# thermostats? (newb looking for advice)



## olie carolina (Aug 1, 2010)

first post on here so sorry if bit amatuer. got my first ever corn yesterday (super carolina, gorgous looking), set up its tank and everything but have been reading through threads on her and have noticed that alot of people mention about themostats. i havent got one in my viv as i bought it as a starter kit and thought ieverything would be inside it. it came with a heat mat couple of hides and big bad of substrate. is it essential to have a thermostat in the viv? i have given my corn a clear hot/cold area with a hide in each so it can decide where it wants to be, will this be good enough? thanks for any help people can offer.


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## tommybhoy (Jan 31, 2010)

defo need a stat to properly maintain the temp gradient and stop your corn getting burnt pal, try alfie99 he has a thread on here good prices if i remeber right. :welcomerfuk: by the way.


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## Blue Lizard Reptiles (Jul 9, 2010)

olie carolina said:


> first post on here so sorry if bit amatuer. got my first ever corn yesterday (super carolina, gorgous looking), set up its tank and everything but have been reading through threads on her and have noticed that alot of people mention about themostats. i havent got one in my viv as i bought it as a starter kit and thought ieverything would be inside it. it came with a heat mat couple of hides and big bad of substrate. is it essential to have a thermostat in the viv? i have given my corn a clear hot/cold area with a hide in each so it can decide where it wants to be, will this be good enough? thanks for any help people can offer.


Hi

A thermostat is essential for a heatmat. They can reach very high temperatures if not, and risk burning your snake. A matstat is the best option, and are not too expensive. (we have them on offer at the moment for £13.99 - Microclimate Ministat 100 - Thermostats - Reptile Heating - Blue Lizard Reptiles)

The thermostat goes outside the vivarium and the heatmat plugs into it. The temperature probe of the thermostat is the placed in the viv in contact with the heatmat and the temperature can be set to whatever you want. : victory:


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## Meko (Apr 29, 2007)

yep it needs a thermostat. Even though you have a hot and cool area, without a thermostat it can be a too hot area and a cool area.


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## corny girl (Aug 30, 2009)

Hi & :welcome:, the job of a thermostat is to control the temperature of what is attached to it (ie in your case the heat mat). Thermostats stop these devices from getting too hot so the snake or reptile doesn't get burnt. There are a few threads on here where snakes have been severely burnt because their heat source wasn't on a stat. There is also a thread about why you should use one. A simple mat stat is all you need for your Corn, these cost about £20 (get one off ebay as they are really cheap). Habistat are one of the most reliable makes :2thumb:. So yes you really should get one ASAP, otherwise you risk serious burns to the snake (they are quite stupid & won't move away from the heat until it is too late).


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## olie carolina (Aug 1, 2010)

ok cheers guys, will defo look into getting 1 asap. now a quick question on setting up! sorry. does the heat mat go INSIDE the viv? the instructions said underneath, this is how ive got it set up. thank u once again for all the feedback


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## corny girl (Aug 30, 2009)

If it is a wooden viv then the mat goes inside, if it is a plastic RUB or tub then the mat goes under. The probe from the stat goes on the heat mat, if the mat is under the RUB/tub then you can tape the probe to the mat.


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## olie carolina (Aug 1, 2010)

ok thats cleared it up alot. thank you for that, started to panic that my snake was getting cold with it underneath. will sort out a stat asap so i doesnt burn or freeze! cheers for the help guys. much appreciated!


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## olie carolina (Aug 1, 2010)

sorted stat out, arrived today so just one more question (sorry!) have looked up, but not sure, what temp to put it too, am gonna tape the sensor to the matt under the RUB so should i put the temp up alil to allow it to get inside the viv? thanks for the help guys.


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## Helfen (Jun 12, 2010)

Hey yes thermostat is essential you should also put a moist den in to help shedding, which are easy to make out of a plastic container there is a thread in the newbie section about setting up your first corn snakes house and every thing it needs in it.


