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new to corn snake's a few qustions

mr.hargrave

mr.hargrave

New member
hello, i got my first corn 2 days ago :) afta a good 2-3 of research (from a pet shop) and i went to get a baby but ended up buying an older one i think i don't know how old but Eli (snakes name :) is about 30cm long and can you tell a snake age but there length :confused: but other wise i think all is ok i have not fed her yet but hes handing well and very active at night :dancer: and i have an under the tank heat mat and it is only getting the temp to about 77 in the hot end is that ok?
 
Congrats on your new snake. :) Unfortunately, you cannot tell a snake's age by his size. 77 isn't really hot enough; you want at least 80, preferably up to 85. But where are you measuring the temp? You need to measure right on the glass in the middle of the UTH, not on top of the bedding. It can take a little time to get the UTH up to temperature, but after 2 days it should be maxed out. How big is the UTH? You want it to cover about 1/3 of the bottom of the tank.
 
I'd let the snake settle in for 5-7 days with no handling before feeding the first meal. Yes, I know that is very difficult! But you want the snake to relax and settle in, then have a good, stress-free meal, digest for two days, _then- you can handle him!
 
PS, the ability to delete or edit your posts (as well as other benefits) is included in a contributing membership, $25/year. Very worth it just to be able to edit!!
 
thanks

yes the mat covers 1/3 of the bottom of the tank and the tank it not very big it's 17(L)x 10(W) x 7(H) but the heat mat heats it up better if i put a towel underneath it heats it up to 80-84...but I dont know whether this is dangerous for the mat because it very hot :confused: the snake seems very well settled in when i held her he is very good :) and whenn i go to put here back i he dont want to go back keep trying to get back on to my hand lol
 
If the mat feels very hot to you, then it's well over 85 degrees. I'm sure your thermometer must be wrong. Do you have another that you can try? Preferebly a digital one?

Beware that cardboard strip or plastic dial-type thermometers are very inaccurate and can be wrong by 10 degrees or more, either way.
 
A digital one is best, with a probe that permanently sits on the floor of the tank, immediately on top of the mat.
 
OK, beware that a thermostat and a thermometer and two different things.

The thermometer measures the temperature and a thermostat controls how hot the mat gets. Going on experience of mats, I think you'll need both.
 
Nanci said:
PS, the ability to delete or edit your posts (as well as other benefits) is included in a contributing membership, $25/year. Very worth it just to be able to edit!!
Click to expand...
Sorry to go off topic but this is truly a dumb idea. We got to pay someone so we can fix our spelling or grammar if we push send.
What a load of hogs trollop.
 
You pay $25 to support the site and contribute to the upkeep and maintenance costs of it. The Edit function is a perk. If you don't like it, don't do it. Easy.
 
I'm sorry you think so little of this site. This site is much more valuable to me than a book I could buy. It has advice for my specific needs. To me that is worth the $25 to help keep this site running. I have not contributed yet as I am 4 months behind in getting paid from my work. But trust me, as soon as I have some money I will be contributing. No one said you had to contribute.
 
back to the actual topic of this thread..........

If I understand what you are saying, you have a heating pad, without any type of controller hooked up to it, (thermostat, dimmer, etc.) and you have a strip thermometer that is most likely placed above the substrate, which is reading around 80 degrees?

If that is correct than the hot side of your tank is way too hot. You should be reading about 85 degrees directly above the mat, on the glass, under the bedding. (As mentioned above by Bitsy).

The problem with only getting one (either the thermometer or the thermostat) is that you need the one to use the other properly. If, for instance, you get the thermostat w/o having a proper thermometer, you won't know how hot/cold your thermostat is set. If you get a thermometer w/o a thermostat, you will simply know that your heat pad is too hot and won't be able to do anything about it....

If what I said above is correct about your heating situation what I would recommend doing in the mean time is to either:

(1) get a thermostat first, and try to use your strip thermometer to set the thermostat by taking it off the glass, then putting it directly on the bottom of the tank and getting a temporary reading that way.

OR

(2) get the thermometer first, then put something on the glass, on the bottom of the tank, to kind of buffer the effect of the heat mat. Maybe taping some newspaper or something similar down there so that it makes it impossible for your snake to borrow and have direct contact with the heat mat.

Just some suggestions, if I was in this situation that's what I might do. I'm sure other members on here will have other suggestions. Good luck!
 
Sinsational said:
.... I have not contributed....
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Yeah and neither will I.
Contribute willingly not by some mafia tactic. I have never heard of this BULL ever. If the owner wants a hand out ask but to demand it like this is a joke.
A forum web site is a passion not a profit. Advertising is the way to go if the owner wants to break even.
 
Porro a heating pad is a plus. If you want to add a light great. The habitat needs a warm and cool area so the heat must be one side only.
 
Snakes Incorporated said:
Yeah and neither will I.
Contribute willingly not by some mafia tactic. I have never heard of this BULL ever. If the owner wants a hand out ask but to demand it like this is a joke.
A forum web site is a passion not a profit. Advertising is the way to go if the owner wants to break even.
Click to expand...

I don't see how the owner is "demanding" anyone to contribute. There's a spell-check and preview button if you are very concerned about errors. When I consider contributing, it certainly has nothing to do with the edit button - it's due to the great community, endless support, and great wealth of information this site offers.

Sorry to OP for posting off topic. :( I love this site too much not to say something!
 
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