Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey guys! I'm new on this website. But I've had a male albino nelson milk snake for two years now. And just recently I bought a very young cali. king snake. I work at the pet store that I bought it from so I know its healthy. I was just wondering if theres anyway to sex king snakes, without using a probe? I never learned how to do that and I dont want to hurt the snake, and the only vet that does exotics around where I live is a 45 minute drive. && another thing is there any "cheaper" heaters that you know of? I mean like the ones that you can set the temp, and has a timer. I've got the snakes in two different size cages, I don't know if that would matter for it. (the nelson is in a 30 long, and the king is in a 10 gal. right now). I'm just looking for a more organized set up, because theres a lot of wiring right now with two seperate setups.

Any suggestions, comments would help!
I'll try and get pictures up as soon as i can!
thanks guys,
Alex.

Can't help you with the sexing/probing question but it's likely there's a breeder not too far away that might probe your snake or look at the king and give an opinion. Pairing 'popping' or probing are the options.
There's a few thermostats around that work well with heat tape systems. I use a Johnson Controls basic on/off to control the heater in the main snake room and a Helix DBS 1000 to add additional heat to a couple of shelves via 4 inch tape. Neither one has fractional degree adjustment (or timers) but both have been reliable for 2 years. A standard timer can be added to the thermostat cheaply.
The Herpstat series of thermostats do have night drop options/timers and are adjustable to 1/10 degrees. These work very nicely on rack systems but will set you back a few bucks.
Heating a small room with a single heat source like an oil filled radiator style is actually easier and cheaper than multiple electronics and a quarter mile of heat tape if your collection gets to that point.
Hope that helps!
Jeff