Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I am moving my 4.5 ft boa from a glass tank to a bigger wooden enclosure. I'm testing out different bulbs with different wattage. At the pet store they have exo-terra bulbs of all different kings (basking, day spot, etc.). i was wondering

A) what are ideal temperatures/humidity for a red tailed boa

B) is one 24hr heat lamp on all the time enough? should it emit a lot of light?

C)recmmendations for type of bulb, brand, etc?

also, my boa spends all of its time burried in the shavings of its tank. will it be a problem if she doesn't hav shavings in the new enclosure (instead, just a normal hide box)?

i also use heat lights for my wooden enclosures. my enclosures are 4'x2'x2' and i use a 40watt blacklight bulb that remains on 24hrs. because it is a blacklight bulb it does not disrupt the photoperiod of the snake. to increase temperatures during the day i use a 50watt halogen (basically an exo-terra basking bulb) dimmed to achieve the proper temperatures. bulb brand is not important as an incandescent bulb is an an incandescent bulb, the best thing is to buy something larger and use a dimmer. dimmers or thermostats will be benificial to dial in the correct temperatures for your particular situation. i keep my cages at 75 on the cool end and 90 on the hot end during the day and about 75-80 at night. as far as humidity i keep it above 65%.
i have used many different setups as far as loose substrate, newspaper etc. right now i use aspen shavings and hides (for snakes under 6ft). all my snakes at some point burrow in the shavings, but as long as they have a hide available loose substrate is not needed.
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- Jason F.

So you have two heat lamps going on the same cage on different schedules?

where are they, one on each side of the tank?

do rtb's need any flourescent lights?

i've played around with the exoterra bulbs. i got the temp i wanted dimming a 40W "sun glo neodymium daylight lamp" for a daytime basking spot. they also havethe "night glo moonlight lamp". do you think that would work for to keep night temperatures up when the daylight lamp is off?

thanks for the help

Omer

Yes, I have two fixtures in the cage. On runs 24/7 to maintain ambient temps for night, and the other comes on during the day to increase the ambient temps during the day.

If you have the proper temps and you dont want to do a night drop then I would suggest using a night bulb 24/7 and either natural light from a window or a flourescent light to create a photo period. UV light is not needed by RTB but can be used to create a light cycle and not effect the temperatures.
However if you want a night drop then just use a slightly lower wattage bulb for night time.

Here is a picture where you can see my heating setup of my most recent cage. Hope this helps.

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- Jason F.

is your 40w heating light strong enough to provide the nessecary ambient night temps throughout the whole cage or is heated side enough at night?
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1.0.0 Ball Python
0.1.0 Red tailed Boa
0.0.1 Dumeril's Boa

The 40watt bulb is enough to heat the cage at night itself (80-75f). The cage is pretty well insulated and the room temp. is about 70f.
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- Jason F.

The heat lamp should emit effectively NO light at all if it is on at night. The moonlight ones are fine.
You don't need neodymium either, get a regular basking bulb.
Get two tight fitting hides, on for each side of the cage.
Put all the lights and heater on the warm side of the cage.
The night glo moonlight lamp would be good for night, and can be left on in the day or not depending on the wattages of your daylight bulb, how warm the room is, and how much insulation your particular cage provides, so that you achieve the temps you want.
You might need to play around with a few different wattages of bulbs before you achieve the right temps.
You need a night drop.

Caden