# heat mat advise please



## andy80 (5 d ago)

hi i’m so stuck i brought exo terra heat mats ultra fin and habistat digital timers, all set up to temperatures of 33 but i’m wondering because i have stuck them down in the wooden vivarium on the sticky side is there a certain way they are used as there supposed to be stuck underneath a terrarium tank but i have stuck them inside????? it seems to be working fine but i’m still not hundred percent?? thanks andy


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## BenG (Jun 9, 2012)

Should be on the outside for a heat mat. For a wooden viv I would look at an over head heat source personally.


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## BenG (Jun 9, 2012)

Exoterras are glass aren’t they thinking about it, definitely would position out side the viv and use a thermostat.


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## Shellsfeathers&fur (Jan 18, 2009)

The mats are made by Exo Terra and the vivarium is wooden, I think?


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## Shellsfeathers&fur (Jan 18, 2009)

OP - presumably it is for a snake? Which species?


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## LiasisUK (Sep 30, 2019)

Heat mats are not a good heat source for a viv. What is the vivarium size and what is it for?


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## andy80 (5 d ago)

Shellsfeathers&fur said:


> The mats are made by Exo Terra and the vivarium is wooden, I think?


yes the vivarium is wooden, and the heat is spot on on the vivarium… the tanks are vivexotic repti home medium 3 tier!! all three are set up and all set at 33 with a thermostat on each one


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## andy80 (5 d ago)

LiasisUK said:


> Heat mats are not a good heat source for a viv. What is the vivarium size and what is it for?


*





















*
all 3 are set up with each unit with one of them thermostats and heat mat and all set at 33


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## andy80 (5 d ago)

Shellsfeathers&fur said:


> OP - presumably it is for a snake? Which species?


i have 3 ball pythons


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## LiasisUK (Sep 30, 2019)

Change heat source to something more appropriate like a ceramic


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## Malc (Oct 27, 2009)

andy80 said:


> i have 3 ball pythons


Ideally you need a ceramic heater in each enclosure, each individually controlled by its own thermostat (Pulse proportional or dimming). Have a read of the two sticky posts at the top of this section which cover basic care of a Royal python and the use of different types of heating. You can get away using mats and a mat stat in each enclosure provided the room in which the vivs are housed in is heated to at least 25c day and night.


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## Elly66 (Feb 27, 2021)

andy80 said:


> yes the vivarium is wooden, and the heat is spot on on the vivarium… the tanks are vivexotic repti home medium 3 tier!! all three are set up and all set at 33 with a thermostat on each one


When you say the heat is spot on, where and with what are you taking the temperature readings?
I wouldn't a heat mat inside a viv, to much a risk of burns for starters. I use ceramic heating elements.


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## andy80 (5 d ago)

digital temperature displays and a hand held laser thermometer gun…. and i have now ordered white python ceramics and holders and cage!! and then lower the heat mats for night time temperatures after the heater is turned off!!!


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## Malc (Oct 27, 2009)

andy80 said:


> digital temperature displays and a hand held laser thermometer gun…. and i have now ordered white python ceramics and holders and cage!! and then lower the heat mats for night time temperatures after the heater is turned off!!!


You don't need both forms of heating. Remove the mat and the on/off stat and install the ceramic and run it off a pulse proportional thermostat so the warm side is around 32-34c and leave it running 24/7. If the thermostat has an option to set a night time temperature drop then set this to 25-27C, but you should never turn the heating off at night, especially as this is when Royals are most active.


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## andy80 (5 d ago)

Malc said:


> You don't need both forms of heating. Remove the mat and the on/off stat and install the ceramic and run it off a pulse proportional thermostat so the warm side is around 32-34c and leave it running 24/7. If the thermostat has an option to set a night time temperature drop then set this to 25-27C, but you should never turn the heating off at night, especially as this is when Royals are most active.


