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DIY combined incubator and brumator - why not?

K

kandicke

New member
I decided to buy a wine cooler off of craigslist for making an incubator. I chose a wine fridge for its size and its glass front door with an interior light. Then I realized it cools wine between the temps of 45 and 65.......depending on the setting you choose......perfect brumating temp! So instead of draining the freon and removing the lines and all the guts, I left it. I carefully drilled one hole with a spade bit for running the fan, flexwatt, and herpstat probe cords. The hole is in the back of the fridge, between the condenser intake and output lines. I sealed the electric connections with silicone before taping them with electric tape to prevent moisture from getting into the connections. I filled the hole up with silicone too. I previously had no good way to brumate my snakes, so I've just skipped this part of care and breeding. Can anyone tell me why I can't treat my snakes like a fine red wine and store them at 55 in the wine cooler during the winter, then use it as an incubator in summer?

Plus, if all else fails, I can still load it up with wine haha!
 
My theoretical concerns (in no particular order :cool: )

1- Is a perfectly constant temperature good for brumation or is some fluctuation healthier? I'm asking this as well as I have no idea, and do not recall ever seeing anything definitive on this.

2- Will there be enough oxygen in there or will you need to ventilate it a bit?

3- Is it worth the extra electric bill, especially if you have to add ventilation? I assume that would depend on the individual. Here in New England I have no problem finding a cool enough corner in the winter. Someone living in San Diego may feel differently.

Either way it sounds like an interesting project and I hope you keep this thread updated as you go...

Scott
 
Ahhh good topic.
It's an ideal I like cause I don't have an area that will reach that low.

As far as the extra cost in electric, I would think that if it works and give you more productive males than yes.
 
Good points, thanks!

If I do it, I was planning on using the old open the door and check on them method of providing the small amount of ventilation that only a few brumating corn snakes will require. When checking on them, I could fluctuate the temp a bit if I find out it's beneficial. Actually, I the wattage on the frig is low enough I could use the herpstat in cooling mode to fluctuate a night and day temperature.....hmmmmm. I'm guessing the electric cost of running one well insulated and sealed cooler at 55 will be no more than running several cages with their individual heat pads, etc.

Our other choices are either completely unheated (and it gets COLD here) or too warm, which is why we never brumated. Maybe I'll try it this winter with a snake I'm not planning on breeding to test it out? Though that seems a wee bit mean to use a juvie as a guinea pig.

I was spelunking around cyberspace and read ended up on website for one of those silly tiny little mini frig/warmers being relabeled and sold as reptile egg incubators. The manual suggests using the cooling function for brumating....though they're so tiny I can't imagine that working very well for snakes.
 
Lennycorn.....so it's more critical for the males than for the females? Just in case I don't have room to use if for all of my breeders, I would need to know which ones can skip brumation more easily without affecting fertility. My pairs produced around 21 eggs each their first clutch, and I believe the one is double clutching on me....with no brumation. Honestly, I would also like to have a "break" from the weekly care by brumating the adults. Geesh.....is that selfish? Can I brumate kids too?
 
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