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I just built a wood 36" X 16" X 14" (height) terrarium with a pegboard back that will house an albino Nelson's kingsnake. It no doubt offers sufficient ventillation -- does it offer too much, taking into account that I want to create a tempèrature gradient with about 84 or 86 degrees in the hot end?

I could easily place plywood sections over parts of the pegboard to reduce the amount of ventillation... Any input wouldf be most appreciated!

Thanks:

Dan

If the top of the cage is solid and not screen, then I think you will be fine. Heat rises. It is screen tops that let out heat and humidity. Vented back walls are not as lossy.

If you notice that you need less ventilation (for example where I live, the humidity in Winter is very low so I want less ventilation then) then simply cover some of the pegboard with plastic food wrap. You can remove it when you want more ventilation.
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Mark

Thanks for your answer, Mark; it addressed my concerns!

The terrarium does have a solid wood top, and I ordered a 16" X 11" radiant heat panel from Jeff Ronne at Boaphile Plastics.

Make sure to watch for deterioration due to humidity. Some of the pegboards made of wood fiber will swell and get soft. There are some coated and plastic pegboard materials out there, but I don't have any experience with them.
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You know, I've had great luck with pegboard. It has held up in some tough environments. I usually use the pegboard coated with vinyl on one side. I've actually had a piece sit in a water puddle for a few hours. After it dried it was OK, though a bit more swollen. Tough stuff.
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Mark

I've got some made of metal that I just remembered. I scavenged it from some old store shelves years ago. It sat in my backyard for eight years and I finally moved it into my storage building. That type of thing might be worth looking into, too.
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1.1.0 Hondurans Het Amel
1.1.0 Hondurans Anery, Het Hypo
0.1.0 Honduran Hypo
0.2.0 Pueblans
1.0.0 Pueblan Hypo
1.0.0 Thayeri MSP
0.0.1 GBK Blair's Phase
1.0.0 California King
0.1.0 California King Blue-eyed Blond
0.0.1 Speckled King WC
0.0.1 Jungle Carpet
0.1.0 Ball, Normal
0.0.1 Sulcata
0.1.0 Girlfriend, Caucasius Mexicana, Fiancee Phase

I was just at Lowes, and they have white plastic peg board 24" by 48" around 1/4 inch thick... no worries at all with swelling/bacteria/rotting etc... check it out, just a thought...