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wooden viv questions

C

cartoonnetwork

New member
just a question for everyone with wooden vivs, how do you heat your cage. do you use heat lights or uth. if you use uth where do you put it? it wouldnt heat if its under the wood. i was thinking about putting it inside the viv and put a extra piece of plexi glass over it so it isnt exposed. thanks for your input.
 
It will still heat up through the wood. My boyfriend keeps lizards in tanks with wooden floors, the UTH is underneath the wood and the temps still rise to what is needed.
 
I would worry about heating through the wood. Wood is a pretty good insulator. The heat would eventually heat through the wood but it would take quite a while. When the thermostat calls for heat, you would spend a lot of time heating the wood before you started heating the environment.

I have several wooden vivs that I have built for display purposes. In all I have used flex watt tape and then put a piece of sheet metal over it and sealed it all with silicone so that water cannot get to it. The sheet metal protects the flex watt from the animal, and also helps to distribute the heat. You would want to be sure to regulate it with a good thermostat.

I have done this with several different kinds of snakes and lizards and never had a problem.
 
That sounds like a good idea, Wade.
I have a wooden large viv that was a saltwater fish tank. When I set it up for my snake I cut out part of the bottom and installed a plate of 1/4" lexan. Stuck to the lexan are 2 UTHs. They can raise the substrate temp to about 86-87F if I want, but my snake does not care for that. She prefers her high temp at about 83F and that is easy to maintain.

I've been thinking about making another level(it's kinda tall) and I could use your idea to have a temp gradient in that as well. Man, she'd be stylin' then!
 
hey alan,
im planning to build a big wooden viv.. and wanted a 2nd level. how do you plan on doing that?

my idea was to have a uth on the bottom and have heating lamps on the top of the viv. it will be about 4 ft tall. that was my idea. not sure how it will work.
 
Wow, 4' tall. My snake's home is about 22" of living space tall. I'm still not sure how the second level will work out for her, so I plan on starting with a temporary platform. I think I've decided to start with it on the high temp side of her viv so at first I don't have to concern myself with a temp control. She likes to be somewhat cooler than some of the temps I see others maintaining in their vivs, anyway. When I tried raising her warm side to 85F she started staying away from it even while digesting.
 
yeah i kinda wanted it to be tall.. lol. well crush right now loves to try and get out the top at night.. he's always climbing around the rim of the cage so i figured he would love the 2 stories.

but about the heat.. its surprising..crush is always on a differents side almost every day. never really in the same spot and i do the same thing every day..

for the two new ones.. not sure what they like yet. havent had much to play with and dont have a thermometer as of now. :(
 
Keep in mind, putting a level closer to the top allows your snake something to push on, extra leverage to find weak points in the top of your viv. My Cheerio is kinda large and quite strong when pushing against something.
 
You DEFINETELY NEED TO KNOW the temperature in your snakes enclosure, unless you keep your house at about 80 degrees.
 
actually the top is going to be screwed on. my idea is to build a frame for the plexi glass and actually have that be the door in the front. and probably have 2 to 3 latches holding that shut. crush isnt to big yet but he is definely strong.

well so far my plans are a 3 ft x 4 ft x 4 ft.. i was thinking about having the 2nd level 2 and a half feet up or 3 feet up.. not sure. have a piece of wood or stick for him to get up there. and as well as vines and plants hangind down. for the 2nd level i was thinking about a perimeter level. on the sides have it be 8 inches wide and then the back wall have it be 1 ft wide. heating pad, cover the hole floor with plexy glass so it will be easier to clean. 2 water dishes and quite a few hides. im getting more excited the more i think about it.
 
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