| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| wagner1966 |
Posted - 22/10/2010 : 06:58:23
We bought our first two corn snakes yesterday. I'm a little worried about the temperature and want to check with you experts.
We have a wooden viv and have the heat mat in the viv under about a cm of woodchip. The thermometer read around about 78 degrees (it is stuck at the back of the viv) throughout the day yesterday but overnight and this morning it has gone down to 70 (and its not even that cold yet!)
I have increased the stat for the heat mat to 84 degrees but don't want to go any higher in case the little things start to burrow down.
We have just turned the light on this morning which will hopefully increase the temp.
Is heat regulation a common problem, especially in the winter months?
Is there any other way of making sure the temp doesn't drop too much in the colder snaps?
What sort of temperature do I need to start panicking at??
Am I worrying too much????
Thanks
Ben |
| 13 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| gingerpony |
Posted - 23/10/2010 : 14:28:48
true it doesn't hurt to know what the humidity is as long as you don't stress over it lol  |
| lotabob |
Posted - 23/10/2010 : 14:09:04
Oh I'm not worried about 54% humidity, its just that it does normally sit at around 35-40% in the viv through the day, and your absolutely right a hygrometer is not essential kit, I just like the fact that I know exactly whats going on in the viv and it wasn't all that expensive. I'd rather monitor and never need do anything than something slip by unnoticed. I am still a new snake owner I've only had Spot a month but I want to provide the very best environment for my snake and to get a very good understanding of keeping snakes because I've already caught the bug and want more. |
| gingerpony |
Posted - 23/10/2010 : 09:34:12
i've recommended twin probe digital thermometers on another thread so i'll mention them here too, slightly more expensive but you only need one of them 
and humidity of 54% is absolutely fine and a normal variation but buying a hygrometer to measure it is an unnecessary expense you don't have to spend a lot of money to get a nice practical set up  |
| wagner1966 |
Posted - 23/10/2010 : 08:05:17
Thank you all for your help - I'm off into town this morning to look at digital thermometers and an extra hide. |
| lucyloop |
Posted - 22/10/2010 : 22:13:47
Hi
I have just asked pretty much the same question! I am going to move my thermometer now and then get a digital one tomorrow!Lu |
| lotabob |
Posted - 22/10/2010 : 22:08:20
This is the kind of control I have over temperature with nicely postioned thermometers, and a dimming thermostat, the thermometers measure in 0.1 of a degree and with very fine tuning over 24 hours I could achieve this. You will never get accuracy from a dial thermometer.
(day temp)
Left is the cold end, middle is the hot end, right is humidity.
The humidity is slighly too high 30-50% is about right, I normally have it around 35-40% though (normal room humidity). But its not essential to monitor humidity. Though as you can see dropping the water bowl does increase humidity even if you do mop up the mess, lol. |
| lotabob |
Posted - 22/10/2010 : 21:50:49
I got a wooden viv too a month ago, it came with the dial thermometer and I can safely say without any doubt they are useless. I went out and got 2 digital thermometers and positioned 1 at the hot end, 1 at the cold and it just showed how wild the dial thermometer were, luckily for me someone spotted the thermometer in a picture I posted and told me all about how rubbish they were and they were spot on. If it was a starter set you got they wont have provided you with a thermostat to control the temperature either which is an essential piece of kit, its worth the investment in a pulse proportionate (dimming) thermostat as they regulate at a very accurate level. It is an initial outlay of cash to get everything but its worth it, I have spend the best part of £300 this month just to have the best set up for my snake possible, its worth it for the piece of mind. |
| eeji |
Posted - 22/10/2010 : 18:37:36
You definetly need more than one hide, the more hiding places the better. The best place to measure the temperature is as close to the mat as possible because without a doubt your snake will burrow |
| herriotfan |
Posted - 22/10/2010 : 16:15:22
It's a good idea to have one at both warm and cool ends.
You really would be better to get a digital thermometre. |
| wagner1966 |
Posted - 22/10/2010 : 15:50:04
Its a dial therm and positioned quite high so will try moving it and see how we get on tonight. Another question - where is the best place to position the hide? At the moments its next to but not on top of the heating mat and the snakes have been tucked up snuggly inside all day. Should it be on the mat, at the cool end or is okay where it is? |
| gingerpony |
Posted - 22/10/2010 : 12:24:37
a lot of new wooden vivs are supplied with those rubbish dials positioned in a completely useless place! they're neither use nor ornament  |
| lee2308 |
Posted - 22/10/2010 : 11:05:51
is the thermometer a dial one,if it is they are not very accurate. |
| gingerpony |
Posted - 22/10/2010 : 09:15:44
i think the main problem is the positioning of the thermometer, try moving it to the substrate above the heatmat for a proper reading
temp should be 27-30*C there |
