Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi,
I am going to buy some rack systems and would like to know if a 32 quart sterilite tub is big enough for adult balls? I'm going to buy three racks and wondering if I could buy one thermostat to control them all? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

I've heard it suggested to go with a 42qt minimum.

One thermostat should be fine.
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Check Out My Albums

1.0 Ball Python
"Aragorn"
1.0 Kenyan Sand Boa
"Gimli"
1.0 Saharan Sand Boa
"Frodo"
0.1 Rough-Scale Sand Boa
"Arwen"
0.1 California Kingsnake
"Gentoo"
1.0 Mexican Black Kingsnake
"Indigo"

0.1 Australian Cattle Dog/Pointer
"Kira"

for some reason I misread your question and was thinking you were asking if you would need a thermostat for each tub! LOL.

I also meant to type 32qt is the minimum not 42qt - but I already corrected that one in the email I sent you.

Whew - don't know what was wrong with me on that one!
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Check Out My Albums

1.0 Ball Python
"Aragorn"
1.0 Kenyan Sand Boa
"Gimli"
1.0 Saharan Sand Boa
"Frodo"
0.1 Rough-Scale Sand Boa
"Arwen"
0.1 California Kingsnake
"Gentoo"
1.0 Mexican Black Kingsnake
"Indigo"

0.1 Australian Cattle Dog/Pointer
"Kira"

I have most of my adult ball pythons in 32q tubs. They seem to
do just fine. They eat well and breed well for me, so I can't
complain. I wouldn't mind having a few more racks that are a
little bigger for some of the really large females though...

Regarding 1 thermostat...could be risky! What if the heat tape
(I'm assuming they are heated with tape) goes out on the
rack with the thermostat probe in it? Answer: the other two
racks will have their heat on 100% full heat until you figure
it out (which may be too late!). Me, I'm paranoid. I have
TWO thermostats on EACH rack. Ideally, you can use a proportional
thermostat as the main control, with a simple on/off (~$30) as
a backup. Helps me sleep better at night. If you have snakes
worth several hundred or thousands of dollars, and you
accidentally overheat a rack and kill them all, you'll wish
you'd have spend the extra $$.

Best of luck!
ChrisS - SanJose

n/p

I keep all of my adults in 32-quart tubs in my rack system. I keep several 48-quart rack systems around and that's what I use for breeding and egg-laying. After they've layed their clutch, they go back into the 32-quarts.

As for a thermostat, I would not recommend running 3 racks off of one thermostat just because of the fluctuations in heat tape. Also what happens if the heat tape burns out or the power comes unplugged in the rack that you are probing. In that case, the thermostat is going to try and crank up the heat and will toast the animals in the other two racks. My suggestion would be a 4-zone GCS thermostat. It's a proportional thermostat that controls 4 zones independently with 4 separate probes. They also include built-in night drop and an audible alarm. For the money, they're the best way to go (it's cheaper than buying just two Helix units). You can contact me if you have other questions about them.

If you have any questions on either one, let me know. I manufacture racks and breed balls

Take care,
Jason @ Jason's Jungle