Burmese on Heat Cable and Ceramic Tile

[simon07989]

am looking to heat my Burmese Python Viv by using Heat Cable in a 2x2ft area with a Large Ceramic Tile on top to counteract any thermal heat blocking.

This I have thought will be very cost effective on a 50watt cable with a
Mat Stat compared to that of 250watt ceramic bulb on a Pulse Stat.

I worked out the cable would cost around £4 per month whereas a Ceramic would cost around £14 per month.

Any thoughts on this??

Thanks,

Simon

[dave himself]

The only problem with this is you wouldn't be heating the ambient temp of the viv, and burms are a bit prone to RI

[simon07989]

RI, in my lounge?
I hope the normal heating temp would remove this risk?

[dannybgoode]

Heat mats are not great for heavy bodied snakes.

This may come across a bit harsh but honestly is you're worried about the heating costs for a large snake perhaps you shouldn't get one.

They're not cheap to house, feed or heat. They are a real financial commitment.

[dave himself]

RI, in my lounge?
I hope the normal heating temp would remove this risk?

As long as it's in the mid 80s all year round, even then it doesn't give the snake a good chance to thermoregulate

[simon07989]

No, its not harsh. I believe in being honest and I respect that..
I am thought, a bit stuck with not getting one.
My Wife who has taken a passion to snakes after falling in love with My Boa came home on Saturday with a Male Retic Hathcling, ha..

[dave himself]

You're male retic could end up as big as a burm lol

[simon07989]

I know, lol. At the rate he wants feeding he might just do..


Thanks for all the replies guys!

[Azrt]

that retic will be bigger than the burm. Mine hits 10 feet in the first year. she was a great snake though

[trailblazer295]

I would recommend using heat panels, lower power usage, more wide spread heat which is good for a big heavy snake. Basking the whole body under rather then a more focused heat emitter bulb. Also lower profile and no burn risks. I'm a big fan of heat panels seems to be the ideal heat source for anything that doesn't require UV light.

[dannybgoode]

I would recommend using heat panels, lower power usage, more wide spread heat which is good for a big heavy snake. Basking the whole body under rather then a more focused heat emitter bulb. Also lower profile and no burn risks. I'm a big fan of heat panels seems to be the ideal heat source for anything that doesn't require UV light.

They're a good heat source even for those that do require uv (which of course is all reptiles anyway ;) ).

The mercury vapour heat/uv bulbs are not very effective because a) they cannot be used with a thermostat so are only safe in an enclosure large enough for them not to overheat the viv and b) the uv output is not great.

Far better to use a heat source and a proper uv tube (Arcadia or Zoomed. In tests the Exo Terra ones are spectrally poor and not to specification and don't last very long).

That said for dinural species in particular a basking light is preferable to an rhp but still with a separate uv source.

[trailblazer295]

They're a good heat source even for those that do require uv (which of course is all reptiles anyway ;) ).

The mercury vapour heat/uv bulbs are not very effective because a) they cannot be used with a thermostat so are only safe in an enclosure large enough for them not to overheat the viv and b) the uv output is not great.

Far better to use a heat source and a proper uv tube (Arcadia or Zoomed. In tests the Exo Terra ones are spectrally poor and not to specification and don't last very long).

That said for dinural species in particular a basking light is preferable to an rhp but still with a separate uv source.

That's disappointing that those bulbs don't work well. I'm still setting my carpets 4x2x2 cage up. It was already wired with 2 sockets. One to one side the other centered. I was considering having a che in one and uv bulb in center one.

How do you prevent the snakes from touching a tube bulb?

[dannybgoode]

You can get guards but to be honest the T8 ones don't get very hot anyway so it doesn't matter if they do.

A reflector behind stops them curling round them anyway but you need to pick a lower output uv bulb as the reflector increases the relative power.

[trailblazer295]

I wasn't worried so much about heat but the fragile glass breaking.

[dannybgoode]

I wasn't worried so much about heat but the fragile glass breaking.

They're surprisingly robust. I've heard of it happening very occasionally - maybe twice I think but it's never happened to me.

The reflectors do a god job of preventing a curious snake getting too much purchase on one so I think breakage is only a danger if a snake actually struck at one.

[Pedroo]

am looking to heat my Burmese Python Viv by using Heat Cable in a 2x2ft area with a Large Ceramic Tile on top to counteract any thermal heat blocking.

This I have thought will be very cost effective on a 50watt cable with a
Mat Stat compared to that of 250watt ceramic bulb on a Pulse Stat.

I worked out the cable would cost around £4 per month whereas a Ceramic would cost around £14 per month.

Any thoughts on this??

Thanks,

Simon

I am using this method for my male red tail boa. I got him as he was a month old and now he is 13 months old and a little over 4 feet long. You can see from the growth level that heating worked well for him. He never had any health problem. I am using a 25w heat cable and normal ceramic tiles to cover it. The tiles will reach 30 degrees(86 fahrenheit). This is enough for him. 50w would be too high temperature for my boa. The heat cable stay on 12 hours during the day and off during the night. He sets on the tiles just about 5 hours daily in winter when he needs warmth. in sommer he does not set on it mostly.