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how can i improve my tank?

Well I have been reading the posts and from what I've read it seems like he is not willing to make the changes needed so the snake will have a safe home he will make the changes when it is to late only after the snake gets burned or fries on the light then will he see that the advice from all the good people on this forum was correct and in the best interest of the snake.

I'm only to assume that he is a young man whom thinks he knows it all when in reality he know nothing if he would only take the time to make the housing safer for the snake maybe he would see the snake more on the outside of the hideout instead of the inside.

I'm no expert by any means but I do read this forum every night and I put the advice given on here to my snakes and I must say that my snakes eat well and look great with that said I bid all of you fine people a good day.
 
You can buy rolls of mesh, cut to measure, from any diy store. If you can't afford that, get a rubbermaid or contico box and keep you snake in there with a lamp outside the viv.
 
i am young, but i do by no mean think i know everything. all i can say is that why do u call me a bad keeper simply because i wouldnt move a light out of the tank? (call this the "i am experienced and dont want your help" talk if you like) i have had snakes in the past, my friends have had snakes in the past and havent had the problems. BUT i know you know what you are talking about, i know you wouldnt warn me about dangers that don't exist. so because of this, and the fact that i value the opinions of you all. i am doing all that is in my power to protect my snake from the light. as we speak i am searching for a place to buy a guard for my light.
i value your opinions, thank you all :)
would i be able to make a light guard out of the mesh you speak of? as if it can keep my snake in my tank....then surely it can keep my snake off my light. but can it with stand the heat?
thanks
 
Are you going to move the light?Or just guard it? If the light is not moved then youre snake isnt going to have a cool area, which is vital to its well being. The snake should be fine without the light and with the heat mat if the temp is ok, ours are. Lights are often used more for owners pleasure, but corns dont need them.
Hope you get it sorted.
 
the light is going to be moved, just not out of the tank. i will move it to the warm end (the right end) and then attach a guard, also with the left over mesh ill be able to cover up the old hole :)
 
i need the light for the heat :)
once i have a thermostat, i will have the heat mat always on, and the light running through the thermostat :)
 
If you are moving the light anyway, it would be alot less hassle to just move it out the tank. If you take the bulb out and move it to the hot end you will have to cover up the old hole, drill a new hole for new light and get a bulb screen (the mesh I was speaking of wouldn't be pliable enough to bend it to make a guard). Imo, it would be far easier to take the bulb out and a) cover the hole and keep bulb out of the tank (which will still provide heat for you snake) or b) keep bulb out and put new mesh screening on top of your tank.
 
The lamp can sit directly on top of a wire mesh screen. It doesn't have to be inside of the tank. It would be MUCH safer for your snake if it is outside. Why do you insist on keeping it inside, anyway? I know it is your snake, and you can do what you want with it, but PLEASE be responsible and protect it!
 
Rachel you say it would be easier moving it out of the tank, but this is what i would have to do to move it out of the tank :
i would need to buy a lamp (as the light isnt on a lamp, its on a wire thing lol), buy a mesh lid, replace the old lid with the new mesh 1 (which imo would be easier to push off, correct me if im wrong) then find a way of getting the lamp to fit on the table as there isnt alot of room. and position it correctly.
imo it depends on your surroundings which would be easier. in your surroundings maybe it would be easier to replace the lid and get a lamp.

o 1 more thing, this is the new lid im thinking of purchasing. tell me if you think it is suitable :) http://www.livefoodshop.co.uk/catal...d=208&osCsid=80b4af181ec81cf9ffac30f9b7cf8268
 
No, the mesh wouldn't be easier to push off. Anyway, the new lid looks good. You could have the bulb outside over the mesh area there. Lamps only cost about £5, compared with the vet bills you could end up with if you have a burnt snake...I think it would be a fiver well spent.
 
those are nice, tight fitting lids.. i use one and have no issues with it.
just a shame you cant get purpose made lamp guards to fit around the interior mounted lamps as, i believe, the mesh is supposed to be at the cool end for proper ventilation.
 
btw anyone ordered off that site?
quite fancy going for the aspen bedding as my current corn-cob bedding is in need of replacing anyway and rather than use the corn again i`d like to try something else....
 
