Hey all, I am a brand new milk snake owner and I have some general questions about the care of them and adequate tank set ups. So, to start off, let me get everyone up to speed on what I am currently doing with my snakes.
First off, I have two individual types of milk snake. One is a baby Nelson's and the other is a baby Pueblan. I currently have them housed in their own individual 10 gallon aquariums with reptile carpet on the bottom and about 1 1/2" aspen substrate on top of the carpet. I have 10-20 gallon ZooMed under tank heaters stuck to the bottom of one side of each tank, and they are also hooked up to simple Home Depot light dimmers so I can control the heat output. Furthermore, I have digital thermometers in each tank with the probes for them about 1" under the aspen substrate on the hot side of the tank, underneath the hide that is also on the hot side. (I have a hide on both the hot and cold side of the tanks, as well as a water dish on the cool side). I am going to buy further climbing materials for them next week, too so that they feel more secure and happy in their environments. The tops of both tanks are metal mesh with tank clamps around the sides to prevent escaping.
So, here are my questions....
1) The thermometer probes that I have placed 1" under the substrate on the hot sides of the tanks are reading around 97 degrees Fahrenheit (that is with me adjusting a dimmer switch to act as a rhetostat so the UTH's cannot reach their maximum temps). I'm assuming that since I have the probes 1" UNDERNEATH the substrate, this is not the temperature my snakes are receiving when they sit ON TOP of the substrate (I am also going to add that I have not witnessed them burrowing as of yet). I am afraid that if I set my dimmer lower so that the probes read 85 degrees or so, the TOP of the substrate will then not have enough heat if the snake decides to only bask on top rather than burrowing. Should I invest in an overhead heat light in addition to my UTH or is my set up okay right now? Also, should I move the probes to just be on top of the substrate, or should I keep them buried?
2) should I have more than 1 1/2" of aspen substrate in the tanks?
So overall, I just want to know how to perfect my heating system. I am just afraid that since I have a wire mesh tank lid that the UTH's are not providing a vertical as well as horizontal thermal gradient. I feel as if the only heat my tanks are getting is on the floor and not in the air as well. So....
3) if I DO need to add on overhead heat source, what type of bulb and what wattage should I get for a 10 gallon tank? (Keep in mind I am going to keep my UTH's hooked up as well).
Other than these questions, any other important care information on milk snakes is much appreciated.
Thanks so much everyone!(and sorry this post was so long!)
