retic cage plans

[scottyy]

I plan on making a 7'HX3'WX2H out of melamine with sliding glass doors. as far as heating goes i am leaning towards using heat bulbs but have also looked into radiant heat panels. i have heard people say that radiant heat panels dont work well with retics. also what wattage of bulbs would i have to use to heat a cage that big? Will a radiant heat panel or heat bulbs be better? also if u have any ideas to add or building tips or pictures of custom enclosures that you guys have built or anything please share.

[Reptile_Reptile]

150watts would be my guess for a cage that size, but personally i would get some flexwatt heat tape.

[marvelfreak]

Check this site out and scroll down. At the bottom there's a section on how to know what size you need for Radiant Heat Panels.

[stephanbakir]

Heat pannels, UTH and flexwat are the way to go,

[stephanbakir]

Also, your gona want at least 8X4X4 for your retic unless its a dwarf

[scottyy]

150watts would be my guess for a cage that size, but personally i would get some flexwatt heat tape.

I would get the heat tape but i dont really like it to be honest. it just doesnt get a nice ambient air temp and i feel that its just not good enough for her because thats wat i have her on now and it gets the cage to about 80 and when i was only using that every time i held her she felt cold. maybe i am not using it right? i just have it sitting under her cage with some spacers to let out extra heat so it doesnt burn her.

[scottyy]

Heat pannels, UTH and flexwat are the way to go,

i have heard some say that heat panels dont work well with retics but thats just some people. i am kinda leaning towards it because it will be cheaper in the long run. wats the average life of one? if i get one thats too big for the cage would it be ok on a thermostat?

[stephanbakir]

i have heard some say that heat panels dont work well with retics but thats just some people. i am kinda leaning towards it because it will be cheaper in the long run. wats the average life of one? if i get one thats too big for the cage would it be ok on a thermostat?

Should be, just make sure its surface heat isnt too hot.

[Damion930]

Heat panels emit infared heat and have a focused array that is supposed to limit the surface temp keeping it cool to the touch so not to burn animals haven't used them yet but hear very good things about them

[stephanbakir]

I bought one on ebay a while back and it got really hot and didn't emit that much heat at all.
Must have been defective, ill need to look em up

[Damion930]

Yeah I've only read and talked about them with a few ppl that use them I think aaron s brought them up in a topic about thermal build up with heat pads and larger snakes. The ones I've read about had a fuze safety system that would burn out if the surface reached dangerous temps not sure of brand or anything.

[Jendee]

Flexxwatt!! I preach flexxwatt everytime one of these threads come up lol been using it for 10 plus yrs On my large snakes and it works beautifully!!! why take any chances on anything else and you cant beat the price of 3.00 bucks a piece lol

[stephanbakir]

What retic morph are you buying anyway?

[scottyy]

What retic morph are you buying anyway?

well i have a sunfire retic. she is probably in between 6 and 8 months of age. it will still be maybe another 10 months or so before i need to get the lifetime enclosure for her but i want to have it all figured out before then

[stephanbakir]

Yeh, you have a little time left. the nice thing about sunfires is they generally cap off at 16-18 feet.

[scottyy]

Flexxwatt!! I preach flexxwatt everytime one of these threads come up lol been using it for 10 plus yrs On my large snakes and it works beautifully!!! why take any chances on anything else and you cant beat the price of 3.00 bucks a piece lol

well i have her on flexwatt now and i dont really like it because it just doesnt get hot enough and if it got any hotter it would probably burn my snake. its cheap but i would rather get a rhp or some bulbs.

[scottyy]

even though i do have some time it will fly by i am sure because i cant wait till she gets bigger. yea the breeder i bought her from said the same thing.

[stephanbakir]

well i have her on flexwatt now and i dont really like it because it just doesnt get hot enough and if it got any hotter it would probably burn my snake. its cheap but i would rather get a rhp or some bulbs.

Surface heat is too high, but the overall cage temp is cold or?
Try to stay away from bulbs as a heat source.

[scottyy]

Surface heat is too high, but the overall cage temp is cold or?
Try to stay away from bulbs as a heat source.

well the flexwatt will only get the cage to about 80 degrees at its hottest

[stephanbakir]

air temp or surface though?

[scottyy]

air temp or surface though?

surface temp. the flexwatt makes no ambient air temp in her cage and its running as hot as it will go.

[stephanbakir]

Hmm, i've had no issues in the past with this

[maitre]

Depending on the space you're putting the cage in, you might be able to heat the ambient temperature of the room to ~80F and use heat tape to create a hotspot of ~90F.

[bighog85]

There is no better way to go than the Pro Products heat panels. I use them and they are seriously the most awesome way to heat my animals. Call Bob at Pro Products and he will set you up with exactly what you need. They are expensive but you will never have to buy another heating product ever again. Retics are a perfect snake to use them with because they are so prone to upper respiratory problems and you are essentially replicating the sun in the way that they heat. Nothing better for your animals.

