# heating a large enclosure



## burton12387 (Jun 17, 2004)

I just made a plywood tank for my boa constrictor, its 6 feet long, 18 inches wide, and 18 inches tall. The heat mat i would have to buy for this thing would have to be huge, have any of you guys used that heating cable or what not that you just plug in and can put on the bottom of your cage? like router out slots for it to run through? Whats the best way? i have other cages, and 4 other snakes by the way, im just new at how to heat such a big cage.........thanks guys
AJ


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## Burf (Nov 3, 2003)

heat cables would be better than a meat mat, but i'd use ceramic bulbs hooked up to thermostats as the main source of heat


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## mr.PIMP4969 (Jun 2, 2004)

ya use a heat lamp the the biggest one and thee biggest heator just get like 2 human heat pads and but them both on 90 or 87 and then make shurer there is space like put cds covers on the 4 bottom corners of the tank or there will be a fire alright ok i'm glad to help ~dan


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## burton12387 (Jun 17, 2004)

do i really need so much? a lamp and heat pads? on all my other cages i just have the reptile heat mats stuck to the underside?


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## mr.PIMP4969 (Jun 2, 2004)

sorry forgot to add or the key word "Or"


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## rbp75 (May 2, 2004)

imo I would use several lower wattage heat lamps, like 4-5 50 watt bulbs or ceramics or whatever total wattage you would need for the right temp, or hook it up to a thermostat to evenly distribute the heat to a larger area instead of a higher wattage in one spot. I would not use any kind of heating mat especially one that goes in the cage. Even with a thermostat the snake can be burned.


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## Bawb2u (May 27, 2004)

These are good for big cages. I've used these over the years for boas, retics and burms with no problems,NEVER had a snake burn itself on one, they are pretty much bullet proof. May seem a little pricey with the controller but I've got a couple that are at least 20 years old that still work perfectly. They're pretty economical to run and clean up very easily.

Pig Blanket


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## icedizzle (Feb 3, 2005)

I would go with the heat lamp... it seems pretty economical. I have had one for years and the blub hasn't gone out yet.


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## Guest (Feb 15, 2005)

Bawb2u said:


> These are good for big cages. I've used these over the years for boas, retics and burms with no problems,NEVER had a snake burn itself on one, they are pretty much bullet proof. May seem a little pricey with the controller but I've got a couple that are at least 20 years old that still work perfectly. They're pretty economical to run and clean up very easily.
> 
> Pig Blanket
> [snapback]891852[/snapback]​


That's pretty cool. Never seen that before. Thanks.


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## burton12387 (Jun 17, 2004)

The mats arent in the actual tank, i have a cut out on the bottom and i put a sheet of aluminum on the bottom of the tank that fits it, the heat mat is stuck to the buttom of that aluminum and then there is carpet on top of that aluminum sheet, so the heats pretty distributed, but you guys think heat lamps are the way to go huh? my dads an engineer and has designed my last 3 cages, he says the aluminum is a great conducter for heat, and that if i have a decently large heat mat that i can stick to the bottom of it, then i shouldnt have a problem with heat, this isnt some aluminum you get at the super market either, he gets it from his work. what do you guys think? how can you tell if your snakes being burned? does it turn blue or somethin? cuz my boa has a slight pink tint to the bottom of her belly, but shes had it since day 1?
thanks
AJ


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## wild4reps (Feb 16, 2005)

I build and design custom enclosures and habitats for all types of reptiles they are usually built with the lighting and heating ready to go....I standardly use the heat mats lg for large enclosure, In the case of extremely large enclosures I would suggest using a therostatic heater that can be encased in a tin shroud withscreen front and back for air, adjust theromostat to desired temp testing this first....then bolt securely to area in the cage that it can obtain ventalation what size is the snake in question......Em[email protected] d\ 


burton12387 said:


> I just made a plywood tank for my boa constrictor, its 6 feet long, 18 inches wide, and 18 inches tall. The heat mat i would have to buy for this thing would have to be huge, have any of you guys used that heating cable or what not that you just plug in and can put on the bottom of your cage? like router out slots for it to run through? Whats the best way? i have other cages, and 4 other snakes by the way, im just new at how to heat such a big cage.........thanks guys
> AJ
> [snapback]890233[/snapback]​


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## burton12387 (Jun 17, 2004)

she is about 6 1/2 feet long and the cage she is in now is 40 inches by 18 inches, i feel she doesnt have enough room, and this new cage will be her cage for pretty much the rest of her life, depending on how big she gets


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