Hi Mark, around here that would dry out the cage a whole lot. How that works is, in order to heat the snake or part of the cage, you are heating the air between the lite and the substrate. Its much worse if the top is ventilated as the hot air will escape drawing moisture with it. There are ways to fix that some.

Make sure the top is not allowing lots of air to escape and put the lite inside the cage, a couple inches above the substrate. When you do that, you can use a lot less wattage to achieve the same amount of heat, and without heating so much air. Another way is to put the lite outside the cage and point it at one corner. My good friend does that.

I would put a couple inches of sand on the bottom and still use the aspen. I have been doing that with my hatchlings and they love it. It also absorbs the fluid in their feces and keeps the cage a lot less messy. Anyway just some ideas if you choose to use them.

Please report how your setup works for you. Best wishes

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