hondo questions

[hondo-dan]

A couple questions about my hondo and his enclosure. 1: He very rarely comes out in the day time. I know this is fairly normal for hondos but is it something he'll grow out of abd start coming out more in the day? 2: I now have him in a 20gal long tank (instead of the 10gal he was in) it has an unregulated uth and a 40w night bulb, and a 50w day bulb. During the day it's about 82 on the hot side, 72 cool side. At night though it drops to 75 or so on the hot side. I know ya'll recommend regulating the uth but I'm concerned it won't be warm enough if I do. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance for the help.

[Derek1]

Regulate the UTH. Has made a big difference with my Cal. I don't do night bulbs.

[hondo-dan]

Right now it seems the night bulb is the only way I can keep it as warm as it is. Maybe I need to up the wattage of the bulb and regulate the uth?

[Primal Rage]

I would dump the night bulb. If anything use a wattage appropriate ceramic heating bulb at night. That unregulated UTH is probably heating up to 120-150 degrees. A big no no, at that temp your hondo could burn the crap out of itself in just a couple mins. Try getting a cheapo thermostat from Petsmart or Petco.

My adults usually start chilling out around a year or so. Just be patient with him... And post more pics!!!!

[Jim Smith]

I'm with Primal Rage on this one. Get rid of the night bulb and you really need to consider getting a thermostat to regulate the UTH. I realize that it is an extra expense at a time of the year when money can be tight, but think how badly you would feel to wake up some morning to find your snake dead because the UTH overheated and cooked your poor snake. Also, as quickly as Hondos grow, you will soon need to get a larger enclosure for your pet. If you can, I would recommend a purpose built PVC enclosure with a plexi-glass or glass front opening. It is so much easier when you don't have to reach down into an aquarium to clean the enclosure or care for your animal . It's almost Christmas, treat yourself (and your snake) to a nice new enclosure. Just a thought...