thermostat issues

[Rowdy71]

hi all

ive just bought a hatchy childrens python for (and with) my son. we have her all set up in a click clack. i am using a heat mat under the tub for temp control. i have the sensor from the thermostat in the click clack located at substrate level just off the heat mat area (just on the cool end side of the enclosure). firstly i set the thermostat for 31 degs and it just kept going up. the thermometer sensor is on top of the substrate in her hide (warm area) when it got over 35 degs i turned down the thermostat its currently set to 26 and the thermometer is down to 33.6 degs. is it a case of bad placement of my sensors or do i just need to find the sweet spot on the thermostat (eg set on 26 gets me 33 at the thermometer). i thought the whole idea of a thermostat was to regulate the temp to the one set on it.
any advice, experiences would be greatly appreciated

cheers rod

 

[MANNING]

Hey there Rod(and son)
Firstly congratulations on your new hatchy! I have a Antaresia childreni that is a few years old and my family loves her.

So with the thermostat, if you are using under enclosure heat, like the heat mat you are or say a heat cord I would recommend not using a thick amount of substrate and have the sensor closer to the middle of the mat(on the hotter side of the enclosure). The reason for this is if you have your set temperature (thermostat) at the 31° but have your sensor towards the cooler side the temperature over the mat will have to reach higher levels to warm the probe to 31° to switch it off. Similar if you sit the sensor probe on a dense/ thick layer of substrate or off the ground. Your python then might also burrow down into it and because it hasn't turned off might possibly burn itself.?

What wattage heat mat do you have?
Lowest possible wattage to achieve your ideal heat is what most owners try and achieve - weather that be mats, cords or lights - for the simply fact that if for whatever reason the thermostat fails you don't bbq your critter. If you can run your heat without the need to turn it off and have it just on a timer to switch it off then that would be perfect. I don't have mine setup like the latter but is a goal for the future. Hope this has been some help✌

Also do you have a second way to measure your temperature?
I bought an infrared temp gun. Very accurate and very easy

 

[Flaviemys purvisi]

I just use a 20 watt heat cord on a timer. No thermostats for me except in my incubators.

 

[pinefamily]

Hi Rod, and welcome to the forum.
As Manning has said, get rid of the substrate, paper towel is a good "substrate" in a click clack. Also put the sensor at the warm end, and set the thermostat to the desired temperature.

 

[Rowdy71]

Hi Rod, and welcome to the forum.
As Manning has said, get rid of the substrate, paper towel is a good "substrate" in a click clack. Also put the sensor at the warm end, and set the thermostat to the desired temperature.

thanks guys. thats exactly the info i needed. i thought the sensor should go on the warm side as i think its working overtime trying to get the heat over to the cool side. good advice regarding the substrate i think ill do that as she cant burrow down to get burned either.

i love this forum thanks all

 

[MANNING]

Be good if you could post a picture of your new addition

 

[Rowdy71]

Hi Rod, and welcome to the forum.
As Manning has said, get rid of the substrate, paper towel is a good "substrate" in a click clack. Also put the sensor at the warm end, and set the thermostat to the desired temperature.

ive moved the thermostat sensor and the thermometer to behind her hide, just touching the substrate. getting some better results now. thermostat still seems a little reluctant to turn off, no problem with on. ill have a chat to the shop tomoz. thanks for the help
[doublepost=1521282310,1521282140][/doublepost]

Be good if you could post a picture of your new addition

trying to give her some space today but tomorrow afternoon we are letting my boy have a handle and a bond. my wife and i are in love with her already, even though its meant to be my sons first pet of his own. oh well better than the other way around i guess
try to post a pic tomoz
cheers

 

[Scutellatus]

ive moved the thermostat sensor and the thermometer to behind her hide, just touching the substrate. getting some better results now. thermostat still seems a little reluctant to turn off, no problem with on. ill have a chat to the shop tomoz. thanks for the help
[doublepost=1521282310,1521282140][/doublepost]
trying to give her some space today but tomorrow afternoon we are letting my boy have a handle and a bond. my wife and i are in love with her already, even though its meant to be my sons first pet of his own. oh well better than the other way around i guess
try to post a pic tomoz
cheers

I would bury the probe in the substrate until you change to paper towel. That way if the snake burrows it doesn't get a big hit of heat at the bottom.

Do you have the tub raised with the heatmat stuck to the underside of the tub? There should have been some rubber feet that came with the heatmat, use these to raise the tub and stick the mat to the underside of the tub. The reason you raise the tub is mainly to prevent overheating which can lead to dangerous heatmat failures. It allows the underside of the heatmat to cool down a lot quicker than if it is placed between the tub and a table etc.

What brand thermostat are you using?

 

[cris]

I would turn it off right now. You are in danger of killing you snake. Leaving it without heat will not cause any harm in the short term.

Post a picture of your setup if possible, it is safer to regulate the temperature at the heat source and better to use something that does not need a thermostat.

