Aspen bedding

[Probe7899]

Hi I am currently using nature bark as a substrate and havent had any complaints the only thing its hard to find where my snake craps. Also a lot of people recomend usig aspen shavings my question is with the natures bark the heater is inside the cage under the substrate, where would the heater go with aspen under the tank or under the shavings???
Thanks

 

[Iris]

Sometimes it's hard to find the snake poo in the shredded aspen too. It does depend on how think you spread it as well.
You should probably move the heat pad (I'm guessing it's a heat pad) under the tank so that the snake won't be able to poop on it or burn itself on it.

 

[Rainey]

I find crap very easy to find on both bark and aspen, I use Reptibark for my snow and since the pee part of the whole kit is yellowy white, it's easy to see on the dark bark, and the poo is easy to see on aspen.

As for the heater, a Under Tank Heater is supposed to go under the tank, if you have another heating source under the substrate, color me curious!

 

[Probe7899]

heater

Yes I have a heater that the directions said put substrate right on top of the heater. But im going to use zoomed under tank heater also does any one use a lamp. I am currently using a under the tank heater and a 60 watt lamp. I shut the lamp off at night. The temperature never goes over 78-80 on the warm side this is with an under the tank heater and lamp I wondering if i should use a higher watts light bulb. The thermoter is also is close to the substrte so it should be accurate. Any suggestions. I cant understand why the temp doesnt go any higher than 80.
Thanks

 

[pinatamonkey]

Eeek! How cold is the room? Are you sure the thermometer is accurate? 25-watt bulbs get my tanks up to around 90 degrees, and I have a 75-watt bulb for my bearded dragon that gets the temp up around 110...granted, the house is pretty warm (78-80).

 

[Rainey]

Do you live in the arctic???

J/K

I use an under tank heater and a 45 watt incandescent bulb. I just use the light to keep it warmer after feeding times. I guess you gotta do what ya gotta do...

 

[Probe7899]

thermoter

What type of thermoters does evey one use? The round gage or the stick on ones by zoo med the reason why im asking is because I have replace my thermoter already and not sure if the problem is the cage set up or the thermoter. I am using the one by zoomed. I use a 60 watt light bulb and an under the tank heater but the temp stays only 80 with light off it goes down to 70-75. This seems strange to me since the temp in my house is around 74. Any one have any suggestions?
Thanks.

 

[dartguy]

temp

I have a temp gun - at $100 its pricey but you only need one - use it for all the cages- and you can instantly tell the temps anywhere in the cage so you can tell the exact gradient for the whole cage- plus if your a mechanic its helpful at work

 

[Jay Mc]

laser thermo

The raytek is really nice and accurate, and it can be had for about $70 if you do a little searching. They also make an infrared one for about $60.

 

[Axe]

Re: temp

I have a temp gun - you can instantly tell the temps anywhere in the cage

VERY handy. Can save many wasted hours trying to tweak those heating devices

Do you have a URL with info about these? reviews/comparisons, places to purchase, etc?

 

[Jay Mc]

Re: Re: temp

http://www.thetoolwarehouse.net/shop/product2048.html

is the cheapest I've found for the $100 model, just do a google search on raytek laser thermometer and you'll get plenty of stuff to sift through.

 

[Axe]

Thanks very much,

I think I'll be writing Santa (the girlfriend) a list this year

 

[kenalotia]

RadioShack has an infrared thermometer that's a good bit cheaper. I haven't tested it for accuracy, but I saw them in the store and was thinking about buying one.

 

[dartguy]

My temp gun

www.snapon.com or your local Snap On dealer