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24 x 18 x18 exo terra

If it helps , I got the exo terra 36x18x18 and it was pretty expensive , but I am really happy with it . I got it at petsmart .
 
I have my 200 gram girl in a 36x18x18 inch Exo-Terra. The "pros", are, obviously, the front-opening, the relatively nice appearance (hate the look of tanks, ugh), and the more than adequate space--a little larger than the 40 gallon Breeder someone mentioned earlier.

The cons? With enough effort and determination, even a small (100+ gram) corn snake could pop the lid, especially if you have the background in since there's a gap between the top of the background and the lid of the enclosure... At least big enough for a slim 200 gram corn to fit into, as my girl recently proved during a brief period when I had to remove her climbing apparatus (apparently, that's how she protests. Never climbs when there's a log or lattice in the enclosure, but goes straight to that gap when her climbing-whatever gets taken out!).

The background has a flaw beside the gap at the top... There are two rectangular holes at the bottom, designed to allow thermostat, thermometer, etc cords/probes through on either side. They're large enough for a smaller snake (here meaning anything smaller than a pretty good-sized adult, seeing as my 200 g girl can crawl through with a bit of room to spare) to squeeze through and get stuck behind the background.

Yes, humidity can be an issue. It should be noted that humidity is an issue with any screen-topped enclosure. In this sense, the Exo-Terra has one up on aquariums, as you can cover the top to keep humidity from escaping without blocking all the ventilation (there are small vent holes on the front, under the doors) and without blocking access to the enclosure itself.

On another note, since it was brought up, I don't think there are many animals that the Exo-Terra could really be considered "ideal" for. As has been discussed, there are flaws that make it less than ideal for snakes. As well as that, it's far too small for most four-legged critters... YES, including Bearded dragons--40B are considered the "bare minimum" for beardies, and for good reason as even small and lazy adult bearded dragons tend to demand at least a 4 ft enclosure. Someone mentioned turtles earlier, but, really, it's severely misinformed at best to even suggest a turtle or tortoise could be kept successfully in anything so small, as those are animals that require large amounts of space! Even the smallest Box Turtles and Mediterranean Tortoises (like what I keep) demand a minimum of 6x2 ft of space, more than double the largest Exo-Terra. Exo-Terras make good choices for such creatures as arboreal geckos, and would probably make good choices for small terrestrial geckos (i.e. leo geckos) and such small lizards as Anoles, but that's probably about it in the reptile department.

Long story short, if you can find a good deal on a 3 ft exo-terra, go for it! However, be prepared to modify the top and the background to prevent escapes and getting behind the background. However, buying one full-price retail probably would not be worth the expense, especially knowing you could get even higher-quality and NOT glass enclosures for half the price, or just get a 20L or 40B slide-top enclosure for a third or less the the price.

Good luck with whichever you choose! I'll try to throw up some pics of one of my older set-ups in the 36" Exo tomorrow when I have more time, if you're interested.
 
Floof said:
I have my 200 gram girl in a 36x18x18 inch Exo-Terra. The "pros", are, obviously, the front-opening, the relatively nice appearance (hate the look of tanks, ugh), and the more than adequate space--a little larger than the 40 gallon Breeder someone mentioned earlier.

The cons? With enough effort and determination, even a small (100+ gram) corn snake could pop the lid, especially if you have the background in since there's a gap between the top of the background and the lid of the enclosure... At least big enough for a slim 200 gram corn to fit into, as my girl recently proved during a brief period when I had to remove her climbing apparatus (apparently, that's how she protests. Never climbs when there's a log or lattice in the enclosure, but goes straight to that gap when her climbing-whatever gets taken out!).

The background has a flaw beside the gap at the top... There are two rectangular holes at the bottom, designed to allow thermostat, thermometer, etc cords/probes through on either side. They're large enough for a smaller snake (here meaning anything smaller than a pretty good-sized adult, seeing as my 200 g girl can crawl through with a bit of room to spare) to squeeze through and get stuck behind the background.

Yes, humidity can be an issue. It should be noted that humidity is an issue with any screen-topped enclosure. In this sense, the Exo-Terra has one up on aquariums, as you can cover the top to keep humidity from escaping without blocking all the ventilation (there are small vent holes on the front, under the doors) and without blocking access to the enclosure itself.

On another note, since it was brought up, I don't think there are many animals that the Exo-Terra could really be considered "ideal" for. As has been discussed, there are flaws that make it less than ideal for snakes. As well as that, it's far too small for most four-legged critters... YES, including Bearded dragons--40B are considered the "bare minimum" for beardies, and for good reason as even small and lazy adult bearded dragons tend to demand at least a 4 ft enclosure. Someone mentioned turtles earlier, but, really, it's severely misinformed at best to even suggest a turtle or tortoise could be kept successfully in anything so small, as those are animals that require large amounts of space! Even the smallest Box Turtles and Mediterranean Tortoises (like what I keep) demand a minimum of 6x2 ft of space, more than double the largest Exo-Terra. Exo-Terras make good choices for such creatures as arboreal geckos, and would probably make good choices for small terrestrial geckos (i.e. leo geckos) and such small lizards as Anoles, but that's probably about it in the reptile department.

