Ok, lets talk rubbermades, reptic plastic style cages,aquariums.

[Iceman]

OK, like most people it took me almost a year to realize that rubbermaids are better for snakes then aquariums, but I am trying to convince my friend who is starting to get interested in snakes that rubbermaids are best unless you can have a custom cage or reptic plastic style cage.

can someone give me a link that explains why rubbermaids are best for snakes? so i can send this link to my friend, lol..

also a stupid question, it's ok to use a heating pad under a rubbermaid right? i always did it, but my friend says its a fire hazard and it will melt the plastic, lol..

let me know

[Rikki]

Just a tip; I tried this once with a BP using a heat pad, after monitoring it for hours it was ok, wake up the next morning and there was melting plastic in the RM. I would not suggest them as they are harder to heat.

[Bartman]

If its on a thermostat or dimmer, or both, then it should be totally safe.

[Iceman]

so what if i put a towel between the rubbermaid and the heating pad?

[Golden_Lotus]

Hi Iceman,

I have a little bit of everything; lots of aquarium, a few reptic-plastic cage, sandwich plastic box for my babies and recently some real plastic bacs.

For purely esthetic reasons, the aquariums are much nicer. Reptics plastic are nice too. But for desertic animals, I would uses only aquarium or home made vivarium. The other vivarium can be nice for tropical animals because the humidity is better retained.

For plastic bacs, I would suggest to make something to place them on and use heat-cable for reptiles to provide heat.

Also, if you lack place, it is a good idea to replace aquarium by something that can be stack.

[Iceman]

thanks for the replys, i am just wondering how else to heat a rubbermaid untill i get reptic plastic cages..

we think its ok to just put a towel between the rubbermiad and the heatpad,

what i did a while ago for my ball python was cut out part of the top of the rubbermiad, put a piece of mesh, and used a heat lamp, ahh i'm so confused!

help O.o

[mykee]

Rikki; if you had taken the time and used some common sense and put a dimmer or rheostat on your heat source, it would have NEVER melted your rubbermaid. Poor husbandry, plain and simple. If you're going to use a rubbermaid and a heat pad or an UTH, you MUST get a rheostat or dimmer to control the temperatures, towels cannot be trusted to disperse the proper amount of heat.

[Iceman]

wait, the dimmer or rheostat your talking about, can they be attached to a heating pad no problem? like just by plugging it in? i never tried that, they seem to be available at hardware stores around here, lol

but seriously, let me know how the dimmer and rheostat works

[CDN-Cresties]

Plug rheostat into walloutlet, plug heat pad into rheostat, adjust the dial on the rheostat to attain desired temperature. It may take a while to heat up. Thats all to it. :)

[Manitoban Herps]

Rubbermaids are the best IMO now. My aquariums just took up too much room, and now I have lots of room, I am able to stack the cages, there easiler to clean and the animals do great in them :)

[Iceman]

Originally posted by CDN-Cresties
Plug rheostat into walloutlet, plug heat pad into rheostat, adjust the dial on the rheostat to attain desired temperature. It may take a while to heat up. Thats all to it. :)

thats it? in some posts i read, they talk about cutting wires and all that, so you mean all you gotta do is plug one into the other?

[CDN-Cresties]

Thats for a homemade rheostat. You can buy the finnished product at any pet store.