 

[Rowdy71]

I would bury the probe in the substrate until you change to paper towel. That way if the snake burrows it doesn't get a big hit of heat at the bottom.

Do you have the tub raised with the heatmat stuck to the underside of the tub? There should have been some rubber feet that came with the heatmat, use these to raise the tub and stick the mat to the underside of the tub. The reason you raise the tub is mainly to prevent overheating which can lead to dangerous heatmat failures. It allows the underside of the heatmat to cool down a lot quicker than if it is placed between the tub and a table etc.

What brand thermostat are you using?

hi and thanks for your help
i have stuck the heat mat to the bottom of the tub and stuck the feet on, all good there. ill follow your advice and bury the sensor. at the moment the temp has been nice and even so moving the probe has done the trick. ill probs use the substrate for the month and change to paper when we chuck the substrate.
i was a bit concerned because i planned to use a small tank when we got her but the click clack was a much cheaper option. problem was i had not really seen or experienced them so it threw my plans a bit.
snake and son all happy for the moment. first feed on Thursday so will see how she responds
thanks again all who have helped (this forum is awesome)

 

[Buggster]

Hi, and welcome to the wonderful world of reptile keeping!

Looks like you’re resolved this issue, but I just thought I’d mention this to prevent any future issues- handling.

I know the temptation to take your snake out for a handle as soon as you get it is pretty hard to resist (and we’ve all been there!), but it’s best to have NO handling whatsoever until your snake has gotten at least one (preferably 2-3) feeds with you to make sure you’re not stressing the snake out.

I’ve found many newbie keepers aren’t able to pick up on the very subtle signs of stress a snake might exbit (or misinterpret the behaviour entirely!)- again, this is something that will come with time and experience, but for now- leave the snake in peace for now. There’s plenty of time for handling in the future.

Especially with young snakes, they’re not going to be particularly used to being touched. At this age, everything want to eat them so they’re scared of everything. Short handling sessions every day when the snake is eating well will make the snake relaxed.

My Stimmie can be thrown around for hours every day now- he’s such a sweetheart and waits to be let out every day for a roam. But we didn’t start that way- I don’t think I touched him for 2 weeks because he was a bit of a touchy feeder. Waited ages before he was feeding consistently, and only after did I start taking him out for maybe a minute a day.

 

[Rowdy71]

I would turn it off right now. You are in danger of killing you snake. Leaving it without heat will not cause any harm in the short term.

Post a picture of your setup if possible, it is safer to regulate the temperature at the heat source and better to use something that does not need a thermostat.

hi cris
low watt heat bars have been mentioned. i need to keep my warm end at 33 degs, what would you suggest. would love to drop the thermostat if possible
cheers
[doublepost=1521371843,1521371620][/doublepost]

Hi, and welcome to the wonderful world of reptile keeping!

Looks like you’re resolved this issue, but I just thought I’d mention this to prevent any future issues- handling.

I know the temptation to take your snake out for a handle as soon as you get it is pretty hard to resist (and we’ve all been there!), but it’s best to have NO handling whatsoever until your snake has gotten at least one (preferably 2-3) feeds with you to make sure you’re not stressing the snake out.

I’ve found many newbie keepers aren’t able to pick up on the very subtle signs of stress a snake might exbit (or misinterpret the behaviour entirely!)- again, this is something that will come with time and experience, but for now- leave the snake in peace for now. There’s plenty of time for handling in the future.

Especially with young snakes, they’re not going to be particularly used to being touched. At this age, everything want to eat them so they’re scared of everything. Short handling sessions every day when the snake is eating well will make the snake relaxed.

My Stimmie can be thrown around for hours every day now- he’s such a sweetheart and waits to be let out every day for a roam. But we didn’t start that way- I don’t think I touched him for 2 weeks because he was a bit of a touchy feeder. Waited ages before he was feeding consistently, and only after did I start taking him out for maybe a minute a day.

thanks buggster
the more advice the better as far as im concerned. its very hard but my son is doing his best to leave her alone. he sits and talks to her every day. first feed on thursday so we will see how she feeds
cheers for the help

 

[pinefamily]

Seeing as you are new to keeping a snake, I'd personally recommend you stay with the thermostat. Once you have some experience, you can try different methods without one.
With or without one, you need to use the lowest wattage heating you can that will achieve the desired temps.

 

[cris]

hi cris
low watt heat bars have been mentioned. i need to keep my warm end at 33 degs, what would you suggest. would love to drop the thermostat if possible
cheers

I personally use 4m 15 watt heat cords, one or two runs under one end is usually enough. The most important thing is to make sure the snake doesn't get too hot. What you have setup now might be OK, but it is hard to tell, something like the thermostat probe moving or external temperature variation for example might possibly cause over heating. Thermostats are ok to use, but you should still aim to use a heating method that will not overheat the snake if the thermostat fails.