temperatures

so i have been reading around a lot, and a heat lamp is not the ideal method of regulating temperatures in a corns viv. i have a temporary tank for my snake right now, as a) mine hasn't arrived at the pet store yet and b) i don't think my snake would feel very safe in the enclosure i am purchasing until he is a bit bigger.

i've read that most of you have heat mats on the underside of half the tank, that use a thermostat to regulate the temperature. do you buy the heat mat + thermostat seperatley? how do they hook into each other, do you just plug the heat mat into the thermostat or what? also, the new viv i will be getting somewhere along the lines is going to be 18 inches high. would it be ideal to have a heat lamp at the top, and a heat mat at the bottom, just to make sure that whole side of the tank is heated?

ALSO, what is the ideal temperature range for the warm side, and what is the ideal temperature for the cool side of the cage? what is the ideal humidity for a corn?

do you guys have any product links to show me what sort of thermostat i need? i don't really know what they are or how they work, and i woudln't even know what i was looking for. any help would be greatly appreciated.

here's a link to a good thermostat. I found that alot of bigger breeders recommend these. http://www.helixcontrols.com/

Your "hot" side should be no more than 84 degrees...mine stays at 82. Cool side in my tubs range around 74-78 degrees, depending on what the AC is on.
My humidity varies... when my snakes are not getting ready to shed it stays at about 50ish.... if they are getting ready to shed I bump it up to around 80. Just what I do...everyone has their own way of doing things. Good Luck!!

Hokay, all you need is a spot where the snake can get its body temp up into the 80s. The most efficient way to do that is to have a heat mat on the bottom since snakes lay around on their bellies all day. No need for additional lamps as long as the snake can get to the right temp by laying on the bottom of the cage. To ensure that the heat mat doesn't get too hot, you need to control the temperature. You can control the temperature with either a rheostat (lamp dimmer switch) or a thermostat. The rheostat is the cheapest option, but you have to constantly monitor the temp and make adjustments. A thermostat measures the temperature of the heat pad and does the adjustments for you.

You're looking at about $7 for a rheostat and about $100 for a good thermostat. When you look at thermostats there are two types: proportional and on/off. The on/off ones just kick the heat pad onto full power and turn it off when it gets too hot. The proportional ones keep the heat pad on and gently warm it to reach the desired temp and hold it there by making small adjustments. I prefer the proportional ones. That's why I said a 'good' thermostat is $100.

Anywho... When you get the thermostat you plug the heat pad right into it. Then you put the thermometer probe inside the cage, right over the heat pad. Turn the thermostat on and tell it what temperature to maintain. It will try to regulate the temperature using the heat pad until the thermometer probe reads the correct temperature. Make sure the temperature probe is secured so it won't move around.

Here's the thermostats I like:
http://spyderrobotics.com/products/herpstat.html

Checkerbelly: To raise ambient temps would you recommend that I use a proportional thermostat along with a ceramic heat emitter? My night temps in the house here in Northern California are low to mid 60's. His hide is kept around 85 so he will get by, but I just think he would roam around more and climb more at night over on the cool side if I kept the temps a bit higher. Wish I had a warmer house, but that is not the case.