Space heater on thermostat or CHE lamp for ambient temperatures?

[cuteaspied]

Hello, I'm new to this forum so I apologize for any mistakes. Sorry for so much text but I gotta explain my situation. Please read it all if you're gonna respond!

So I got my first ball python about six days ago and I'm stressing out about maintaining the proper ambient temperature for him in my cold house.

He currently has one heat mat on a thermostat. The ambient temp in my room has been 78-80 F (only because of a space heater) and the hot spot has been reading 84-86 F. The problem is that I live in a place where the temperatures fluctuate a lot. It's been in the 40s all week. I'll go to bed sweating hot and wake up the next morning freezing cold. Our house is almost always in the mid 60s during the colder months and we run the air conditioner in the summer.

I've been running my space heater (with no thermostat currently) all night to make sure it doesn't get too cold and then I keep it off all day. (it stays 79-80 in my room throughout the day.) I'm worried about the space heater using up a lot of power and blowing up our electric bill. A lot of people say to just heat the room 24/7 but they're almost always replying to people who have multiple snakes or a rack system they need to keep warm. I only have ONE snake so heating my entire bedroom just for him isn't exactly ideal.

Would it be cheaper and safer to get a thermostat for the space heater and have it run 24/7 at like, 75 degrees? On a thermostat, the space heater will shut off when the set temperature is met, right? So it wouldn't run 24/7, only when it needs to like when it gets cold? I've never used one before so I don't know, sorry for the dumb question lol

Orr would the CHE lamp be a better and cheaper option? I'm really worried about the CHE because 1. fire hazard 2. I have a plastic tub so it'd have to be suspended with a stand so it doesn't melt anything and 3. My BP is only 4 months old and his tub is pretty small and I don't want it to get too hot because of how small it is. If I got a CHE lamp it would also be on a thermostat though.

What would be the best and most cost effective way to go about this?

Help is very much appreciated. Thank you!

[Hugsplox]

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...Quarantine-Tub

Welcome to the forums! Above is a link to jmcrook's quarantine tub set up, and shows an excellent example of using a CHE with a smaller tub. My house also gets cooler at night but with appropriate sized CHEs I have no issues keeping my enclosures the right temp even if the temps in the room drop below 75. As far as your concern about a fire hazard using a CHE, I'm not going to tell you that they couldn't start a fire, but if you use them correctly the risks are pretty low. I've had CHEs running literally for years with no issues. As long as you're using a thermostat and the appropriate fixture you should be fine.

[Erie_herps]

I agree that there is a very low risk of a fire hazard with CHEs. Would you be able to add more heat pads on the sides or bottom in addition to what you already have? Not too much so if something malfunctions (you could get a second thermostat) then the snake would be able to go to the cool side and not get burnt. A RHP could work though I would wait from advice from someone who has tried it.

[bcr229]

A friend of mine who keeps one ball python has a wife who likes to be ***cold*** so their house never gets higher than 70*F in the summer, and 66-68*F is typical in the winter. He uses two large UTH's on thermostats for his snake. One UTH is set to 92*F, the other to 82*F, with a heavy ceramic/rock hide over each UTH. The UTH's don't raise the ambient in the enclosure but they do heat up the air under the hides, and since the hides are made of heavy material they do retain heat fairly well.

A CHE or DHP would also work to increase the overall ambient temp but they tend to dry out the enclosure, so you'd be constantly fighting to retain humidity.

[cuteaspied]

Thank you to all who responded!

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...Quarantine-Tub
Welcome to the forums! As far as your concern about a fire hazard using a CHE, I'm not going to tell you that they couldn't start a fire, but if you use them correctly the risks are pretty low. I've had CHEs running literally for years with no issues. As long as you're using a thermostat and the appropriate fixture you should be fine.

That tub in the link is actually what I was planning to do in the first place, buuut I have cats so I don't want there to be a chance of them knocking the heat lamp down or messing with it in any way (I hear they get super hot!) so I decided to get a taller tub, cut a hole in the lid, add some wire mesh and hook the heat lamp directly on top of the mesh so it heats up the air inside the tub. I saw some pictures of set-ups like this and I think it'll be perfect for what I need. I do love how the hanging lamp looks though!
And I know the fire chance is very low, most equipment will just stop working before catching on fire I think, I've just always been pretty paranoid about fires with any kind of heating equipment. I have a thermostat and I looked up reviews for good fixtures so I've been trying to play it as safe as possible

If you don't mind I do have a question for you, with the thermostat on a CHE where does the probe go exactly? I see people either leave it hanging or attach it to the side of the enclosure and since you mentioned having CHE's for years it would be really helpful if I can see where you have yours.