Long story short, if you can find a good deal on a 3 ft exo-terra, go for it! However, be prepared to modify the top and the background to prevent escapes and getting behind the background. However, buying one full-price retail probably would not be worth the expense, especially knowing you could get even higher-quality and NOT glass enclosures for half the price, or just get a 20L or 40B slide-top enclosure for a third or less the the price.

Good luck with whichever you choose! I'll try to throw up some pics of one of my older set-ups in the 36" Exo tomorrow when I have more time, if you're interested.
Click to expand...
awesome! Thanks!!
 
Here is my 36x18x18 , and as Floof has posted about the background , I modified mine a little bit . I cut some styofoam and hot glued the pieces onto the backing to cover the gaps , took me about 5 mins to do and my snake has not been able to get behind it . My corn snake is about 18 inches . But she has manage to get on top of the backing by climbing up the plants , so I put them laying down on the sides instead of them hanging from the top . I hope this helps.
 

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I have a smaller exo terra that I have my my 2010 corn in now. I had her in a 10 gallon earlier, but she somehow managed to escape twice. So I got a cheap exo terra for $20 from CL, and haven't had an issue of her escaping since. I just take out the backdrop though so she can't sneak behind it. I LOVE the front locking doors.
 
Here's my first set up in this enclosure. Not a great shot, but you get the idea. BTW, that's not a heat lamp shining down from above--just a compact fluorescent to light up the warm side.
20090117_080.jpg


... And here's a shot of my most recent set-up (before the addition of a leafy vine to hide behind). The substrate is sterilized top soil; an "experiment" on my part after getting used to using soil for my tortoises and box turtle.
P6180048.jpg


To solve the issue of the holes in the background, I currently use foil. It's what I had on hand at the time, so I simply rolled up balls of tinfoil and stuffed it into the holes. It works great. The first time I did the enclosure, I used cardboard... It was fine until the snake defecated on it. Darth's idea with the foam sounds like a good one.
 
UHOEZ said:
I went to petco today and say a Zilla Kit Snakes 20-Gallon Long and i was 139 and it comes with everything!
http://www.cheappetproducts.net/SNAKE_KIT_ZILLA_20LONG-P68839.html

Not sure why its not on petco.com
Click to expand...

Sure, "everything"... But you won't use half of it.

The thermometer and humidity gauge are the cheap dial type, which tend to be as much as 20 degrees/percent off. Highly inaccurate, and so NOT worth the trouble. You need digital thermometers to monitor your snake's temps. And when it comes to corn snakes, humidity isn't enough of an issue to bother with any sort of gauge.

Heat lamps are NOT recommended for snakes. Even arboreal and/or high-temp snakes, for whom heat pads aren't totally sufficient, there are other, better options. Most definitely, 2 heat lamps that cover the whole cage would be a horrible idea as it doesn't give the snake any room to escape the heat. You should heat your snake's enclosure with an Under Tank Heater (aka heat pad/mat or UTH), under one end of the enclosure... approximately 1/3rd of the floor space.

The humidifying spray is a total waste of money; plain ol' water straight from the tap does just as well.

You need a minimum of two hides for your snake, so you would still have to buy one more hide.

The substrate that comes with this kit is OK, but not generally recommended for corn snakes.

So, all in all, you're paying an extra $70 for a bunch of junk you don't need. You'd be better off buying the tank alone (usually ~$70) and then buying your supplies (UTH, thermostat, bedding, etc) separately. This kit is not worth it, to say the least.

For what it's worth, here's a suggestion. The Bean Farm is a good online store that sells some pretty good reptile products. In particular, I would like to refer you to these:
Ultratherm UTHs (http://beanfarm.com/index.php?cPath=1204_1206) which are a high quality yet relatively inexpensive option for under tank heating. For a 20L, the 11x11 inch heat pad would be perfect.

More important than even the heating element itself is the thermostat (or rheostat, though they constantly have to be monitored and "tweaked") used to control it (http://beanfarm.com/index.php?cPath=1238). A controlling device is absolutely NECESSARY to make sure your snake's heat pad does not overheat. The average UTH can easily exceed 100*F, no matter what the packaging claims, and, for a corn snake, you need to make sure it doesn't get hotter than 90*F tops--ideally, no warmer than about 85*F (or any cooler than about 80*F). The Alife sold here for just under $30 is a good choice if you're trying to do this on the "cheap," but, if at all possible, I highly recommend the Herpstat (I hear the Helix is good, too, though I haven't personally used it). The quality of thermostats is usually proportional to their price. The cheaper the thermostat, the cheaper the quality and more likely it will fail. The Herpstat and Helix are more than 3 times the cost of the Alife, but they are a MUCH better quality thermostat. This means your snake's heating element will be much better controlled and you will be able to sleep better at night knowing the thermostat isn't going to fail at any minute. Take this advice from someone who has used both cheap and expensive thermostats. I have regretted every purchase of a cheap thermostat, but have never once regretted the purchase of my trusty Herpstat II. Two of the half-dozen or so cheap thermostats I have had have failed within 1-2 years, but my Herpstat II is still going strong after 3 years.

Woah, that turned out a whole lot longer than I expected, lol! Sorry for the novel. I hope you find this post to be helpful. =)
 
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