Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi, I have a 10 month old american alligator in about a 110 gallon tank (65 of wich is water.) Can any of you tell me what the best way of heating his water to a comfortable temp is? He is inside, but in a rather cold (65-70 deg.) storage room. One thing to keep in mind is I have him in a black thick plastic pond shell ( the kind you use for gardening ). His basking area is very warm due to a couble mercury lamps as well as his night-time lights, but his water is too chillie for my taste! PLEASE HELP!! Thanks!!

What is the temperature of the water?

I would recommend a titanium,or stainless steel submersible heaters,due to the fact that crocodilians seem to be on the destuctive side,when it comes to things being in the enclosure.These heaters should work well with animals the size of 1'to 4'.They also come with a thermostat that is seperate,and is pretty accurate.You can find them at DrsFosterSmith.com
Hope this helps. Mike

I don't know what type of filter your using or the plumbing you are using, but I made a heater for my pond that was less then $50 and it keeps all 500 gallons of water at 80 no problem. Just go down your local hardware store and get a 120 volt water heater element. It should be around 8 dollars. Then get some prethreaded lead pipe with a "T" on one end. Make sure the pipe is long enough for the element to be completely surrounded. Then all you have to do is get whatever fittings you need to hook your filter or pump return inline with it and mount it under your enclosure. All this should be around $16. Then get a thermostat from a water bed. I found one at a garage sale for $3 that is 300 watt. Cut the cord that leads to the flat pad heater and wire to the element. Shouldn't take more then an hour to put it all together. If you like I can send pics or a diagram if my explanation isn't clear enough. Hope this helps. Chris