Boa heating help!

pythonphilic · 02-11-16, 10:02 AM

In the near future I plan on adopting a Boa so Im building a DIY 6' enclosure made out of plywood (hopefully). I have the blueprints and the whole nine yards so I'm okay with building, I'm just completely dumbfounded on what heating element I'm supposed to use. I've read on many different threads and forums that heat pads should not be used. thoughts? I've read threads suggesting that you place the heating pad directly in the enclosure and I don't know how I feel about that.. I feel like that's an accident waiting to happen. But anyways, I like the idea of RHP, but they're almost out of my budget range (I'm in college) so I was going to opt out with a ceramic heat bulb, what are the pros and cons of each? And what wattage would I need for either? I have one last question and that is how do you install any of the heating elements in the enclosure? Do I need to do anything special while I'm building the enclosure? I'm totally lost with all of that haha! Thanks for your help!

toddnbecka · 02-12-16, 01:15 AM

Start with an ultratherm heat mat (available online from Reptile Basics) because they don't get hot enough to cook your critter/s. Order a big one, even the largest aren't that expensive, and with a 6' enclosure you'll have plenty of space. When you have the heat mat, go to Lowe's or Home Depot and find a suitable size (12x24?) piece of ceramic or marble tile, whatever looks good and fits your budget. A single piece isn't going to strain your finances. Then put some sticky sided felt or plastic pads on the bottom of the heat mat to allow air to circulate under it, and set the tile on top of it. The tile will protect the heat mat from any potential damage as well as provide a great belly-heated basking area for the snake. Much better for maintaining humidity and much less hassle than the ceramic heat bulb, particularly inside a wooden enclosure.

I use ceramic heat bulbs on top of regular screen aquarium covers. They do dry out the tank rather quickly, so I use cypress mulch for substrate. If you would prefer to use the ceramic bulb I'd cut a hole and cover it with screen. Keeping the ceramic heat bulb on the outside of the box guarantees the snake can't come in contact with it and get burned. You'd need at least 150w to provide a warm enough basking area, possibly 200w depending on the height of the enclosure.

bigsnakegirl785 · 02-12-16, 10:50 PM

A heat pad is not going to heat through plywood, I'm just gonna say that right now. And I'd really, really, really advise against placing your pad inside the cage. Especially if you're covering it with tile, which transfers heat very easily and could easily burn your snake's belly. Without sealing the pad completely water could leak under the tile and malfunction your pad. Not that heating pads need any more chances to fail, as they do that well enough on their own.

That means your best options for heating here is either an RHP or a bare CHE bulb inside a wire mesh cage.

I use both a CHE and RHP in my 6'x2' and I have zero problems maintaining humidity 70-80%. It's all about how you provide humidity. Misting or a misting system won't do much, but I pour water directly into the bedding (EcoEarth in my case), mix it up, and it's extremely efficient and low energy for me. I just pour water into the bedding every other week, takes about 30 minutes for my 6' enclosure and maybe 10 minutes for my bp's tub.

dannybgoode · 02-16-16, 02:09 AM

Also you don't need 70-80% for a BCI. 45-55 is ample and then provide a damp hide during shed.

As for heating don't bother with a heat mat. Get a Che or rhp and a thermostat. I run a 150W Che in my 4x1.5ft Viv and have no issues with humidity or maintaining the right temperatures.

In general bar specific speciesc (brb's, gtp's for e.g.) people worry far too much about humidity. My boa eats, drinks, poos and sheds perfectly so I do not worry about the humidity ( though note I do monitor it to be on the safe side).

bigsnakegirl785 · 02-16-16, 12:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dannybgoode

Also you don't need 70-80% for a BCI. 45-55 is ample and then provide a damp hide during shed.

As for heating don't bother with a heat mat. Get a Che or rhp and a thermostat. I run a 150W Che in my 4x1.5ft Viv and have no issues with humidity or maintaining the right temperatures.

In general bar specific speciesc (brb's, gtp's for e.g.) people worry far too much about humidity. My boa eats, drinks, poos and sheds perfectly so I do not worry about the humidity ( though note I do monitor it to be on the safe side).

70-80% is best, with 50-60% being the minimum, even with a humid hide. Letting it get as low as 45% will force the boa to overuse the humid hide, and not all animals will use one. I keep my boas at 70-80%, they don't have a single bent scale, but once it falls below 60% I start seeing lines under their eyes and vertical stripes. Neither of them are currently using any hides, let alone humid hides. Sure, they can shed at 50-60% but they look a lot healthier provided a nice, high, ambient humidity.