Heating advice

[legendarycoltsgurl]

Hello! I have just purchased a 4x2x2 wood enclosure for my (just turned) 2 yr old male BP. Huge upgrade from a smaller (36x18x12, I think?) glass reptile enclosure. Anyway, I am overthinking heating…or maybe I am not. Right now, we use a UTH on a thermostat and heat lamps. The new enclosure will have two porcelain lamp sockets (with cages) installed.

Assume I can no longer use UTH in a wooden enclosure? I have been looking at heat bulbs but have no idea what wattage I will need for this size enclosure. It just shipped yesterday so I still have a little time to figure it out.

Suggestions?

[nikkubus]

Lots of red flags. Rather than making assumptions, are these sockets and area the bulbs would go protected in any way? I'm really scared at the potential problems with what you are describing. Also, how is this wood finished? That is another potential issue.

Regardless of that, RHP is a superior solution for heating large BP enclosures because of the stability of heat and less of a drying effect than CHE.

UTH doesn't work well in large enclosures, especially when the bottom of the enclosure is quite thick. Without proper ventilation underneath, it's a potential fire hazard as well.

If you have pictures of the enclosure that would help a lot in making suggestions, but depending how things already are in this new enclosure, this may be a very unsuitable enclosure for a BP.

[legendarycoltsgurl]

Thank you for the reply! I do not have the enclosure yet. It just shipped yesterday. Took a screenshot of a similar enclosure but I can’t figure out how to upload it.

1. The heat lamps will be protected with a wire cage. RHP is an option in the future, but not a planned expense right now unless absolutely necessary.
2. The enclosure interior is sealed with waterproof sealant and was “cured” for 10 days by the manufacturer before shipping. I have also purchased aquarium safe silicone to seal the seams after it is assembled. To be honest, I thought I had ordered a PVC enclosure, and didn’t realize my mistake until they started building it. So, it was too late to cancel. Really want to use this enclosure as I spent close to $700 for it. Not an option to just not use it at this point. So whatever I have to do to make it work…I guess I will do. ����

Did assume UTH wouldn’t work. Thank you for confirming that. ��

[Homebody]

Hello! I have just purchased a 4x2x2 wood enclosure for my (just turned) 2 yr old male BP. Huge upgrade from a smaller (36x18x12, I think?) glass reptile enclosure. Anyway, I am overthinking heating…or maybe I am not. Right now, we use a UTH on a thermostat and heat lamps. The new enclosure will have two porcelain lamp sockets (with cages) installed.

Assume I can no longer use UTH in a wooden enclosure? I have been looking at heat bulbs but have no idea what wattage I will need for this size enclosure. It just shipped yesterday so I still have a little time to figure it out.

Suggestions?

First, kudos for upgrading your bp's enclosure. It sounds nice. Also, amen to the RHP suggestion. It should be your next planned upgrade. I've never used CHEs myself, but with 2 feet of height I would think they will work. The manufacturer is probably the first person to consult as to the specs.

[nikkubus]

Thank you for the reply! I do not have the enclosure yet. It just shipped yesterday. Took a screenshot of a similar enclosure but I can’t figure out how to upload it.

1. The heat lamps will be protected with a wire cage. RHP is an option in the future, but not a planned expense right now unless absolutely necessary.
2. The enclosure interior is sealed with waterproof sealant and was “cured” for 10 days by the manufacturer before shipping. I have also purchased aquarium safe silicone to seal the seams after it is assembled. To be honest, I thought I had ordered a PVC enclosure, and didn’t realize my mistake until they started building it. So, it was too late to cancel. Really want to use this enclosure as I spent close to $700 for it. Not an option to just not use it at this point. So whatever I have to do to make it work…I guess I will do. ����

Did assume UTH wouldn’t work. Thank you for confirming that. ��

Tapatalk is the easiest way to upload pics. Another option is uploading to your gallery or a third party image host like imgur, and then using the image option in the thread reply to paste the link to the image.

The wire cage needs to be small enough that there is no way for the python to get through it, and you will have to double check that while its running the wire doesnt get too hot for the python. The type of thermostat you use with CHE for the best results (pulse proportional) could be nearing the price of RHP. If you use an on/off thermostat, your risk for heat spikes is a lot higher. You may already have the right kind of thermostat and it's a non-issue.