Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have been having troubles keeping the temperatures in my BPs tank up. Its a 20 gallon long, I have a UTH on one end I bought from petco, and a screen lid. I also have a heat lamp focusing on the side where the UTH is. The aquarium has a thermometer in the very middle, and 2/3 towards the top towards the lid. So, its not on the low part of the cage, but I would figure its still fairly close. Usually the temps read 70-75 on it, and I keep my house at 70 degrees during the winter. Maybe the belly heat is higher where the UTH is, combined with the heat lamp, and the thermometer may not be reflecting that, I dont know. I suspect that it could still use a temperature increase though.

Suggestions and input?
Neal

The first thing (and probably the only thing) you'll need to do is cover that screen top. Heat and humidity rise so it's going right out the top of your cage. You can temporarily put a towel over it, but I recommend a quick trip to home depot, pick up a piece of plexiglass and put it over the top. You really should have a good digital thermometer and hygrometer, spend the money for the double probe one and place on on the hot side and one on the cool side. With an accurate read, you can better adjust your temps. The humidity should also help maintain a good temperature. What substrate are you using?
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Tosha

8.10.0 Ball Python (Harry and Fluffy and currently un-named)
0.2.0 Feline (Pippen and Pandora)
0.0.1 Dessert Tortoise (Pope)
7.9.5 Fish (1,2,3,4...)
0.0.1 Frog rescued from pool skimmer
0.0.2 Lizards rescued from pool skimmer

I'm using reptibark. I have a hydrometer in the cage too, I usually am around 50 on it. I will try the towel idea. If I get a piece of plexiglass, do I need to leave any holes for air flow? I guess I will temporarily try the towel idea and see how that works

Reptibark will be good for holding in the heat. No, you wont need holes in the plexi, it's not going to be airtight, but if you are concerned about air flow up can leave a little space at the ends or on the side, you don't want too much of a draft, a plain peice of plywood or even peg board will work too, if you are concerned about having to cut down a piece of plexiglass. As your humidity is 50 % with the screen top, it sounds like if you just cover up that screen you should end up with a good 65% humidity which will raise your ambient temps. Hope this helps!
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Tosha

8.10.0 Ball Python (Harry and Fluffy and currently un-named)
0.2.0 Feline (Pippen and Pandora)
0.0.1 Dessert Tortoise (Pope)
7.9.5 Fish (1,2,3,4...)
0.0.1 Frog rescued from pool skimmer
0.0.2 Lizards rescued from pool skimmer

will try that!

thanks

Cannot get the thermometer to read a temp that you know to be appropriate? So what? The thermometer stuck to the glass has ntohing to do with the snakes temperature. What you want to know is the snakes temperature.

Get a Tempgun and you can use it to test the animal for it's skin temps. Then you'll actually know if your setup is working. BTW, the temps and equipment you mention all point to correct temps (except of course the misplaced thermometer).

Reptibark is terrible bedding, not very absorbent and probably awfully uncomfortable to lay on. Breeders (ie those with the most valuable animals) use sifted pine shavings, shredded aspen or paper. I use pine and when humidity is an issue then I just add water to the pine. Works great.
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AMAZON REPTILE CENTER

NAMED BEST REPTILE STORE IN LOS ANGELES

>>What you want to know is the snakes temperature.

Where the snakes temperature is important - just as important is the ambient temperatures. If the ambient temps are wrong, then a snake cannot metabolize correctly and can easily get sick. Yes, the snakes temp can be fine, but the ambient temps can be off enough to cause a respitory infection.

>>BTW, the temps and equipment you mention all point to correct temps (except of course the misplaced thermometer).

Temps at 70 degrees are not correct for ball pythons. The setup does not have an accurate enough thermostat to say whether the correct temperatures are being maintained.

>>Reptibark is terrible bedding, not very absorbent and probably awfully uncomfortable to lay on. Breeders (ie those with the most valuable animals) use sifted pine shavings, shredded aspen or paper. I use pine and when humidity is an issue then I just add water to the pine. Works great.

LOL - Reptibark is good bedding, very absorbant and close to what snakes naturally lay on. Big breeders keep their snakes in tubs and racks and don't have the same issues with heat loss that you have in glass aquarium set ups. Reptibark is much better at insulating your aquarium type set up than paper or aspen. Cypress mulch (which big breeders also use and would have the same look and feel as reptibark) could also be used and would be a good insulator too.
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Tosha

8.10.0 Ball Python (Harry and Fluffy and currently un-named)
0.2.0 Feline (Pippen and Pandora)
0.0.1 Dessert Tortoise (Pope)
7.9.5 Fish (1,2,3,4...)
0.0.1 Frog rescued from pool skimmer
0.0.2 Lizards rescued from pool skimmer

>> Reptibark is good bedding, very absorbant and close to what snakes naturally lay on.

I did a test for a customer in my store. I poured four ounces of water into his reptibark bedding. We waited half an hour and the water was still not absorbed.

Do the same with pine shavings and it'll absorb every drop in less then five minutes. Pine absorbs fast and makes cleanup easy. Reptibark users must strip the cage and cleanse the glass after every defecation.

Cypress mulch is a very different product. Much softer more absorbent. It has it's own problems. Perhaps Dan or Collette will have some input RE cypress mulch.

I was not aware that the grasslands of Ghana, Togo & Benin were covered in shredded pine bark. But if you say so.

Reptibark is not meant for use on ballpythons.

FWIW, we sell somewhere near a thousand tank setups for just as many snakes every year. This kind of experience and the desire for few problems causes us to engineer the setups so few if any problems remain. Pine for my animals and those of my customers.
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AMAZON REPTILE CENTER

NAMED BEST REPTILE STORE IN LOS ANGELES

I don't want to get into a pissing match about reptibark - I've heard plenty of bad things about it over the years, but I've been using it (or some semblence of it) for a couple of decades. I've found it to be a very good substrate for glass set ups. I'm sure it's been a while since the Southerlands have had one snake in a glass tank to take care of. When you have thousands of snakes in a dedicated facility complete with walk in incubator, it's kinda a different scenario than what the average person has. You know like most of the people here who went to there local reptile store and was sold this wonderful reptile set up (you know the 20 long with the screen top and astro turf) to later find out that he can't keep his temps right and his snakes shedding wrong and not eating so he comes here to find out that his set up doesn't work. You can't base the average persons set up on what the big guys use, you make things work with what you got.

And I'm sure the grasslands are covered with the Sunday Ghanan Times too. Just curious, what exactly do you think is in those burrows they live in?

Seriously - use whatever substrate you want - but you may want to invest in some of that insulative background (use it on the bottom of the tank too) to help keep your temps up and your electric bill down.

I'm moving on --->
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Tosha

8.10.0 Ball Python (Harry and Fluffy and currently un-named)
0.2.0 Feline (Pippen and Pandora)
0.0.1 Dessert Tortoise (Pope)
7.9.5 Fish (1,2,3,4...)
0.0.1 Frog rescued from pool skimmer
0.0.2 Lizards rescued from pool skimmer

Hey Neal,

What you need is a thermometer that you can move around. Also, if you have a hiding spot above the heat pad and check the temp. "in it" after a couple hours, I think you will see that the temp. inside is actually alot warmer. An increase in humidity will not have any effect on ambient temp., and if you want more than just the hide spot warm, go with the plywood, etc. cover and cut a hole out big enough to lay the heatlamp on the screen in it.

Glenn