Heating inside PVC?

[dakski]

I'm considering upgrading from a glass 40gal with UTH to a 4x2x2 PVC (AP) in the next year. For those of you that keep your corns in PVCs, what do you use for heating? The setups I have for my boas in their 4x2x2s are using a ceiling mounted RHP, but I'm wondering if there's a better arrangement for corns.

I have both my corns in 4X2X1' Boaphile tanks. I use a RHP and heat tape working off the same thermostat on the hot side and nothing on the cool side. They are both pretty active and use the space although it's overkill. Having a taller tank would allow climbing and heating will not be an issue especially with your house temps and the temps corns like. Having said that, height is an option, not a necessity for them. It's really up to you if you want to spend more and take up more space for a taller tank.

Like bogertophis said, make sure the cool side is about 74-76F with ambient in the 78-80F range. The hot spot for both my corns is about 83-85F depending on where I measure under the RHP/on the heat tape. All my Boaphile tanks have the same setup except for the Pythons and Boas I have lower wattage heat tape on the cool side to keep it about 78-80F and 87-91F on the hot side, depending on the type of snake.

One thing I've learned is that if you are stacking tanks, you want the cooler tanks on the bottom. Heat rises. In 4X2' stack I have the two corns on the bottom and then Yafe my CP and then Shayna my BP. Yafe likes things a little warmer than Shayna, but Shayna's hot spot (above Yafe's RHP) stays about 88-89F without much work from her RHP or heat tape. The heat from Yafe's RHP warms the floor enough and the RHP does enough for ambient temps.

However, if you put a corn on the top of the stack, you might not be able to get it cool enough for him/her to be happy. Again, this is only if stacking.

I like PVC tanks overall, but especially for my scaleless corn, Solana. They hold moisture really well and she has a little more trouble shedding than a normal corn would. PVC with a big water bowl = plenty of humidity for her. Having said that, corns do not like a ton of humidity either, so you might have to adjust water bowl size to keep humidity in the desired range of 40-50% humidity and then up a little in shed if you need to.