Didn't receive what was described/ weird python behavior

That post is a bit confusing do you mean that your t-stat probe is in the enclosure under the substrate?

I always put the probe underneath the tub on the heatmat. I have a infrared tempgun to measure the temp on the surface they lay on most of the time I have to put temp about 2 degrees higher on the thermostat to get the right temp inside the tub. I love my tempgun. It only cost me two seconds to measure the temp of the surface they lay on and also helps measuring temp of defrosted rats before feeding.

I use cocohusk for the adult ones and cocosoil for the small ones (because of fear the swallow some), but always wipe away the bedding from underneath their hide on the warm side so they sit directly on the surface of the tub. I use lucky reptile thermocontrol II thermostat. It has an alarm when the temps are not correct so I know immediatly when something is wrong. This way I know for sure their temp. If they poop or pee they always move to a different place and I just clean the place and do an extra wipe with pure alcohol to kill bacteria. But wait a few seconds to let the alcohol evaporate.

Donā€™t worry about the wobble. Stress is a big factor. I have two wobblers, in the beginning one really corkscrewed, but both got very much better in time to even almost no wobble, even when holding them. The serious one took months (since early december) the other one weeks. But the serious one is a little easier to be stressed in general.

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yes sorry thatā€™s correct!

The t-stat probe should be outside the tub sandwiched between your heat tape and the tub and here is why.

If the probe is inside it can be

Dislodged by the snake

Cooled down by large amount of urine

Cooled down by a water dish being tipped over

All of which would make the temperture shoot up.

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What if there is no room between the tub and the heat tape?

Itā€™s a stand alone tub :roll_eyes:

And if it is a rack than the probe can be secured on the side of the tub directly on the heat tape, also most racks those days have a specific spot to facilitate just that.

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Itā€™s crazy how often I see people with heat mats or tape INSIDE the tub or viv!!! Crazy.

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If I continue to use the slightly smaller tubs I have currently I can put it between the enclosure and the heat tape but if I ever go back to larger ones there is no roomā€¦I would probably use hot glue and put it over the hot spot inside. The urine thing is a concernā€¦but unless it actually has a malfunction most heat tape I donā€™t believe gets hot enough to burn. Just one more thing to check on every day.

With a cheaper heat pad on a glass aquarium for instance Iā€™d be much more worried about overheating putting the probe inside

Yep (I own MANY Herpstats and can confirm)

The only one that have it right are racks and cages manufacturers who recommend placing the probe outside. now if only that common sense could be used by others that sell supply or even animals (such as big chain pet stores) we would see a lot less issues.

Sadly most supply manufacturers are not in it for the animal wellness or safety if they were they would have remove heat rock from the market 20 years ago. :wink:

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so in conclusion I should place my probes in between the heating mat and my tub and not in the inside of the tub. Is heating tape cheaper than mats? I got my heating mats from the local pet stores for around $25 per and if I had to guess most people on here would tell me to throw them away. Ill get the brand on them as soon as I can. I believe this is the t-stat I use:

https://www.amazon.com/Century-Thermostat-Controller-Germination-40-108ƂĀ°F/dp/B01I15S6OM/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=3T9MOYIA9NF1V&dchild=1&keywords=reptile+thermostat&qid=1590102216&sprefix=reptile+%2Caps%2C146&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExN0FYNEI0MjE0M1RZJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMzgwMTc0MzdUSlFQNlVMNVRGSiZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNzIzMjkyMjJHS0JaTUpZQkxGUSZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=

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Just a thought- Iā€™ve only seen it in boas, but inclusion body disease (snake IBD) can present with those symptoms (ā€˜stargazingā€™), and it is supposed to be possible for pythons to contract it (though I agree, other causes are far more likely). Just in case, be meticulous about the quarantine of this snake. If these symptoms continue, an exotics vet will be able to help you with diagnosis for sure.

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ill check the tape out for sure, does it require soldering wires? And the t-stat Iā€™m using has a 2 degree variance, so if its set for 90 it kicks in at 88.

Great thank you! I can do crimping fine just havenā€™t done a ton of delicate soldering. Thanks!

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I bought a soldering set and rigged mine last week. Wasnt too hard but it did take me a lot longer than the YouTube video to make sure I had a good deal on each piece. I thought about just crimping rivers too. I couldnā€™t find the right rivets at my home improvement store so I went with the soldering lol.

Yeah as long as you get a decent setup its not too terrible. Once I get three or four more setups ill switch to heat tape definitely.

just wanted to follow up and say that the one snake acting a little funny is healthy and eating. Dark room and smaller tub did the trick!

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Good stuff mate enjoyšŸ‘

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Thatā€™s good to hear man, and also for future reference when you do invest in/ build a rack system, get a reliable thermostat. I swear by the Herpstst EZ series. They run about 70 80 bucks for the EZ 1, and it has all the internal functions of the regular herpstat series, just with a dial instead of a screen. Cheap thermostats will do for a single tub on a heat mat, but if youā€™ have multiple snakes on a rack with heat tape make sure you get something with a safety mechanism like a herpstat, the cheap ones often will fail and leave the power on thus posing a threat to the snakes with high heat. The safety mechanism baisically turns off power to the heat tape if it fails, making sure your snakes donā€™t get cooked. Itā€™s a lot easier to warm a snake up slowly than treat burns and heat damageā€¦ but regardless good luck

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Thanks for the input! I will do so for sure!