Looking at that lid , as the hole for the light fitting is the other end from the mesh , I would presume the mesh does go at the cool end :)
 
i should think the reason for the mesh being at the cool end is to create an airflow across the tank to avoid patches of "stagnant" air ..
putting the lamp above the mesh would create very hot and still conditions with very poor gas exchange through the tank, as the hot air created within the tank could only rise vertically upwards leaving the cool air very still and "stinky" if you know what i mean ;)
 
blito said:
btw anyone ordered off that site?
quite fancy going for the aspen bedding as my current corn-cob bedding is in need of replacing anyway and rather than use the corn again i`d like to try something else....
Click to expand...
ye quite a few times, i have had no problems with them, an altogether good site....the only problem is postage can be pricey as its done on weight rather than a set price for postage.
cheers
 
i am just been looking over this post (like u do lol) and i have noticed something. every1 (correct me if i am wrong) that has recomended me having the light out of the tank lives in america. in america (again correct me if im wrong) it tends to be alot warmer than in the UK. you say the light outside the tank would heat the tank ok. yet when the room it is in is cold, would that still be the case? in US, where its warmer, surely the rooms must be warm, and thus supply some (or even most) of the heat in the viv. i am guessing then the light outside the tank works more as a basking area than a source of heat for the tank.
so wot i ask is would the light outside the tank still make it warm enough even in a cold room?
some comments from people in the uk that use this method would be great :D
 
oddly enough i had this same conversation with the chap in the local herp store.. he too thought that the "lamp outside the tank" thing was odd althought his reasoning was quite different.
His thoughts on americans i shalln`t reproduce here but what i will say is that in his 20 years of keeping and selling snakes he has NEVER known a single case of a snake being burnt from a lamp.... lots of cases of burns from hot rocks (which he doesnt sell) and a few from heat mats ( which he does sell but offers good advice on their safe use) but never a case of lamp burns.

BTW i doubt that weather makes a difference in this..
ever seen a newyork or chicago winter?
our uk climate is mild.. pleasantly warm summers and thankfully mild winters..
in the US their summers are a LOT hotter than ours but the winters in their more northernly states are a lot colder.
 
Okay, never posted here - just read and lurked (not having a snake due to landlord issues, I don't usually feel like I can comment) but as a UK person, have to say I have a good friend who lost a snake to burns from a light bulb. She actually had a guard around the bulb, but the snake managed somehow to get between the guard and the bulb and fried. I know how upset she was about this and wouldn't want anyone else to go through the same thing.

Yvonne
 
The bottom line is this....any exposed non-controlled heat device is a serious risk. I too have seen photos (a long time ago which I didnt' save of course! :( ) of a snake that was severly burned by an open bulb. The risk is obvious, as should be the remedy. No open bulbs or heat devices in cages.

Anyways.

The entire thread was aimed at one thing. Improving your tank. I will tell you what you need to have, look at your tank, compare and problems or no problems should be obvious.

You need a enclosure with one side totally room temp. No heating devices on this side. Period. The snake must be offered a cool zone to use for thermoregulation.

On the TOTAL opposite side of the tank you need a hot spot which will be around 82-85 degrees. (27-29 C) But you must provide this heat in a safe way. Heating pads used with thermomstats or some other controlling device work well. If there is a spot in the tank warm enough created by the heating pad you do not need a light as well. If the heating pad is not hot enough, get a stronger wattage pad, or turn up the thermomstat a bit.

In regards to the lid, it doesn't matter how much work it is, how much it costs, or anything. You need a proper simple lid that both holds the corn in the cage, or that you can rest a light on top of in case you need extra heat. Even the best of lids cost less than 50 bucks normally, so just go out and buy one like you are mentioning. A simple screen or wire lid.

That's it. It's that simple.

bmm
 
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