Reptile & Amphibian Forums

When using a rack system, does the ambient air temp (on the cool side) raise? My hot side has to be about 90-92 degrees. On Juvi sized tubs, how will the ambient side be affected? I'd like the ambient side to at least be 78-80. Does that mean the temp in my room has to be 78-80? Thanks.
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1.1 100% het albino W. Hognose
0.1 66% het albino "red" W. Hognose
1.0 Pastel Ball Python
1.0 Common Snapping Turtle
1.1 Bearded Dragon

It depends on many factors. Regardless, there are ways to increase temps on the ambient side without increasing room temps, although this is usually the ideal way.

The simplest way is to place a thermal mass source over the hot spot. If the species you keep requires high humidity the water bowl can be placed over the hot spot and the humidity will help heat up the cool end. However, some species may prefer their water to be on the cool side. I have heard of people using two water bowls in a rack for this reason. A heavy ceramic bowl over part of the heat source to increase temps and another at the cool end for drinking water.

I have also heard of people using ceramice hide boxes or sections of slate or other tile to help distribute heat. Trust me, it works. A poster on this forum took my advice and placed clay flower pots as hide boxes around the cage, including over the heat source, and increased the ambient side temps by 8* F. Even I was surprised by that.

Lastly, a rack can be strategically wrapped with Reflectix to help distribute heat.

Personally I like to heat the room to the coolest temperature required by any species in the room. Usually this is a night-time temperature. Then any extra heat requirments are handled in each individual cage or rack. Unless you have a really large and/or un-insulated room this is usually the cheapest way to provide heat for your herps. But it also assumes you have a medium to large collection which from your signature it appears you do not have.
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Current snakes:

0.0.1 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Java locale (green)

2.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Seleyar locale (all black)

and something I forget to mention. Good work.

I had a boa in a back-heated rack in a cold room. Although the back of the box was warm, the front was cold. After placing wadded-up balls of newspaper in there to decrease the volume of air, the air temp throughout the box became more consistently warm closer to the front. Cheap and easy way to help increase temps in a single box if needed without modifying or affecting the rest of the rack.

Amazing that wadded up newspaper was enough. I'll have to remember that the next time this topic comes up.

What size box was that boa in?

Also, I should ammend my original post. The flower pot example was in a Vision cage, not a rack. That's even more surprising given the volume of even the smallest Vision cage.
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Current snakes:

0.0.1 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Java locale (green)

2.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Seleyar locale (all black)

>>Amazing that wadded up newspaper was enough. I'll have to remember that the next time this topic comes up.
>>
>>What size box was that boa in?
>>
>>Also, I should ammend my original post. The flower pot example was in a Vision cage, not a rack. That's even more surprising given the volume of even the smallest Vision cage.
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>>Current snakes:
>>
>>0.0.1 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Java locale (green)
>>
>>2.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Seleyar locale (all black)