What are the essentials?

[obsidianembrace]

I'm not a fan of the repti-carpet, but some people swear by it. For bedding, most people use Aspen. I prefer cypress, coco fiber, eco earth, or a blend of the three. This will hold humidity and help you maintain your humidity levels especially when your snake is in shed. You only need 1/2 in-1 in of bedding or else your UTH is useless (because it won't penetrate the bedding).

The probe on the thermostat will be placed directly on the UTH between the UTH and the glass. To measure temps, you will need an infrared temp gun or two DIGITAL thermometers with probes. Walmart sells some that are about $12 and work well.

The diagram I saw in a cage-setup guide was to have the probes inside the tank, wired under repticarpet and poked out in the middle. Then they put a thin layer of aspen over that. I like the idea of having a layer between my snake and the glass/UTH but if it would be safe without it, then I'll just do the aspen. So you recommend putting the probe on the outside under the tank in between the glass and UTH?

The breeder I got him from said the eco earth would hold too much humidity and rot, but if it isn't a problem I would rather use that than wood shavings...