what size should my RHP be? the cage is 36" by 24" by 22.5" (LWH). The room temp will be 75 day 65-70 night. It will be for a BP (90 hot, 80 cool)
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what size should my RHP be? the cage is 36" by 24" by 22.5" (LWH). The room temp will be 75 day 65-70 night. It will be for a BP (90 hot, 80 cool)
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That's a tough question because of the cage height. 24" is a long way down for a RHP. (If the snake was an arboreal it would be a different story.) 15" or so would be much better for creating a basking area and heat gradient.
My room temp is somewhat like yours at this time of year. I only use RHPs and I use them in different size cages, but I don't know what I'd do with that cage. I would call the company that makes the RHP and ask them. They should be able to advise you correctly.
Regards,
Bill
My 3 enclosures are 42 L x 24 D x 16 H. I just installed my 16" heat panels last night. The ambient temp is about 65 degrees in the room. On full blast 2 of the enclosures are 110 degrees on the floor below the panel and 84 on the cool side. The third for some reason is only 90 degrees under the panel and 78 on the cool side. I'm hoping that the third just needs to get broken in. All three are outgassing something fierce. Horrible chemical odor. I imagine it will take a week or so before they stop. The instructions shipped with the units says that some outgassing is to be expected and they should be run full blast to complete this process before adding an animal to the enclosure.
If you can afford to step up to the mid-size panel you may need it with the 24" height. BPs will stay almost entirely on the ground so if you haven't purchased an enclosure you may want to buy a shorter one and go with the smaller panel. Or you can do what I'm doing and line the back of the enclosure with heat tape to help with the ambient temperature during the winter.
Good luck
i forgot to say i will have a human heat pad on the hot side of the cage on either low (80) or medium (90).
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