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Snakes and heating apparatus

6

666killademon

New member
the cage lid on my snakes viv came separately and there is a door in the middle so i open the door and put the black light there to properly heat the cage at night but i worry that he will try and escape through one of the small gaps by the fixture which is really hot but if he did he would have to touch the fixture and probably get severly burned right now he is too small to even reach the top but what i want to know is would he even try it after feeling the intense heat coming from it??? :flames:
 
My advice, remove the lamp altogether. A uth regulated by a thermostat on constantly is all a corn snake needs heat wise.

And corns WILL find a way to escape from any gap you think is big enough or not. And he will find a way to the top of the tank btw ;) They are EXCELLENT climbers and escape artists.
 
You do not need a black light and I would not reccomend using one. If you have a UTH that is always on then that should be good enough.
 
Yes, he will eventually try to find a way out, and he will test every square inch of caging until he either finds one or gets frustrated enough to stop...which doesn't usually happen.

As much as we love our snakes, we have to admit that they are often not the sharpest tools in the shed, and will sometimes burn themselves on lamps and other heating apparatus. That is why WE need to regulate the temperatures of those elements to avoid potential disastrous reults for our pets.

No offense, but, please use some punctuation. It is difficult to read something that has absolutely no punctuation.
 
sorry will use more punctuation, but why is the black light no good its reptile specific and i heard that the undertank mats don't raise the ambient air temp.
 
The UTH is designed to provide belly heat to your reptiles. This is more important than ambient air temperature. With the appropriate amount of belly heat from a UTH, your snake will have plenty of options to thermoregulate and adjust it's own body temperature, regardless of the ambient air temps. It will also aid in digestion.
 
Be sure to hook it up to a thermostat. Unregulated heat mats can cause major disasters too.

Oh and why not pick up a digital thermometer with probe. KNOWING your temperatures is the most important aspect of snake keeping IMO.
 
666killademon said:
the cage lid on my snakes viv came separately and there is a door in the middle so i open the door and put the black light there to properly heat the cage at night but i worry that he will try and escape through one of the small gaps by the fixture which is really hot but if he did he would have to touch the fixture and probably get severly burned right now he is too small to even reach the top but what i want to know is would he even try it after feeling the intense heat coming from it??? :flames:
Click to expand...
Until the Under Tank Heater arrives, would it be possible to still use the heat lamp, but with the door shut, or would the temperatures drop too low? (75ish cold end, 85ish warm end). This would be much safer as your snake definitely wouldn't be able to burn itself or escape.
A thermostat is essential to regulate the heat mat and a digital thermometer is definitely a good idea - i used to use the exo-terra stick on thermometers and when I got my digital one i discovered my temps were quite a way out, even tho the stick on ones said they were spot on.
 
I use a night light for my corn. She loves her night light and will often times come out and bask under it....I'm not saying that it's necessary but it's also not harmful. Some snakes do enjoy it and it also allows you to view your snake at night. I have mine on a timer. It goes off a few minutes before my day lamps turn on.

I agree that those tiny spaces are calling to your snake. It will try to get through them...trust me on that. Also, if there is ANYWAY that your snake can get to that light, remove it immediately. It's not worth the risk. Snakes have curled up on lights and died.....
 
Heat Lamps have a necessary use also...

a UTH produces the best type of heat because it aids in the digestion of meals (and that's where the belly is).

I also use a heat lamp during the day to supplement heating because my apartment is drafty (my fault: 23 degrees outside, having flashes, window cracked). My lamp is on a stand, hanging ABOVE the mesh lid, angled towards the warm side of the cage. My UTH stays on all the time. This produces a temp gradient for self-thermoregulation (COOL: 72-75 degrees day & night; WARM: 87-daytime, 80-nighttime).
 
666killademon said:
sorry will use more punctuation, but why is the black light no good its reptile specific and i heard that the undertank mats don't raise the ambient air temp.
Click to expand...

There is NOTHING credible that states belly heat is better than radiant heat received from above, or vice versa. Corn snakes in nature absorb heat directly from sun light or by basking on objects heated by the sun. Either is just fine as long as the snake has an area where he has access to appropriate heat.

When you say black light, I would understand that to be a purple incandescent bulb? If so, that it a perfectly appropriate method to heat certain types of enlosures - enclosures where they can be positioned to provide heat but not so that direct contact is possible.

Given your particular set up I agree a UTH is best, because it would avoid burns from direct light contact. But if you change to a tank with a screen top, either a UTH, or a heat lamp with a black light bulb, or a combination of both would be just fine. The trick is a establish an appropriate heat gradient and there are different ways to do it.

Black lights are good becasue they produce heat like regular incandescent bulbs. They are "black" so they don't disrupt the night cycle thus can be left on all the time. And they produce decent levels of UVA and very low levels of UVB light which may be beneficial to snakes.
 
I thought corns stayed hidden during the day, and come out at dusk; so I don't think direct sunlight is useful. They do bask on objects heated by the sun; which is why I feel 'belly heat' is best.

Also I've read threads on this forum that UV lighting had no benefit to corns (again because they are mostly hidden during daylight hours). Other reptiles benefit from UV lights because it helps them produce calcium.
 
Hey again! I'm glad you have your UTH on the way. You also have a method to regulate it (thermostat or rheostat) right?

I know some people in this thread mentioned thermometers already, and I agree with them that you *really* need to have one with a probe. Here's a good example of one you can get online:

http://www.reptiledirect.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=1036

I have the same type. You can also get them at Petco/Petsmart and many other petstores, although not necessarily in the Reptile section.
 
666killademon said:
right now he is too small to even reach the top
Click to expand...
I had a 12 inch hatchling that got to the top of an 18 inch aquarium by slithering throught his water dish and then sticking himself to the silicone caulk that holds the glass together, don't kid yourself and don't learn the hard way. Most of us have done that for you already; learn from our mistakes, close the lid.:)
 
thanks skychimp that was good advice instead of telling me to get rid of my lamp all together but yeah im definitely gonna use the undertank heat so i wont have to leave the door open
 
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