Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi everyone.

I'm a newbie cornsnake owner. My snake is about three months old. I've already learned quite a bit from these forums, but I still have some questions about heating and temperatures.

I have my snake in a 10-gallon glass aquarium with a Repti-therm heating pad under one end. I've put a piece of cage carpet over the side of the tank with the heater so that he can't burrow down and burn himself. Then I have about an inch of Aspen substrate in there.

The temperature of the warm side of the tank ranges anywhere from about 75 degrees to the high 90s, depending on where I position the thermometer (I'm using a digital, infrared thermometer). If I stick the thermometer right in the substrate just above the middle of the pad, that's the hottest spot. So there's not one consistent temperature anywhere on the warm side. The temperature a few inches above the substrate is in the low 70s, about the same as the temperature on the cool side.

So my question is - where should I be measuring the temperature on the warm side? I keep reading that the AMBIENT temperature should be about 80-85, but I'm finding the air temperature on the warm side is generally about the same as the cool side, except for the area JUST above the substrate, where the temperature varies quite a bit as I explained.

Let's put it this way - If I was to buy a thermostat to regulate the warm side to 85 degrees, where should I place the thermometer probe?

Thanks for any feedback you can provide. I've enjoyed this site and this forum very much so far.

Hello I see you are new. Well I own two corns I try to keep the dergees around 70-80. You do want to keep an cool end and a warm end. A good tip but the water bowl in the middle. Or in the cool end. If it is beamed dwon from the light and heat it will turn nasty. I am 13 years old and I change the water every 2 days it is such a pain but you want heathly snakes.

Michael

P.S. If there are spelling mistakes my bad I am a bad speller.