Heat Cable

[yeloowtang]

I got a few heat panel from Cornel's and the service is perfect,great prices and ships fast too..

i agree, depending on the size your cage is,, if under 36"L go with a 40w heat panel
if 48"L go with the 80W one

look at the options, you have a few... but i would go the
heat panel inside on ceiling of the cage for ambiant heat and heat tape under the cage's floor for belly heat.
i would control that with a herpstat2
#1 would control the heat panel
#2 set up on the floor for the belly heat
have both heat elements on the same side so the snake can have a cold spot when it wants it..
other options for sure but this would be my personal choice for both the easy part and efficient part..

[Aaron_S]

Originally Posted by yeloowtang

I got a few heat panel from Cornel's and the service is perfect,great prices and ships fast too..

i agree, depending on the size your cage is,, if under 36"L go with a 40w heat panel
if 48"L go with the 80W one

look at the options, you have a few... but i would go the
heat panel inside on ceiling of the cage for ambiant heat and heat tape under the cage's floor for belly heat.
i would control that with a herpstat2
#1 would control the heat panel
#2 set up on the floor for the belly heat
have both heat elements on the same side so the snake can have a cold spot when it wants it..
other options for sure but this would be my personal choice for both the easy part and efficient part..

A cornsnake ( I believe it's a cornsnake) should be fine with the panel alone. They don't need anything too hot to maintain a solid environment.

[Luthien]

Yes it is a corn snake but everything I have read for them says belly heat to help with digestion, they don't need over head heat. Eve really likes the belly heat (she's always on the side with the heat pad) so I would like to stay with underground heat.

I think I'm leaning to the heat cable with thermostat. I will groove out trenches into the wood, lay the heat cable in them and cover with the silver tape they use for duct work then lay her substrate. Sound safe enough? Opinions on this?

[Luthien]

Just to help a bit this is the vivarium, right now it's set up for a bearded dragon but it's the one I want to renovate in the near future.

Postimage.org / Vivarium

[pet_snake_78]

Normally I would say you don't want to ruin the seal of the bottom of a wood cage but from my pictures I don't think the bottom is sealed anyway so it may not matter too much at this point. Piece of linoleum might make the cage easier to clean if the bottom is unsealed wood.

[Aaron_S]

Originally Posted by Luthien

Yes it is a corn snake but everything I have read for them says belly heat to help with digestion, they don't need over head heat. Eve really likes the belly heat (she's always on the side with the heat pad) so I would like to stay with underground heat.

I think I'm leaning to the heat cable with thermostat. I will groove out trenches into the wood, lay the heat cable in them and cover with the silver tape they use for duct work then lay her substrate. Sound safe enough? Opinions on this?

Have you looked into the affects of what snake poop may or may not do to it?

I personally am weary about anything in the enclosure and what issues it may cause.

I'd go with the panel as it's a cornsnake. Belly heat is nice but not needed either.

Up to you.

[Luthien]

It's sealed wood on the bottom and the branches can come out for cleaning purposes.

I would really like to have belly heat if at all possible but if I can't figure it out I'll go with the panel.

Has anyone here done the groove out the bottom and lay cable in then cover?

[jjhill001]

Originally Posted by Aaron_S

Have you looked into the affects of what snake poop may or may not do to it?

I personally am weary about anything in the enclosure and what issues it may cause.

I'd go with the panel as it's a cornsnake. Belly heat is nice but not needed either.

Up to you.

The snakes need belly heat is a weird Internet reptile care "fact" that is spread as gospel.

Is it the best for use in racks? Yes.

Is it often easiest way to heat a cage to an appropriate temp? Yeah

But depending on the species a snake will use a heat lamp just as well. In fact one of the most recommended snake books The Art of Keeping Snakes says that use of a heat lamp is a great way to get your snake to come out into the open to utilize the heat. There are pros and cons of all the heating types. For snakes that really need humidity you have to do a bit more if you utilize a heat lamp but it's doable in most cases.

I'm planning a large natural terrarium for my Baird's rat snakes and a heat pad is going to have a rough time heating through 3-6 inches of substrate.

[jjhill001]

Originally Posted by Luthien

It's sealed wood on the bottom and the branches can come out for cleaning purposes.

I would really like to have belly heat if at all possible but if I can't figure it out I'll go with the panel.

Has anyone here done the groove out the bottom and lay cable in then cover?

You could try buying little rubber feet to raise it up enough to fit the cord under.

[millertime89]

Originally Posted by jjhill001

The snakes need belly heat is a weird Internet reptile care "fact" that is spread as gospel.

Is it the best for use in racks? Yes.

Is it often easiest way to heat a cage to an appropriate temp? Yeah

This, 100% this. If you use a heat lamp, what does it warm up? The substrate under it.

[malgus]

I use a heat cord connected through a thermostat and have had no problems. the cord is beneath the substrate and neither burns the substrate or the snake. as long as your smart about how you set it up then you will be fine