Lighting question

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

ceramic heaters are NICE, I keep two on my 75 gallon enclosure with the carpet python in it. The thing is, they are really expensive and when you have 66 snakes they just wont cut it. since i have custom built caging and they are solid units, the light below one tank warms the bottom of the one above it, and so i only need to use very low wattage bulbs to efficiently heat my enclousres. anything too high, and my snakes would fry

I don't use heat on any snakes at night except the carpet pythons. I've never had a problem and when compared to their wild habitat, my snake room is still warmer at night than what it would be outside in summer!

[Lori P]

The ceramic heaters are pretty pricey, I checked last night. But then I'm wondering how long they last... if they last at least 4 times as long as the regular bulbs, then it would be worth it. Any ideas??

So I've been using the devil-bulbs (lol) on the kingsnake, milksnake, balls, and my skink at night. Think it's not necessary as long as the temps stay above 70 in the house??

[GarterGuy]

Not 100% sure about the balls, but the others should do just fine with out night heat. Sorry, but I forget, what type of skink do you have?? I know my blue tongue does fine with out any heat at night, and it drops down into the mid 60's.

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

my ceramic heaters say tehy'll last about 4 years. so far, this has held true. one lived to 5.

[adamanteus]

I have always been a bit paronoid about snakes burning themselves on ceramic bulbs.... how do you guys get around that?

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

they can't burn themselves if they can't touch the bulb, mine sit on the screen on top of the enclosures. you just need to make sure there is adequate height between the heater and the ground so that the ground under the bulb doesnt turn into a hot plate

[adamanteus]

That wouldn't really work for me, as my vivs are generally 'multiple' units with no space to between the floor of one enclosure and the top of the one below.

[Lori P]

Oh wow, if they have a four year life span, that's well worth it then!!! And yeah, they would sit over top of the screen tops so the animals can't touch them. Thanks for the info Shannon.

Roy, he's a Schneider's skink (desert skink). I know it gets pretty cool in the desert at night...

[GarterGuy]

Roy, he's a Schneider's skink (desert skink). I know it gets pretty cool in the desert at night...

Oh yeh, he should be just fine....just make sure he can warm up in the day. I honestly think that the night drop is actually good for them. Gives them some "down" time to just rest. That and it's really cool to see everyone out basking the next morning too.

[Stefan-A]

I could be wrong, but I think the temperature drops pretty significantly in their natural habitat. I agree with Roy, it's probably even good for them.

Perhaps the nighttime temperature is more of a problem for rain forest species?