Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a closet that i really have no use for and i was thinking about keeping my burm in it but i'm not sure how to heat it besides lights. Would it be ok to use a heating blanket?
It has normal carpeting in it and I was going to just put newspaper over it and the blanket underneath. Would that be ok?

i dont have a burm..yet..lol but i have turned a closet into a herp room...for me lights would be way too big a pain in the @$$ so I just bought one of those lil honewell space heaters from home depot with timer & safety features that turn it off if it shorts of tips over.. i would say find away to secure that (maybe bold it to the floor ) then buy some cheap fencing & keep it around it so the burm can come into actual contact with it....hope i helped...later

I would like a little more info if you don't mind.How big is the burm? how big is the klozit? and how long do you plan to keep the snake in it?

I only ask as I kept my burm in a klozit for a few months and she did not like it at all!!Most klozits don't have alot of floor space for a burm to stretch out with.but if you have a smaller burm then that's not a big deal now.

I have a few concerns (actually, many) regarding the use of space heaters. In this situation, using a space heater is a recipe for disaster (even if it has a supposed "turn off" feature if tipped; it isn't fail-proof). Space heaters can very quickly overheat a small area like a closet even with a thermostat.

Instead, if you are going to do this right, here is what I would recommend:

1) Use a pro product radiant heat panel mounted to the inside ceiling of the wall making sure that no cords are exposed. This will provide an excellent heat source. Depending on the temps of the floor, a thermostatically controlled pig blanket like a Kane heat mat will work great (once again, make sure that no cords are exposed).
2) I would make sure that some sort of full spectrum fluorescent light is installed as this will provide a great light source w/out adding extra heat.
3) Get rid of that old carpet! This closet is going to need to maintain a high amount of humidity and carpet will only harbor lots of bacteria and mold. I would cover the floor w/ceramic tile; something that can be easily cleaned and disinfected as needed. If the tile gets too cool, you can put layers of newspaper over it for insulation.
4) Ventilation: how are you going to provide adequate air flow? Hopefully, you have excellent air flow; otherwise, the closet could be a nice festering ground for all kinds of air borne pathogens. A JWR Air Cleaner would be an excellent investment.
5) HUMIDITY: I would recommend a JWR ultrasonic vaporizer; one of the only products that provides humidity while at the same time pumping out ZERO harmful bacteria like most other humidifiers and vaporizers.
6) SECURITY: How will this closet be secure? Make sure that the door is 100% escapeproof.

There are other considerations but these are the highest priority to consider. Good luck, Rob

Rob Carmichael, Curator
The Wildlife Discovery Center at Elawa Farm
City of Lake Forest Parks & Recreation (IL)

those were some good ideas..now i saw that you are against space heaters i have a honewell that's the floor board model...it's long like the heaters that run along the base of the floor in some houses. do you really think a heat panel can heat a room as good as the space heater? i think mine is 8 feet X 5 feet or something like that....I keep balls in racks with this setup & I just never thought a heat panel would be able to properly heat up the joint. let me know what you think...i've been using that heater 2 years so far thank god without incident