage of mat. They're not as expensive as getting a whole new lighting system.

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

[bbb100]

I use coconut fiber with about 25% sphagnum moss for substrate. Recently, the towel thing I’ve been doing is working wonders. My light never exceeds over 90° which is perfect