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## olie carolina (Aug 1, 2010)

yeah got one today just not sure bout the temp to set it to as mentioned. any advice?


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## Helfen (Jun 12, 2010)

I think 86F is about the right temp for the hot end and 70f for the cool end.


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## olie carolina (Aug 1, 2010)

thank u, ill set it to that for now and see how he responds to it. thank u for help.


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## Blue Lizard Reptiles (Jul 9, 2010)

olie carolina said:


> yeah got one today just not sure bout the temp to set it to as mentioned. any advice?


I tend to work in Celcius, so I'd set it at about 26/27C for the warm end.

Corns are temperate species, so don't need it too hot. Room temperature is fine at the cool end. : victory:


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## olie carolina (Aug 1, 2010)

ta very much. will sort it out tomorw as still need to figure out how to get the probe in the viv but have an idea. thanks for the help guys.


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## Graham (Jan 27, 2007)

Did you get a digital thermometer as well to monitor the temp? The scale on the stat (unless its a digital stat) is just a rough guide and can't be relied on for accuracy.


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## olie carolina (Aug 1, 2010)

no havent got a thermometre, but have removed the thermostat from viv as didnt seem to be working! it would click on very shortly and then have long off periods, substrate ontop of heat mat wasnt getting any warmer then cold side so have removed themosta, but now my corn only goes to the cold hide, have just swapped hides over and has gone to same hide on warm side. recently when handling its been really cold, and yester looked like shedding as eyes were very glazed and colour drained but today it seems to have cleared! should i be worried about the cold temp of snake and could this have caused the glazing eyes and discoloured? thanks for any help, am worried bout snake


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## Graham (Jan 27, 2007)

Sounds like it's about to shed, the eyes go milky first then clear again, and within a few days the snake should shed, mine goes quite grey and dull before a shed but then seems to brighten up a bit before actually shedding, so much so that I've often searched the viv looking for a shed skin that's not there! 

You do need to use a thermometer with your stat and heat mat, otherwise you have no idea what the temp inside the viv is, the temp reading on the stat dial is probably completely different to the actual temp.

It sounds as though your stat may have been set too low, but without a thermometer there's no way to know for sure. You defintely don't want to be using a mat without a stat though.


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## olie carolina (Aug 1, 2010)

hmmm, ill get hold of a thermometer and give the thermostat another go. did try turning the temp up, had the dial set to roughly 28C to try and raise the temp but to no avail. any ideas on the coldness of snake?


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## Meko (Apr 29, 2007)

they're not meant to be hot. Body temperature is 37c so if your heat mat is getting to 30c then it's going to feel cool / cold. As long as your temperatures are correct - if you're using a mat then measure on the floor; then everything is ok.


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## heron (Nov 21, 2008)

olie carolina said:


> hmmm, ill get hold of a thermometer and give the thermostat another go. did try turning the temp up, had the dial set to roughly 28C to try and raise the temp but to no avail. any ideas on the coldness of snake?


You may need to set your thermostat a bit higher than 28C if you want that temp to be achieved inside the tub.

Mine is about 30C ish and gets around 28C inside. Not all the heat gets transferred to the tub.


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## olie carolina (Aug 1, 2010)

yeah getting hold of a thermometre so can monitor tank temp. Has anyone else noticed coldness on their snakes or is this how they are normally? hes only just started to feel REALLY cold, normally temp is unnoticable.


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## Blue Lizard Reptiles (Jul 9, 2010)

olie carolina said:


> yeah getting hold of a thermometre so can monitor tank temp. Has anyone else noticed coldness on their snakes or is this how they are normally? hes only just started to feel REALLY cold, normally temp is unnoticable.


Snakes should feel cool to the touch. 30C is a good active temperature for a snake, but it's 7 degrees colder than your hand. : victory:


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## olie carolina (Aug 1, 2010)

Ok thanks for the help, am settinh up the thermometre tomorow after work so see how i go from there. Thanks for the help guys


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