# Heat mat on or off at night?



## reptilesforlife (Jan 29, 2021)

I have looked into whether heat mats should be on or off at night, and the answers have been very controversial. Some people are saying to have it on 24/7, others recommend having it off all night and others say to have it on and off at certain times. I looked into an old thread on this forum, and yet again all of the posts more or less contradicted each other. A piece of solid information I was able to obtain was that it can depend on where you live and the temperatures there. I live in Adelaide where my room temperature is around 21-24 degrees. The enclosure I have set up has a thermal gradient, where the heat mat takes up around a third of the floorspace. Help would be appreciated!


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## Sdaji (Jan 29, 2021)

reptilesforlife said:


> Help would be appreciated!



Be specific when asking questions. For example... it's worth defining your own question. I assume you're keeping reptiles rather than brewing beer or keeping your bed warm, but you literally haven't even said what species you're keeping.


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## reptilesforlife (Jan 29, 2021)

I apologise for the lack of information! I am going to be keeping a Children’s python (anateresia childreni) and I believe I have all the other info in my post


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## Sdaji (Jan 29, 2021)

reptilesforlife said:


> I apologise for the lack of information! I am going to be keeping a Children’s python (anateresia childreni) and I believe I have all the other info in my post



Insufficient relevant information to give a decent answer.


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## reptilesforlife (Jan 30, 2021)

Sdaji said:


> Insufficient relevant information to give a decent answer.


Ok then, what information would you like to have to give a decent answer?


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## Susannah (Jan 31, 2021)

I would suggest having your heat mat on a thermostat, making sure it doesn't get too hot or cold in the warm spot. Many snakes will like to have a cooler place to hide as well as the warmer hide (assuming that you put the hide on top of your heat mat)? I also like to have a perch/stick for my Stimmy to sit on, he tends to sit on that at night, then go back inside one of his hides during the day.


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## reptilesforlife (Jan 31, 2021)

I do have my heat mat attached to a thermostat, I have a hide on the warm side and on the cool side as well as plenty of branches and perches for climbing and enrichment. So I can leave the heat mat on at night as long as there is a thermal gradient and a cool side?


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## Herpetology (Jan 31, 2021)

I turn off night heating for my animals year round (changing times) once they’re a year old from 8-6 in winter to 7-8 in summer but I’m in Sydney


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## reptilesforlife (Jan 31, 2021)

Herptology said:


> I turn off night heating for my animals year round (changing times) once they’re a year old from 8-6 in winter to 7-8 in summer but I’m in Sydney


My room temps are usually around 21-24 degrees and I live in Adelaide


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## Herpetology (Jan 31, 2021)

reptilesforlife said:


> My room temps are usually around 21-24 degrees and I live in Adelaide


That’s fine for ambient night temps, my room gets way lower than that


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## WizardFromAus- (Jan 31, 2021)

reptilesforlife said:


> I do have my heat mat attached to a thermostat, I have a hide on the warm side and on the cool side as well as plenty of branches and perches for climbing and enrichment. So I can leave the heat mat on at night as long as there is a thermal gradient and a s





reptilesforlife said:


> I do have my heat mat attached to a thermostat, I have a hide on the warm side and on the cool side as well as plenty of branches and perches for climbing and enrichment. So I can leave the heat mat on at night as long as there is a thermal gradient and a cool side?


Yea leave heat mat on


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## reptilesforlife (Jan 31, 2021)

Thanks everyone for the advice!


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## Zer0tonin (Jan 31, 2021)

reptilesforlife said:


> I have looked into whether heat mats should be on or off at night, and the answers have been very controversial. Some people are saying to have it on 24/7, others recommend having it off all night and others say to have it on and off at certain times. I looked into an old thread on this forum, and yet again all of the posts more or less contradicted each other. A piece of solid information I was able to obtain was that it can depend on where you live and the temperatures there. I live in Adelaide where my room temperature is around 21-24 degrees. The enclosure I have set up has a thermal gradient, where the heat mat takes up around a third of the floorspace. Help would be appreciated!


What I like to do is have the heat lamps on at from sunrise to sunset (and adjust that with summer/winter seasonal time differences) and like an hour before the lights go off, the heat mats turn on and go until about 10pm. My thinking is that the heat mats simulate a rock that’s been heated by the sun and would hold some heat into the night.

Generally you’d have 24/7 heat for hatchies but when they grow into yearlings and adults it’s probably better for the animal to not have heat at night, as they wouldn’t in the wild.


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## Herpetology (Feb 1, 2021)

U can also get a thermostat that allows u control the temps fro different times of the day,some stats u can set 2-5 (maybe more) different time points (per24h) with their own temperature


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