Heating A Boa???

Question

I have a snake enclosure that is 6ft long 20in wide and 30 in high It has a wood top all the sides are glass and the bottom is wood. I am having a hard time heating this enclosure I have 2 150watt ceramic heat emitters that are on top of the enclosure with heat lamps but they only get the enclosure to 84 degrees and no higher. I have a red tail boa and I don't want it to die because of heat so can someone please tell me what is the best possible way to heat this enclosure?

Answer 1

84 degrees is perfect for this guy.  I do not see your concern, also remember that you really only want to heat half the tank to this temperature to allow it to have a cooler side to retreat to if it wants to.   As a matter of fact it is OK to let the tank get down to about 75 degrees at night.  If you are heating with bulbs are you allowing your snake an equal amount of light and darkness.  They need to have a light cycle that is like the real out doors a night and a day.  Your heating is fine just watch the humidity and give them a little place to hide on the cooler side of the tank.  usually an under tank heater on one side of the tank will be adequate.

Answer 2

The ideal solution for you (and the snake) is to put a branch or shelf somewhere close to the CHEs but not so close that the snake will get burned.  Your red tail will move around on its own so it can warm up or cool off as it needs to so that it stays comfortable.  You want to have a range of temperatures available for him, so not everywhere needs to be as high or higher than 84-95oF.  But you want this to be the "average" temperature of the tank.

Answer 3

This was taken from :  

http://www.redtailboas.com/general_care/...

What temperature levels should I maintain in my boas enclosure?

Please pay very close attention to this section. This is the MOST important requirement for the long term health of your boa. Enclosure temperatures.  These are tropical animals and should be maintained within a tropical temperature range of 80 - 92F.   My enclosures are maintained at an ambient temperature of 82 ° F. A basking area with temps in the low 90's is also always available. This allows the boa constrictor to thermoregulate, and control it's own body temp. It must have a place where it can go to "warm" up and a place to go where it can "cool" down.

**Important** This seems to be where the majority of confusion comes in to play. People have different meanings or understandings of ambient and basking temperatures. Since I am suggesting that BOTH of these temperature gradients are required to ensure proper thermoregulation, I thought these definitions may help. Also since a lot of this confusion stems from the definition of ambient and basking temperatures, let me produce some definitions that better translate the two words. Here are a couple of dictionary lookups.

Ambient

(a.) Encompassing on all sides; circumfused; investing. Existing or present on all sides.

(b.) Something that surrounds or invests; as, air . . . being a perpetual ambient.

(c.) Environmental or surrounding conditions

Basking

(a.) To lie in warmth; to be exposed to diffusing or productive heat.

(b.) To warm by continued exposure to heat; to warm with difussing heat.

So with those dictionary explanations in mind, this is MY understanding of these 2 terms and the basis for how this care guide is written, and they are:

Ambient. The ambient temperature is AWAY from the heat source. This is the temperature reading of the AIR. It should be taken on the cool side of the enclosure AWAY from the heat source.  This ambient temperature of 82 ° F applies to the air inside your enclosure.

Basking. The basking area, or the side of the enclosure with the heat sources, will be 90° to 92°.  This measurment is taken on or under the physical heating devices, such as a CHE or Heat Mat or Heat Lamp. A temperature gauge should be temporarily positioned in the basking spot in order to obtain this reading.

Summary: Unless you are breeding your boas, This temperature range should be maintained YEAR ROUND!  Your boa should NOT feel cold when you take it out of its enclosure. However they should not feel hot either. The comparison is that a boa's temperature will be an average of 83 or 84 degrees. Your body temp is 98.6. Therefore holding a boa should be a little cooler than your own temp and never hotter. MOST health problems associated with boas are temperature related.

Important! Location of Heat Sources. It is best to have all heat sources on one end of an enclosure. For example, if you use an Under-the-tank Heater (UTH) and an overhead Ceramic Heat Emitter (CHE), then they should be on the same side of the enclosure. This arrangement should provide not only the correct basking temperature, but also create the proper ambient temperature on the other or "cool" end of the enclosure.



What humidity level should I maintain in my boas enclosure?

The humidity level should remain between 50 and 60 % at all times.  The difference between 50 and 60 % is actually geographical.   Areas like Texas should be around 60%.   California should be around 50%.  This humidity level is extremely important to the health of our boas.  It insures proper shedding and health.

Answer 4

Maybe what you want is here

http://www.bigappleherp.com/REPTILE-SUPP...

Answer 5

84 is a great ambient temperature overall. Just give the snake a basking area with a UTH that gets it around 92 and you'll be golden