Heat mats

[mark cope]

I've ordered some thermostats for Martha and Neo.........but in the meantime do I switch off the mats at night time?

[Didymus20X6]

I would. Unless it gets really cold where you live.

I keep my lights and heating pad on a timer - like $5 at your local hardware or department chain store.

[guidofatherof5]

Nothing wrong with that.

[mark cope]

Ok,will do, and check on the room temp now and then.........thanx:)

[chris-uk]

We have timers on all our thermostats, the exception is if one of the snakes seems to be ill then we keep the heat on at night as well.
I got some relatively cheap digital timers, but the next batch of timers I resorted to the mechanical type. One of the digital timers just kept resetting a couple of times a week. The mechanical timers are reliable, I don't need different times on different days, and the mechanical ones are cheaper - I won't bother with digital ones again.

[mark cope]

We have timers on all our thermostats, the exception is if one of the snakes seems to be ill then we keep the heat on at night as well.
I got some relatively cheap digital timers, but the next batch of timers I resorted to the mechanical type. One of the digital timers just kept resetting a couple of times a week. The mechanical timers are reliable, I don't need different times on different days, and the mechanical ones are cheaper - I won't bother with digital ones again.

that is why I love this site, new to the hobby ....but loads of advice as you need it:D

[EasternGirl]

My thermostat on my tank for my albinos recently broke...and until I get the money for a new one, I haven't been using the heat mat and I turn the lamp off at night. If it gets really cold...I leave the lamp on at night...but I wouldn't leave a heat mat on at night. Just make sure to watch your thermometer during the day and yes, I would shut the heat mat off at night. As long as temps don't drop too low in your house at night...you should be fine.

[Light of Dae]

I leave my heat mat on all the time, but my house temp drops to 17c at night so it's kinda needed. But I do move the substrate away and touch the mat myself every other day to be sure.

[chris-uk]

My thermostat on my tank for my albinos recently broke...and until I get the money for a new one, I haven't been using the heat mat and I turn the lamp off at night. If it gets really cold...I leave the lamp on at night...but I wouldn't leave a heat mat on at night. Just make sure to watch your thermometer during the day and yes, I would shut the heat mat off at night. As long as temps don't drop too low in your house at night...you should be fine.

Why would you not leave a heatmat on at night, but you're happy to leave a light on? Is is a perception that a heatmat is more likely to burn the house down? I think it's better to supply overnight belly heat than overhead radiant heat at night - in nature the ground can retain heat at night, but you don't get much warmth coming down from the stars and moon.

[ConcinusMan]

Oh boy, what did you start Mark? Too many variables!

For the most part, I tend to switch off all heat sources for 8-10 hours at night during their simulated (or real) summer. And by night, I mean, complete, or nearly complete darkness. (red reptile bulbs will be seen as darkness by the snakes) This is done assuming that the night time temperatures will drop to no lower than around 60 F (about 16 C ) And use a timer. Garters are very tuned into the rising / setting of the sun and time their activities accordingly. Sunrise / sunset should come about the same time every day unless you're trying to simulate a change of seasons, in which case, you adjust each day to be longer or shorter by just a few minutes each day, according to the change of season you're trying to simulate (fall or spring)

If you just want to keep garters happy and healthy and aren't concerned about breeding, give them 8-10 hours of uninterrupted darkness every night with a drop in air temperature at night and make their "sunrise" and "sunset" be the same time every night, to within a few minutes. You can keep the heat pad on for baby snakes, elderly snakes, gravid or sick snakes, etc. if you expect the air temperature to drop lower than 70 F (21 C). Those temps are just a general guideline. They don't have to be precise.

Bottom line is, turn off the lights at night, every night, same time every night. Bed time is bed time. You only need to leave the heat pad on if it's going to get cold (below 60 F) or for other reasons which I've already mentioned.

Too many people ignore this and keep their garters uniformly warm 24/7 and also do not provide a wide enough temperature gradient during the day. This can cause immune issues. A garter snake can catch a nasty RI by being kept nice and toasty warm just as soon as it can by being kept too cold and/or damp. You can love your garter to death by keeping them warm all the time. You also will confuse their sense of seasons and interrupt their biorhythms by turning lights on and off at odd and unpredictable times.