A friend of mine who keeps one ball python has a wife who likes to be ***cold*** so their house never gets higher than 70*F in the summer, and 66-68*F is typical in the winter.

Yeah, I'm in the same boat. Me and my family love the cold so turning on the space heater at night has been really hard on me because it stays like 80 F in here and I have trouble sleeping when it's hot like that x_x It's worth it keeping my BP happy but I can't do it forever so I decided to go with a CHE placed on a wire mesh section on the tub's lid to heat the whole tub.
I considered the double UTH option but it can get as low as like 50s in our house during the winter so I really don't wanna risk it even if the belly heat is warm. Thanks for your response.

[Hugsplox]

If you don't mind I do have a question for you, with the thermostat on a CHE where does the probe go exactly? I see people either leave it hanging or attach it to the side of the enclosure and since you mentioned having CHE's for years it would be really helpful if I can see where you have yours.

Don't mind at all, we're here to help! It depends really, you have to play around with it to get exactly what you're looking for. MOST of my enclosures that still have a CHE on them have the probe about 6 inches below the CHE, typically stuck to the wall of the enclosure. For my BP, and this was what I did so again you'll have to play around with it to see what works for you, I had a 18 inch high enclosure, with the probe set about a foot above the floor. I set it, if I remember correctly to about 88 which kept the floor right at 85, and the hottest spot below the CHE, a log that my BP would climb on, never got above 88-89. Then of course the warm hide had a UTH under it for a hot spot, so I had two spots sitting right around 88-90 degrees he could get to if he wanted some options.

Again this is just what worked for my situation. I keep saying that because there isn't a one-size fits all explanation for how to set your enclosure up, just some set standards, but the rest is just finding what works best for you and your animal. I recommend setting your enclosure up, and letting it run for a week or so just to play around with probe placement and your thermostat settings until you're comfortable with that you're seeing, and then introduce your snake to its new home.

[cuteaspied]

Don't mind at all, we're here to help! It depends really, you have to play around with it to get exactly what you're looking for. MOST of my enclosures that still have a CHE on them have the probe about 6 inches below the CHE, typically stuck to the wall of the enclosure. For my BP, and this was what I did so again you'll have to play around with it to see what works for you, I had a 18 inch high enclosure, with the probe set about a foot above the floor. I set it, if I remember correctly to about 88 which kept the floor right at 85, and the hottest spot below the CHE, a log that my BP would climb on, never got above 88-89. Then of course the warm hide had a UTH under it for a hot spot, so I had two spots sitting right around 88-90 degrees he could get to if he wanted some options.

Again this is just what worked for my situation. I keep saying that because there isn't a one-size fits all explanation for how to set your enclosure up, just some set standards, but the rest is just finding what works best for you and your animal. I recommend setting your enclosure up, and letting it run for a week or so just to play around with probe placement and your thermostat settings until you're comfortable with that you're seeing, and then introduce your snake to its new home.

I appreciate the help! I got my CHE set up today and as you suggested I'm gonna test run it for about a week before I put him in it to make sure everything's stable, but I've come across a small problem.

I have the CHE on a thermostat set to 89, and the probe is hanging about an inch above the hot hide. The floor under the hot hide is reading 84 and the cool side is about 80, but I'm concerned that the top surface of the plastic hide is a bit warmer at about 95-97 F since it's sitting directly under the heat lamp. All temps are read with a temp gun.
Is this going to be a problem? He likes to climb on stuff and explore at night but I doubt he'll just sit on it for long periods of time so if the top of the plastic items are reading a bit warmer than the rest of the tub, is that normal and safe? My tub is about the size of a ten gallon tank so it's quite small. I'm currently not using a UTH with the CHE cause I'd like to save the money if I can help it but I will get one if he ends up needing it.
Thanks again

[Hugsplox]

I appreciate the help! I got my CHE set up today and as you suggested I'm gonna test run it for about a week before I put him in it to make sure everything's stable, but I've come across a small problem.

