Convector

[Zarqwan]

Hi All,

I am in a waiting period for my first royal python. A female lemon blast. Although I hope to breed her in a few years, I want to display her. I have a glass fronted melamine wood cabinet 22x18x15. I am also considering a lot I have read about different heating methods for pythons. The arguments for/against bulbs and mats...you no doubt understand it better than I.

So I came to thinking about ambient temperature control and came up with this as an idea. Would it work as I think it would?

[Neal]

I'm pretty sure that's just overdoing it as I have no idea what it's even talking about to be honest. A simple heat mat or heat tape can be sufficient to get the temperatures where you need them to be at. No need for any kind of whatever the thing is as it's just a waste of time and money, especially since I see the word copper in it.

In easy terms what you're thinking is just over thinking it. The more complicated the setup, the more things that can go wrong and the more costly to fix. Keep it simple and you'll be much happier in the long run.

[Zarqwan]

Perhaps I should clarify the drawing a bit or how it would be built. It's basically the same principle as a household 'radiator' (which are really convectors). I have changed my thought slightly by putting the mat on the viv and not the lid as shown in the picture. Makes far more sense.

1 - On the side of the viv, drill two rows of holes. One towards the top, one towards the bottom. Big enough for air to pass through. these could just as eaily be two 1" wide 'slots' covered in a snake-proof mesh.

2 - Nail/Screw/glue 1" square wooden dowel around the edge of the viv

3 - Cut piece of thick plywood in a square (in the case of my viv, 15x18) to for a lid. Again cut an air slot at the top and bottom. Onto the inside of this, cut and glue as many bits of 1" copper water tubing as will fit vertically between the holes/slots you made.

4 - Onto the side of the viv inside the square frame you made in step 2, attach your heat mat between the slots.

5 - Screw the lid down so the mat presses against the tubing.

So, the convector heats the air inside the tubing heated by the mat. This warm air rises and leaves via the top holes and thus draws in cooler air from the bottom. It therefore creates an airflow circulation inside the viv. The slots on the lid would be able to draw fresh air in from the bottom and expel overhumid air from the top; the apertures of the slots being controlled with tape or something for the best balance.

I guess it may be a little complex, but not more than 45mins work. I thought that it seemed to answer a few of the environmental control factors that need to be considered. Background heat, airflow, ventilation and humidity control and would keep an unsightly cable out of the tank.

[Zarqwan]

I'd really appreciate some more feedback if anyone has a moment.