Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have recently purchased 2.1 BRB's (thank you Jeff C.& Will B.)
I have not had snakes in 12 or 13 years and am new to the "radiant floor heating" now available for reptiles. I have a Vision Cage (36"Wx 23"Dx 21"H) with Flexwatt covering one half of the cage. I have construction paper on the floor along with a layer of substrate on top of that. The digi t-stat mounted to the center of the tank on the back wall sits about 1 1/2" off the ground and reads 73-74 degrees. If I put a gauge type t-stat directly on the ground it reads about 85 degrees. The cool side of the cage has no Flexwatt and is where their water bowl is located. Humidity is a constant 85-95 percent. 2 questions: (1) What is the prime GROUND temperature I should be looking for? and (2)None of the snakes are over 30"- How long can I keep 3 BRB's in the same cage and if I seperate them is it OK to keep the females together for awhile? My next cage would be of the same dimensions as the one I currently have (Vision).
On behalf of my snakes, I thank you for any advice you can give me.
All 3 snakes are eating fine.

it's getting late so I apologize if I miss something or overlook it.

I have a Vision Cage (36"Wx 23"Dx 21"H) with Flexwatt covering one half of the cage.

General rule of thumb for heating sources like pads, flexwatt..... don't cover more than 1/3 of the floor.

The digi t-stat mounted to the center of the tank on the back wall sits about 1 1/2" off the ground and reads 73-74 degrees. If I put a gauge type t-stat directly on the ground it reads about 85 degrees

Very common mistake. Where do most snakes travel? On the ground not levitating five inches above the substrate after watching a Chris Angel showlol How are you controlling the flexwatt with a digital thermostat such Herpstat or Helix and how are you taking those readings with that digital temp thing???

The cool side of the cage has no Flexwatt and is where their water bowl is located. Humidity is a constant 85-95 percent.

How are you maintaining 85-95% with the water bowl on the cool side and how are you getting this reading??? Moving the water bowl partially over and/or variations of that will achieve optimal shed conditions.

(1) What is the prime GROUND temperature I should be looking for?

85 degrees is the highest you want to go for a hot spot but the ideal temp if they could pick it would be around 80-81 but others may have different opinions such as Mike, Jeff or Dave (in that case listen to those fellas

2)None of the snakes are over 30"- How long can I keep 3 BRB's in the same cage

I don't think you should keep them in the same cage. I would personally order a 2 x 4 cage with divider and split it up for two and have one keep that big whole vision which is waaaaaay to big but might work if you have some nice hides and keep it a low traffic area.

and if I seperate them is it OK to keep the females together for awhile?

I don't think it is wise to do that cuz does the positive outweigh the negatives. I really think the what-ifs don't add up cuz what if one eats one and they both die. You should feel responsible cuz that is the environment you placed them in but if you do have money to spend then definately get

1- new cage 4 x 2 with divider
2- hersptat or helix thermostat
3- temp gun (best thing you will ever buy and the ONLY way to get a true reading)

take nothing to heart just trying to put it out there for you
Bob

Bob covered it quite well but I think he missed a common error you may have made and should be asked..

You stated

"The digi t-stat mounted to the center of the tank on the back wall sits about 1 1/2" off the ground and reads 73-74 degrees. If I put a gauge type t-stat directly on the ground it reads about 85 degrees."

Sounds like you may be talking about a thermometer, not a thermostat!

Thermometer - measures temperature.

Thermostat - controls temperature. Typically in our environments is with a control unit and a remote probe.

How are you controlling the amount of power to the heat tape?

Several methods...

Bad - no controller at all
Not as bad - cheap dial type thermostat (prone to fail with power on and cook your herp)
OK - dimmer switch to manually adjust power to heater
Good - digital on/off thermostat
Better - digital proportional thermostat
Best - digital proportional thermostat with night drop
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Thanks,

Dave Colling

www.rainbows-r-us-reptiles.com

0.1 Wife (WC and still very fiesty)
0.2 kids (CBB, a big part of our selective breeding program)

LOL, to many snakes to list, last count:
26.49 BRB
20.21 BCI
And those are only the breeders

lots.lots.lots feeder mice and rats