Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello, I recently moved my bally python from a 20 gallon cage to a 40 gallon cage; right now I don't have a heat lamp for it, but I do have a heat pad over a hide box that creates a hot spot of about 95 degrees. But without a heat lamp, the ambient temp is around 75, which is much lower than the recommended temp. My question is should I try to get the ambient temp higher, or is it alright? He hardly ever goes over to the warm side of the cage, he seems to prefer the cooler temps so I don't think this is a problem, but I wanted to get some opinions on this. Thanks.
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-David

1.0 ball python (Pandora - don't ask)
1.0 argentine boa (Prometheus)
0.1 hogg island boa (Andromeda)
0.0.1 brazilian rainbow boa (Inara)
1.0 kenyan sand boa (Diablo)
1.0 nornal corn snake(Cypress)
0.1 amery. corn snake (Morgan LaFay)
0.0.1 banded cali. kingsnake (Cain)
1.0 tangerine honduran milksnake (Narcissus)
0.0.1 sandfish skink (Slick)
1.0 dog (Luke)

by the way, I meant to say ball python, not bally python; and later on I meant to say the hide box is over the heat pad, not the other way around...sorry for the mistakes.
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-David

1.0 ball python (Pandora - don't ask)
1.0 argentine boa (Prometheus)
0.1 hogg island boa (Andromeda)
0.0.1 brazilian rainbow boa (Inara)
1.0 kenyan sand boa (Diablo)
1.0 nornal corn snake(Cypress)
0.1 amery. corn snake (Morgan LaFay)
0.0.1 banded cali. kingsnake (Cain)
1.0 tangerine honduran milksnake (Narcissus)
0.0.1 sandfish skink (Slick)
1.0 dog (Luke)

and the cool side (ambient) a bit warmer. I would try to get the warm side no warmer than 90, and the cool side no cooler than 80 for normal maintenance of a healthy adult BP. Are you using a light in addition to your UTH?

Aquariums are hard to heat properly...

I saw that you do not have a heat lamp. I'd reccomend a regular old "shop light" clamp style light fixture...Walmart = less than 10 bucks. Use a regular white light bulb (using a wattage that gets the temps where you want them), then cut the UTH back just a bit. Is the UTH on a thermostat?

No, I don't have it on a thermostat, I have thought about getting one in the past, but so far I've been able to keep all my cages at the recommended temps without one (alot of those small heat pads don't seem to get near as hot as the large one I got for the 40 gallon cage.) I've seen the thermostats in the pet shops, they seem to run about 40 to 50 bucks where I live, are there any cheaper ones out there that work? Also, I'll go get a heat lamp from walmart and try to get the ambient temp up alittle. Thanks for your help and advice, I always seem to stay stressed out trying to get everything perfect for my little buddies so they can live in bliss!
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-David

1.0 ball python (Pandora - don't ask)
1.0 argentine boa (Prometheus)
0.1 hogg island boa (Andromeda)
0.0.1 brazilian rainbow boa (Inara)
1.0 kenyan sand boa (Diablo)
1.0 nornal corn snake(Cypress)
0.1 amery. corn snake (Morgan LaFay)
0.0.1 banded cali. kingsnake (Cain)
1.0 tangerine honduran milksnake (Narcissus)
0.0.1 sandfish skink (Slick)
1.0 dog (Luke)

You can get a descent on/off thermostat for about 20 bucks or so. Try one of the online herp suppliy stores on KS. You really must have one...if the UTH gets wacky you can cook your snakes....Also, they get quite a bit hotter than you think...

which do you recommend...a thermostat or rheostat?
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-David

1.0 ball python (Pandora - don't ask)
1.0 argentine boa (Prometheus)
0.1 hogg island boa (Andromeda)
0.0.1 brazilian rainbow boa (Inara)
1.0 kenyan sand boa (Diablo)
1.0 nornal corn snake(Cypress)
0.1 amery. corn snake (Morgan LaFay)
0.0.1 banded cali. kingsnake (Cain)
1.0 tangerine honduran milksnake (Narcissus)
0.0.1 sandfish skink (Slick)
1.0 dog (Luke)

I would go with a thermostat. A rheostat is simply a dimmer switch. You can set it at say, 75%, and the temps will still fluctuate based on the environmental conditions.

Thanks for your help.
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-David

1.0 ball python (Pandora - don't ask)
1.0 argentine boa (Prometheus)
0.1 hogg island boa (Andromeda)
0.0.1 brazilian rainbow boa (Inara)
1.0 kenyan sand boa (Diablo)
1.0 nornal corn snake(Cypress)
0.1 amery. corn snake (Morgan LaFay)
0.0.1 banded cali. kingsnake (Cain)
1.0 tangerine honduran milksnake (Narcissus)
0.0.1 sandfish skink (Slick)
1.0 dog (Luke)