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## andy80 (5 d ago)

sorry i wrote that wrong i meant when the ceramic is off at night i will lower the temp ok the mat at night time as the timers are timed for the ceramic and the mat… thank you


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## Malc (Oct 27, 2009)

andy80 said:


> sorry i wrote that wrong i meant when the ceramic is off at night i will lower the temp ok the mat at night time as the timers are timed for the ceramic and the mat… thank you


I understood you. Let me clarify... you don't turn the heating off at night. You don't need a mat as a Supplementary heat source. In fact you don't need a timer to switch between day and night. Just get the ceramic, place it in its holder and fit the guard. Connect it to a pulse proportional or dimming thermostat and adjust the thermostat until the substrate or top of the warm hide is between 32c and 34c. Then don't touch it... don't connect any timers to turn it off at night.


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## andy80 (5 d ago)

ok thank you so the digital thermostat ain’t no good then? as i brought 3 of them and cost me a lot of money…..


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## ian14 (Jan 2, 2008)

So are these your vivs?









Odd as all three are absolutely identical. To tbe point of every lead being in the exact same spot.
Yet again, no research. If you had, you wouldn't need in this position!
If those are you vivs, each a perfect replica of each other, you will have heat issues as they are stacked without insulation.
I'd suggest you might want to do a bit more research into husbandry, heating, everything.


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## andy80 (5 d ago)

well thanks for your input but they are my vivs but that is the imaged from on line where i brought them from… and i have not set them up identical and i have researched lots and i have been told heat mats are fine as they are only young pythons at the min! when they are older they will burn them selfs on the heat mat because of there size and weight! but i have invested in 3 white python ceramic set ups but will still be using my digital thermostats! but like stated the big in the hot side is hot enough at present but won’t heat in the air also hence why i have invested in the ceramic with the advice i have been giving on here! thank you 😊


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## Malc (Oct 27, 2009)

It's hard to see from that image. Is it a stack of three separate and individual vivs, or is it a unit that has a single divider to form the top/floor of the two vivs. If they are individual vivs then you can resolve the issue Ian mentions by placing two short lengths of wood between both vivs to separate them and thus prevent heat from the lower viv conducting through to the floor of the one above. 18mm square timber from B&Q will be fine.

If it is a single unit with just a divider (18mm thick) then you will need to take a slightly different approach. You will need to add a square of 18mm ply or contiboard either to the top of the lowest viv, or the "floor" of the viv above. If you also have some 3mm or 6mm cork tile that can be sandwiched between the two that would provide additional insulation. This gives you basically 36mm thickness of timber plus the cork to prevent the radiated heat from the viv below increasing the hot spot to above beyond a safe level. I had to do that with my DIY custom unit and using white python ultra slim CHE's and this method worked just fine.

With regards to using mats, yes they do work for Royals, but at the risk of the snake developing an infection (cold or worse). It depends a lot on how low the temperature in the room the enclosures (rubs or vivs) are housed in reaches. If it's a modern house with decent cavity wall insulation and you run the heating then chances are the room temperature will drop to around 20c provided the outside temperature remains mild at night. If you use mats for adults you will find that the snakes will sit on the heat for 22 of 24 hours and be less active then when a CHE is used (unless the room in which the vivs are housed is maintained at 25c - 28c which seems to be the ideal cool side temp).

Oh and regarding your point of heatmats burning the snakes as they get older. If you use the thermostat to control the heat mat correctly then there is little to no chance of the mat burning the belly of the snake as the mat will never get above 32c. This involves pacing the thermostats probe directly on one panel of the heat mat, and adjusting the stat and using a IR temperature gun to get the set point correct.


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## Malc (Oct 27, 2009)

andy80 said:


> ok thank you so the digital thermostat ain’t no good then? as i brought 3 of them and cost me a lot of money…..


If the thermostats are dimming or pulse proportional (some of the new digital stats have the option to select the mode of operation) then they will be ideal. If it's a basic ON/OFF mode of operation then sadly these are not ideal as they will create to much of a temperature swing either side of the 32c target.


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