New ball python help?

[Bogertophis]

I don't have an UTH, but I did turn off the heat light

So is he totally without heat now, with that light turned off? That's not gonna work...

While a thermostat is BEST & SAFEST -until you get one with UTH hooked up- & IF all he has for heat now is that heat light...you should buy a "lamp dimmer" from your
nearest hardware or home improvement type of store; easiest to buy the kind already installed on an extension cord (& very handy for using on ANY lamps) with a slide-
control to dim the light so he's not being "cooked". Leaving him at ambient room temps. (you said 78*?) isn't going to keep him healthy or able to digest.

You also need to measure his temps. accurately. Obviously, it would have been best to set up his cage a week ahead of time & well before moving him into it,
so you could have made adjustments to temp. & humidity without stressing your new snake. (you'll know for next time?)

[Zincubus]

Those ten dollar digital temp guns off eBay or Amazon are fabulous ..




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[Phillydubs]

I’d ditch the background all together unless you are planing on it eill
enjoy fishing him out if it on a daily basis.

As I quickly learned as a first time owner. Not worth it and does more harm than good

[Traceur]

So is he totally without heat now, with that light turned off? That's not gonna work...

While a thermostat is BEST & SAFEST -until you get one with UTH hooked up- & IF all he has for heat now is that heat light...you should buy a "lamp dimmer" from your
nearest hardware or home improvement type of store; easiest to buy the kind already installed on an extension cord (& very handy for using on ANY lamps) with a slide-
control to dim the light so he's not being "cooked". Leaving him at ambient room temps. (you said 78*?) isn't going to keep him healthy or able to digest.

You also need to measure his temps. accurately. Obviously, it would have been best to set up his cage a week ahead of time & well before moving him into it,
so you could have made adjustments to temp. & humidity without stressing your new snake. (you'll know for next time?)

Don't worry, I did switch the light back on. The warm side is about 91-92 degrees. However, I did order a thermostat earlier today and it already shipped (as you can tell, my best option is shipping which is kinda bad). My order with my terrariums stuff actually arrived quickly, so it'll be here soon.
As for setting up the terrarium, I didn't know when he'd be available. I emailed xyz reptiles about the hatchlings about 2 weeks before I got an email about his availability, and the response was that their was no luck with the eggs. I was at work when I got the email, and I ordered him on Sunday (arrived on Tuesday), so I did set stuff up before I knew he'd be here. Only thing was that my shipping address was out of town. So after he arrived he had to sit through a 45 minute drive. Yikes.

I honestly still feel bad about it. He had to sit with a tub and a human heating pad (under a towel, of course) for hours before I could actually have the time to get home. But it all worked out.

He was exploring a lot last nigh though, was nice seeing him out and about since he's usually in his leaves on the warm side (it's quite shady). Doesn't seem to like the water though

[Traceur]

Also, should I worry if it's a red infrared bulb? That's the one I'm using

[Dianne]

Until you get an alternate heat source and thermostat, you can also try using a lower wattage bulb. In my early years of keeping, the only local choice were heat lamps or ceramic heat emitters. I had to play around with wattage to find what worked best for the style enclosures I had - some glass tanks, some homemade wooden or melamine cages. I switched to under cage heaters for several years when I bought all Vision cages (plastic). I switched to radiant heat panels a few years ago when I upgraded to pvc cages - too thick for exterior heat in my opinion. As everyone else has said, a thermostat is a must, regardless of heat source. Best of luck with your new little one!

[Traceur]

Until you get an alternate heat source and thermostat, you can also try using a lower wattage bulb. In my early years of keeping, the only local choice were heat lamps or ceramic heat emitters. I had to play around with wattage to find what worked best for the style enclosures I had - some glass tanks, some homemade wooden or melamine cages. I switched to under cage heaters for several years when I bought all Vision cages (plastic). I switched to radiant heat panels a few years ago when I upgraded to pvc cages - too thick for exterior heat in my opinion. As everyone else has said, a thermostat is a must, regardless of heat source. Best of luck with your new little one!

Thank you!

I must ask, what on earth does a thermostat do? I did tons of research before I decided I was ready for a ball python, but I honestly heard mentions of them like 3-4 times up until now. I looked further into the temps, knowing that they shouldnt be anywhere over 95 degrees. I did search them up but I am still having trouble understanding what they are exactly

[Sallysmom]

Thermostat will keep the temperature of the heat source exactly where it should be. Meaning it won’t get neither hotter nor colder than that. With unregulated heat sources you are risking giving your snake a very bad burn so a thermostat is definitely a must. Also 95 is still too high. 89-90 is a good range to be in.

[Traceur]

Should I leave the lamp where it's at right now? His water dish and hiding spot are close to the heating lamp. And I did move the heating lamp on the opposite end of the warm side and it made his hiding spot area exactly 90 degrees. Only problem is that I don't know what the temperature would be if it were directly over his water dish. But do you think that would help till my thermostat arrives? What would be best?

[Sallysmom]

I think the best would be to have a dimmer for that lamp but if it’s not an option you’ll just have to monitor his temperatures closely and make sure it’s neither too hot nor too cold by switching the lamp on and off every once in a while. Pain in the ass for sure. Placing your heat lamp over a bowl of water shouldn’t influence the temperature much I don’t think but it will make water evaporate faster (you’ll need to keep refilling it) and will bring up your humidity a bit. Which could be a good thing if you’re struggling to keep humidity up. Just keep in mind that humidity has to also be within and acceptable range (55-60% seems to be a good spot) except for when in shed (then it should be in the 70s) if humidity is constantly too low the snake will be dehydrated and it’s a big no-no. If humidity is constantly too high it may lead to other health
issues like RI.
Its a lot of stuff to figure out but once you have UTH, thermostat and good temperature and humidity gauges (electronic one is a must) you’ll find it a lot easier