Night is supposed to be cooler than than the day, and it is certainly dark from sunset to sunrise. Do that, and your garters will sleep well at night as they should. Even during the hottest part of a summer day, garters should be able to choose a range of body temperature nearly 30 degrees (F) wide and they should know when to expect sunset and sunrise. They have evolved to these cycles of day, night, winter, summer.

I don't even use thermostats for the snakes. Thermostats for your snake heating devices aren't necessary if the room temperature is relatively stable and comfortable for you. In other words, the only thermostat necessary is the one that controls the temperature in your house.

[EasternGirl]

Chris...it was my understanding that heatmats can go wonky and overheat more readily than a dome lamp...but perhaps I was wrong about that. I was thinking more of the tank getting too hot than a fire being caused. I have seen one of my lamps short circuit and basically the bulb just blew and broke the lamp causing everything to shut off. But you raise a good point. I will shut everything off at night until I can get a new thermostat. Richard, I have been keeping a night bulb and a heat mat on for Cee Cee at night because of her respiratory problems....keeping the temps up around the mid to high 80's on the warm side even at night. Do you think that is too much? Should I cut the lamp and just leave the heat mat on for her? I have noticed if the temps drop at all on the warm side of her tank...her breathing starts to act up again. Another question... Do those of you who use thermostats and timers plug the thermostats into the timers in order to use both? I can't figure out how to get my thermostat and my timer to work at the same time.

[mark cope]

Hello peeps, right got a couple of stats and timers but now I need a hand. leaflet says to put sensor in the middle of the tank, is this right........or do i put it in the warm area?

[ConcinusMan]

I just took the last 20 minutes or so responding to you Marnie but the dang forum logged me out. When I logged back in, my entire response was lost somehow. Very aggravating. I want to be able to not save my password for log in but if I don't, I get logged out every few minutes. God I hate that. I wish they would fix it. I'll get back to you on your questions. Just leave the heat on like you're doing.

And Mark, personally I would put on the cool side and set it to shut off at around 78 degrees F, and come back on at around 70 if that's possible. Even if the warm side gets too warm, the snake will have the cool side to go to and it won't be warmer than 78 at any given time and I think that's the point in the thermostat; to make sure the snake doesn't get cooked. Maybe just experiment with it a bit to see what works best for maintaining a proper gradient range. :cool: Keep in mind that it's much better to error on the side of keeping the snake too cool, than to error and keep your snake too warm.

[ConcinusMan]

I can't figure out how to get my thermostat and my timer to work at the same time. I think the thermostats were designed with tropical species in mind which means the heat would be on all the time. Still, if the thermostat is plugged into the timer, than it will be inactive during the off period. In other words, it won't kick back on regardless of the night time temperature. That shouldn't be a problem in most households, unless you live in a refrigerator. I mean, your snake room shouldn't be dropping below 60 anyway which is fine for night time. Even if the room dropped into the upper 50's at night, it won't hurt a healthy garter. With that in mind, plug the thermostat into the timer. That will allow the thermostat to cut off the heat during the day if it gets too high. That's all you really need if the room is 55-75 at night.:cool:

[EasternGirl]

The only problem with that is the fact that I am leaving the heat lamp and the heat mat on for Cee Cee at night because of her respiratory problems. Not actually a big deal with her tank..I have a florescent on a timer for her...so it turns the light on and off. I can just leave the red bulb and heat mat plugged into the thermostat. Again though...do you think I am keeping too much heat on for her at night? And for the albinos...does it actually matter if I have a timer? Should I just turn off the red lamp I use for heat at night to let them cool down? I guess it doesn't actually matter for them about the light/dark cycles. I don't have a thermostat for them right now...but if I am going to use a timer with them for the red lamp...I can just plug the thermostat into the timer when I get one.

[mark cope]

Oh boy, what did you start Mark? Too many variables!

For the most part, I tend to switch off all heat sources for 8-10 hours at night during their simulated (or real) summer. And by night, I mean, complete, or nearly complete darkness. (red reptile bulbs will be seen as darkness by the snakes) This is done assuming that the night time temperatures will drop to no lower than around 60 F (about 16 C ) And use a timer. Garters are very tuned into the rising / setting of the sun and time their activities accordingly. Sunrise / sunset should come about the same time every day unless you're trying to simulate a change of seasons, in which case, you adjust each day to be longer or shorter by just a few minutes each day, according to the change of season you're trying to simulate (fall or spring)

If you just want to keep garters happy and healthy and aren't concerned about breeding, give them 8-10 hours of uninterrupted darkness every night with a drop in air temperature at night and make their "sunrise" and "sunset" be the same time every night, to within a few minutes. You can keep the heat pad on for baby snakes, elderly snakes, gravid or sick snakes, etc. if you expect the air temperature to drop lower than 70 F (21 C). Those temps are just a general guideline. They don't have to be precise.

