Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Yes! Beware of him! I am now addicted to reflectix after coating the back of some cages with it in my basement. I had wonderful results from it. I am now scouring my house looking for uses of this stuff. I am obsessed!

The stuff and all of the similar products work really well. Almost too well if you're not careful as it can really throw off established gradiants. On the other hand, if you play around with it you can use it to accentuate gradiants.
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Current snakes:

0.0.1 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Java locale (green)

1.2 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Jave local (green)

2.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Seleyar locale (all black)

1.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Celebes locale (Black & Tan)

Do Lowes & Home Depot type stores normally carry Reflectix? I was thinking about picking some up to use in the boa cage I'm building. I'm setting up the cage so that it will have a shelf half way up the cage, and I want to put a heat pad under it to help make it a basking area, and was thinking that if I line the bottom of that shelf with reflectix (sandwiching the heat pad between the reflectix & the plywood of the shelf), it would work great. Is this feasible, or is it a bad idea?
Also, what does Reflectix normally cost? How big are the packages of it?

I have purchased it at Lowes. I think the roll was something like 4' x 30'. I don't remember the price but I do recall noticing it had gone up a bit.

I would see if you can find it at a hardware store where you can buy it by the foot from a roll. Sometimes you have to ask. My local store carries it but you'd never know it was there unless you went out the back door to get to the lumber yard. I actually think it's a different product so I don't think asking for Reflectix is necessarily the way to find it.

I do think your idea with the shelf would work but I've never tried anything like that exactly. You will want a bit of an air space between the heat source and the Reflectix. Do no sandwich it tight.
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Current snakes:

0.0.1 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Java locale (green)

1.2 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Jave local (green)

2.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Seleyar locale (all black)

1.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Celebes locale (Black & Tan)

What do you use it for? Just insulation?
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1.1 Motley het butter corns
0.1 Snow corn
0.1 Okeetee corn
1.0 Anery mutt corn
0.1 Stripe Ghost corn
0.1 Amelanistic corn het carmel
2.1 Colombian Redtails
1.0 Hypo Colombian redtail
1.0 Brazilian Rainbow Boa
1.0 Anery Kenyan sand boa
0.1 Normal Kenyan sand boa

It is an insulation of sorts. Specifically a radiant barrier that reflects radiant energy.

Since almost all reptile cages are heated with some sort of radiant heat source (although I do remember seeing a Burmese python breeder who had a basement full of cages heated by forced air ducts...) Reflectix and other radiant barriers are a great way to keep heat in.

Don't be fooled by their low R values. Those are determined through standardized tests that apply more to forced air heating devices.

I discovered Reflectix when I needed a fire-resistant insulation to line the walls and ceiling of a temporary snake room in the garage of my last house. The room was 7x7x8 and had two exterior walls with no insulation. The other two walls were interior to the unheated garage and also not insulated.

I stapled on layer of Reflectix on the ceiling, walls, and hollow core door of the room. I did nothing to the bare concrete floor.

I was able to heat that room to 85* during a South Dakota winter with a 750 watt radiant heater and it would even cycle on and off on days it was so cold water would freeze in the garage.

I started to test the stuff and was amazed at how effective it was. The one downfall to all radiant barriers is that they lose their effectiveness over time due to dust build up in wall cavities. But since Reflectix is fire-rated you can have it out in the open and make sure it stays clean.

For most of us, it is great for insulating cages by wrapping them. It also can be hung from the ceilings in small rooms to create warm and cool areas. Or you can insulate small rooms with it like I did.
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Current snakes:

0.0.1 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Java locale (green)

1.2 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Jave local (green)

2.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Seleyar locale (all black)

1.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Celebes locale (Black & Tan)