I have the CHE on a thermostat set to 89, and the probe is hanging about an inch above the hot hide. The floor under the hot hide is reading 84 and the cool side is about 80, but I'm concerned that the top surface of the plastic hide is a bit warmer at about 95-97 F since it's sitting directly under the heat lamp. All temps are read with a temp gun.
Is this going to be a problem? He likes to climb on stuff and explore at night but I doubt he'll just sit on it for long periods of time so if the top of the plastic items are reading a bit warmer than the rest of the tub, is that normal and safe? My tub is about the size of a ten gallon tank so it's quite small. I'm currently not using a UTH with the CHE cause I'd like to save the money if I can help it but I will get one if he ends up needing it.
Thanks again

I'm running a PVC enclosure now so it's a bit different, but the top of my warm hide is also in the low to mid 90s. Now, in a glass enclosure, I used both a CHE and a UTH. The CHE was all about ambient temperature and the UTH, under the warm hide, was what I used to create a hot spot. I'm not saying you HAVE to have a UTH but I did like the fact that I had that constant 90 degree spot my BP could get to. Now for your situation, 97 may be a tad hot especially if that CHE is keeping that spot at that temperature pretty much 24/7. My concern there would be that the surface gets hot enough to burn your snake, which may be unlikely but just something to think about.

You could always raise that probe up closer to the CHE to get the temps on top of the hide lower, but then of course you're losing some of your heat inside the hide. It may be worth taking a look at getting a UTH just to be safe, but it's really up to you and what you feel comfortable with.

[bcr229]

I appreciate the help! I got my CHE set up today and as you suggested I'm gonna test run it for about a week before I put him in it to make sure everything's stable, but I've come across a small problem.

I have the CHE on a thermostat set to 89, and the probe is hanging about an inch above the hot hide. The floor under the hot hide is reading 84 and the cool side is about 80, but I'm concerned that the top surface of the plastic hide is a bit warmer at about 95-97 F since it's sitting directly under the heat lamp. All temps are read with a temp gun.
Is this going to be a problem? He likes to climb on stuff and explore at night but I doubt he'll just sit on it for long periods of time so if the top of the plastic items are reading a bit warmer than the rest of the tub, is that normal and safe? My tub is about the size of a ten gallon tank so it's quite small. I'm currently not using a UTH with the CHE cause I'd like to save the money if I can help it but I will get one if he ends up needing it.
Thanks again

Try setting the thermostat down to 87*F. The floor under the hide will be a bit cooler but the hide's plastic top will be in the low 90's and your ball python will probably put his back up against it to help him stay warm.

[cuteaspied]

I'm running a PVC enclosure now so it's a bit different, but the top of my warm hide is also in the low to mid 90s. Now, in a glass enclosure, I used both a CHE and a UTH. The CHE was all about ambient temperature and the UTH, under the warm hide, was what I used to create a hot spot. I'm not saying you HAVE to have a UTH but I did like the fact that I had that constant 90 degree spot my BP could get to. Now for your situation, 97 may be a tad hot especially if that CHE is keeping that spot at that temperature pretty much 24/7. My concern there would be that the surface gets hot enough to burn your snake, which may be unlikely but just something to think about.

You could always raise that probe up closer to the CHE to get the temps on top of the hide lower, but then of course you're losing some of your heat inside the hide. It may be worth taking a look at getting a UTH just to be safe, but it's really up to you and what you feel comfortable with.

Ohh alright, I raised the probe a bit and I turned my lamp back down to 88 F and so far the top of the hide is 90, the cool side is 79-82 and the bottom of the warm hide is at 83. Though I just started it up about an hour ago so I'm gonna let it run all day again and make sure it stays stable.
And I'm really silly, I DO have a UTH on a thermostat right now which I'll use on the tub when I move my snake, I just can't test it atm cause it's being used on the tub he's currently in. So I will have a UTH to use with the CHE under the warm spot to keep the ground around 89-90 when he's actually in it Sorry I was really tired last night lol

Try setting the thermostat down to 87*F. The floor under the hide will be a bit cooler but the hide's plastic top will be in the low 90's and your ball python will probably put his back up against it to help him stay warm.

Thanks for the response! I lowered it to 88 but I'll also try 87 in a few hours if the hide still remains too hot.