Bottom line is, turn off the lights at night, every night, same time every night. Bed time is bed time. You only need to leave the heat pad on if it's going to get cold (below 60 F) or for other reasons which I've already mentioned.

Too many people ignore this and keep their garters uniformly warm 24/7 and also do not provide a wide enough temperature gradient during the day. This can cause immune issues. A garter snake can catch a nasty RI by being kept nice and toasty warm just as soon as it can by being kept too cold and/or damp. You can love your garter to death by keeping them warm all the time. You also will confuse their sense of seasons and interrupt their biorhythms by turning lights on and off at odd and unpredictable times.

Night is supposed to be cooler than than the day, and it is certainly dark from sunset to sunrise. Do that, and your garters will sleep well at night as they should. Even during the hottest part of a summer day, garters should be able to choose a range of body temperature nearly 30 degrees (F) wide and they should know when to expect sunset and sunrise. They have evolved to these cycles of day, night, winter, summer.

I don't even use thermostats for the snakes. Thermostats for your snake heating devices aren't necessary if the room temperature is relatively stable and comfortable for you. In other words, the only thermostat necessary is the one that controls the temperature in your house.

the thing is night time for joes garter is when he goes to bed .........and that varies depending on his behavior

[ConcinusMan]

Who's behavior? The snake's or Joe's? I mean, what, does Joe have to go to bed early when he misbehaves? :p

[mark cope]

Who's behavior? The snake's or Joe's? I mean, what, does Joe have to go to bed early when he misbehaves? :p
name it ......he's probably done it:)

[EasternGirl]

If I put my son to bed when he was acting up...the poor kid would never get out of bed!

[ConcinusMan]

Well, in case you haven't noticed, Joe has been around for quite some time but has a relatively low post count. Draw your own conclusions as to why that is, but it is hard to post when you've been sent to bed early for misbehaving. No more talk of heat mats. it's pick on Joe time. :D

[tress29]

And Mark, personally I would put on the cool side and set it to shut off at around 78 degrees F, and come back on at around 70 if that's possible. Even if the warm side gets too warm, the snake will have the cool side to go to and it won't be warmer than 78 at any given time and I think that's the point in the thermostat; to make sure the snake doesn't get cooked.

That's interesting. I set my probe over the heat mat so the mat itself doesn't get too hot. The other end of the tank hovers in the mid 60s (for now!) I do like the idea of turning the heat off at night so they get a natural warm/cool cycle.

[ConcinusMan]

Just do whatever works for you. I've never had a problem with heat mats getting too hot. Especially if I use these: http://www.amazon.com/Hydrofarm-MT10006-19-1-2-Inch-Seedling/dp/B0001WV010

You never want to them to cover more than 1/3 of the tank anyway so if it's too hot, the snake can always move. If it's too hot, and the air is very cold, then it becomes a burn risk because the snakes are too "stupid" to get off the heat mat.

[EasternGirl]

I've been wondering lately if I should get bigger heat mats. I use the 6"X 8" small Zoo Med mats. I originally just wanted to be able to heat a small area on the warm side of the tanks...but now I am wondering if maybe the size of the mats that I have in proportion to my tanks are too small. I have 20 gallon long and 30 gallon tanks. What do you guys think?

Tress, I also keep my probe over the heat mat and set it to switch off at about 88 degrees. In my albino enclosure, where I don't have a heat mat right now, I have the probe in the back of the tank...so that it doesn't sit directly under the heat lamp...and I have it set to shut off at about 88 too.

[ConcinusMan]

If it's big enough for all enclosure occupants to comfortably curl up on it without fighting for a good spot, then it's big enough. You don't want it covering more than 1/3 of the total area of the enclosure anyway.

The only reason I decided to try that large seedling heat mat is because I wanted to heat several shoebox tubs at once. It worked out great for rearing litters, and doesn't get too hot. Just nice gentle heat, which is all that is really needed if the room air temperature is comfortable.

Turned out, I like them much better than reptile mats, and they're cheaper too. Much more flexible, and not so dang hot.