Basic heating question

My girlfriend and I have just bought 2 corns (our first snakes) so were still learning the basics about the best way to keep them.

As theyre still only hatchlings, weve got them in a couple of plastic tubs with orchid bark as substrate and both tubs are standing on a heat mat which covers the back half of the tub leaving the front halves unheated.

Being a bit naive , we put a thermometer in each tub in order to try and keep the temperature right , but after reading a post on this forum which says you have to measure the floor temp , not the air temp I measured the surface of the bark chips and found it to be 96 degrees which is far too high.

Obviously we unplugged the heat mat and weve ordered a themostat but we need advice on the best way to use it.

Where would be the best place to put the sensor? ......

For now when they are in seperate plastic tubs which has the heatmat underneath the tubs ...

and for later when they go into their new viv which will probably be 36x15x15 inches and the heatmat will have to go inside the cage?

Also , is it best to put the heat mat on the floor of the viv under the substrate , or on the back wall?

Weve also read that some people turn the heat off altogether at night , is this a good thing?

Place the temp probe on the warm-side surface. This guarantees that the heat is maintained properly.

The type of heat mat you use will determine the placement. The majority will go under the tank or tug. If you plan on having more than one or two snakes, I suggest a rack system they are much more cost effective than buying several tanks and heat mats.

Here is an old thread with several suggestions:

Rack systems

Thanks for the quick reply

Were only going to have the 2 snakes and eventually will be in the same viv so were trying to find out exactly where and how the sensor is mounted within the cage.

For now though while theyre in seperate tubs , would it be best to tape the sensor of the thermostat directly to the heat mat and monitor the surface temperature of the substrate in the tubs with a thermometer?

I measure the temp that the snake actually feels. In this case that would be inside, on the surface. At the standard 82 degrees, the difference between the heat mat and the surface isn't likely to have much variantion if you are using a good quality thermostat.

thanks for that

Do you put the sensor on the heat mat itself?

I just layit on top of the substrate directly over the heat source. I use Flexwatt exclusively so it has a much better temperature consistence than a mat.

ok thanks