[sickvenom]

scotty, if you are running your flexwatt at max, then something is wrong. you should NEVER have to run it at max to get the correct temp, and it's a safety hazard. it's possible you aren't using enough flexwatt, the correct size of flexwatt or your connectors are bad. did you use clips or solder? many have found the clips just aren't good enough and soldering is much more efficient. you will also want to cover approx. 1/3 of your tank's bottom. what material is your current tank made out of? is the heat tape inside or outside?

[scottyy]

scotty, if you are running your flexwatt at max, then something is wrong. you should NEVER have to run it at max to get the correct temp, and it's a safety hazard. it's possible you aren't using enough flexwatt, the correct size of flexwatt or your connectors are bad. did you use clips or solder? many have found the clips just aren't good enough and soldering is much more efficient. you will also want to cover approx. 1/3 of your tank's bottom. what material is your current tank made out of? is the heat tape inside or outside?

the heat tape is outside on the bottom of the cage and it is made out of plastic. i have 2 3 inch strips running under her cage right now. as for the connections i had the guys over at reptile basics put it on with the clips and stuff.

[sickvenom]

Do you have photos of your current cage? How long are the strips? What are the cage dimensions.

[scottyy]

Do you have photos of your current cage? How long are the strips? What are the cage dimensions.

the cage is 2ft by 3ft give or take a couple inches. and the strips of flexwatt are 2ft long and 3 inches wide, but i think it is mostly because my room is about 60 degrees

[sickvenom]

the cage is 2ft by 3ft give or take a couple inches. and the strips of flexwatt are 2ft long and 3 inches wide, but i think it is mostly because my room is about 60 degrees

just curious, but why so cold? average temperature inside a home is 68-72.

[scottyy]

just curious, but why so cold? average temperature inside a home is 68-72.

my dad does it to save money and partly because i am in a basement, but i have insulation to hold some heat in

[sickvenom]

my dad does it to save money and partly because i am in a basement, but i have insulation to hold some heat in

yikes. in that case, heating from the outside of your cage may not be efficient. you might have to install the flexwatt inside the cage and put vinyl flooring over it. how tall is your cage?

[scottyy]

yikes. in that case, heating from the outside of your cage may not be efficient. you might have to install the flexwatt inside the cage and put vinyl flooring over it. how tall is your cage?

its not that tall its a plastic bin, but i just got a job so i may be able to buy her a 4ft x 2ft cage next month.

[sickvenom]

its not that tall its a plastic bin, but i just got a job so i may be able to buy her a 4ft x 2ft cage next month.

since you have a retic, it might not be a bad idea to buy a larger cage now, if you can afford. however, you will still be battling the extremely low room temperature in your basement.

if you keep your existing cage, you will want to replace your 2 strips of flexwatt with a 24" piece of the 11" wide tape, and run that down one side. that would provide much more heat than the 2 strips you have now. if you buy a new cage and you still plan on using flexwatt, just remember to cover approximately 1/3 of the bottom of your cage.

[scottyy]

since you have a retic, it might not be a bad idea to buy a larger cage now, if you can afford. however, you will still be battling the extremely low room temperature in your basement.

if you keep your existing cage, you will want to replace your 2 strips of flexwatt with a 24" piece of the 11" wide tape, and run that down one side. that would provide much more heat than the 2 strips you have now. if you buy a new cage and you still plan on using flexwatt, just remember to cover approximately 1/3 of the bottom of your cage.

well i am about to get her a 50 gallon (or at least i think its the size of it). Its made just for reptiles so it has sliding glass doors on it and the dimensions are 4Lx2Hx2W. i was looking at it last month at my local reptile expo (technically exotic animal expo but wat ever) and its like $150 and it looks really nice. and i think i am gonna make a nice looking sort of naturalistic setting in there. Some coconut husk substrate and some nice logs and rocks to help aid her shedding. There goes my first paycheck, but at least she will like her new home. and i can use the tank for another snake sometime down the road.

[maitre]

Your retic is gonna outgrow a 4x2x2 in no time. Save yourself the $150 and invest in something larger or stick to tubs (try christmas tree tubs if you can find them in your area). You're going to want wider strips of heat tape as well. Try to create an area where your retic can curl and still be evenly heated.

Glass tanks really aren't ideal for holding in heat or humidity - especially if your ambient temps are ~60F. Plastic/pvc is much more effective at holding in heat. What you can also try is insulating the tub/tank itself. You can buy sheets of styrofoam from Home Depot and construct a styrofoam box in which your enclosure sits - I do this in the winters and it really helps to hold in heat.

[scottyy]

Your retic is gonna outgrow a 4x2x2 in no time. Save yourself the $150 and invest in something larger or stick to tubs (try christmas tree tubs if you can find them in your area). You're going to want wider strips of heat tape as well. Try to create an area where your retic can curl and still be evenly heated.

Glass tanks really aren't ideal for holding in heat or humidity - especially if your ambient temps are ~60F. Plastic/pvc is much more effective at holding in heat. What you can also try is insulating the tub/tank itself. You can buy sheets of styrofoam from Home Depot and construct a styrofoam box in which your enclosure sits - I do this in the winters and it really helps to hold in heat.

putting towels over top would help heat and humidity. and she hasnt quite outgrown the tub she is in now so that one would last for about 8 months maybe and then i will have her big cage