Do i REALLY need a thermostat?

[cooljules]

Originally Posted by MissCat

hi, i'm wondering (not that i disagree with this thread, as i DONT!)
Why oh Why do most pet shops sell the starter kits with heatmats and not stats???
ususally they try to con you out of your hard earned money by making you buy things you dont need (for example a 4ft viv for a 55cm long royal- yes i have had that experience LOL)
and yet they dont try to MAKE you buy a stat??
not all pet shops are like that i conceed, watermarque in yeovil wouldn't let me buy my bearded dragons without having first bought a stat, albeit the most expensive one they had lol - i was cluless so just went with what they said. but that's the point, most people who buy their first reptile are marginly clueless about the animal, no matter how many books or websites i've read i have always listened to the store with regards to care.
i now take what pet shops say with a pinch of salt.

i have not got a stat in any of my 15 or so vivs....but then i dont use mats

[Ssthisto]

Originally Posted by MissCat

hi, i'm wondering (not that i disagree with this thread, as i DONT!)
Why oh Why do most pet shops sell the starter kits with heatmats and not stats???
ususally they try to con you out of your hard earned money by making you buy things you dont need (for example a 4ft viv for a 55cm long royal- yes i have had that experience LOL)
and yet they dont try to MAKE you buy a stat??

That's because they know they can sell £80 starter kits + baby corn snake all day long - but if the starter kit plus baby corn snake breaks £100 (as it would if there were a thermostat in there) they're a lot less likely to be able to sell them, since the buyer sees "Baby snake, plastic tub, some wood chips and stuff, plus this electronic gadget..."

So they sell what they know they can sell.

What I don't understand is the shops that, when you go BACK and want to buy a stat tell you they're a waste of money! No, dammit, just take the £40 and SMILE!

[New Hoggy Owner]

i think the lack of advise is because they do use mats without stats, oh they must be safe if they are made for a job....total crap.

even when using a light to light a snake, or other reptile, as the mats only heat the bottom half of a snake, that doesnt allow the snake to know how hot he really is....and most folks dont have a clue what the temperature is in the place the snake comes from......why bake the poor little bugger when its natural habitat doesnt... thermo regulate, im sure that word means give the choice and ill choose my correct temp....
so why stick a great big super hot mat under them and stop them behaving naturaly.....

sun = heat and light, uva/infra red bulb = heat, floursecent total spectrum light = sun light. why not pay for both bulb types, get a dimming stat, makes natural light, heat, and bedtime.....much better for snake....

of course most shops just stick em on a mat, so recoomend the same.
poor snakes.

[Shokkz]

hi people, im new to the forum
im intrested in getting a corn snake soon and ive got a glass tank and all the stuff alredy..
just not sure how to keep the temp low enough for a corn...
not sure where to start buying a thermostat for the heat mat and light
can anyone help??

thanks

[BeckyL]

Originally Posted by Shokkz

hi people, im new to the forum
im intrested in getting a corn snake soon and ive got a glass tank and all the stuff alredy..
just not sure how to keep the temp low enough for a corn...
not sure where to start buying a thermostat for the heat mat and light
can anyone help??

thanks

Welcome to the forum!

First of all, it's not necessary to have both a mat and a light to heat your corn - I'd ditch the light and just get a heat mat.

I can recommend several decent online shops that will sell you a thermostat if you wish. I do recommend you have a look on Ebay, I picked up a very cheap (new) thermostat on there a couple months ago.

Make sure you've got a digital thermometer too so you know precisely what your temps are

[Morgoth]

Originally Posted by Shokkz

hi people, im new to the forum
im intrested in getting a corn snake soon and ive got a glass tank and all the stuff alredy..
just not sure how to keep the temp low enough for a corn...
not sure where to start buying a thermostat for the heat mat and light
can anyone help??

thanks

If you are going to use a thermostat, I would recommend a dimmer stat with a red bulb. That way you can keep it on permanantly, including at night, and because its a dimmer it won't keep switching the light on and off.
Plus, if you get a dimmer Magic Eye thermostat, you can set it so it automatically drops the temperature when you go to bed and turn the lights off in your room.(assuming you're having it in a focal room like your living room or something.)

If you use a thermostat then you'll probably end up putting the probe right onto the heatmat itself and if you set it to 85f, for example, only the surface of the mat will get to that temp, then it'll turn off. The snake, which I assume won't be in contact with the mat, will be getting a temperature lower than what the stat is set to and you could get false readings. A direct heatsource from overhead is generally preferable if its being used on its own. At least that way if you position the probe near to where the snake itself basks, you know what temperature its receiving.

[Shokkz]

cheers people
im a bit confused on how a thermostat works tbh..
like how does it control the tempreture haha
sorry im no good with thermostat's by the looks of things, ive had a gecko for ages and not needed one.

[Shokkz]

Originally Posted by BeckyL

Welcome to the forum!

First of all, it's not necessary to have both a mat and a light to heat your corn - I'd ditch the light and just get a heat mat.

I can recommend several decent online shops that will sell you a thermostat if you wish. I do recommend you have a look on Ebay, I picked up a very cheap (new) thermostat on there a couple months ago.

Make sure you've got a digital thermometer too so you know precisely what your temps are

thankyou for the welcome
and yes if you woudnlt mind, il like to take a look at some online shops

[Morgoth]

There are three types of thermostat - on/off, pulse and dimmer.

The on/off is the oldest and cheapest type. It works by simply turning off the appliance its attached to whenever the temperature at the probe is 'nearing' what you set it to. The main problem with these is the range. They can go up to 4f below the desired temp before they switch on and will often exceed the desired temp by 3f or so before they turn off.
Another disadvantage is that they aren't suitable for day-time lights (from the snakes point of view), and look a bit daft on red lights to (from an observers point of view) because every few minutes the light goes on and off.

The pulse are the next tier up. They basically work the same as an on/off thermostat except that they turn the appliance on and off much more often. Even within a few seconds I think. Therefore the temperature is being kept at a much more accurate range (about 1-2f degree range each way).
However they are even worse to use on lightbulbs than the on/off thermostat, as they will turn the lightbulb on and off every few seconds.

The dimmer thermostat is the latest, I think, and can be used on any appliance. They work by supplying a continuous stream of energy to the appliance at just the right amount to keep the temperature at the desired level. For example if its connected to a 60watt bulb it will heat the probe up to the desired temperature by supplying maximum power to the bulb (in this case 60watt) and then when the desired level is reached, instead of turning off, it reduces the supply of electric to the bulb to the desired amount. So the bulb is still on, but it will be alot dimmer and may only be operating at half capacity or less (in this case 30watt) in order to maintain that temperature. If you open the cage door, it will get brighter again, to compensate for the extra heat lost through the door.

[Shokkz]

Originally Posted by Morgoth

There are three types of thermostat - on/off, pulse and dimmer.

The on/off is the oldest and cheapest type. It works by simply turning off the appliance its attached to whenever the temperature at the probe is 'nearing' what you set it to. The main problem with these is the range. They can go up to 4f below the desired temp before they switch on and will often exceed the desired temp by 3f or so before they turn off.
Another disadvantage is that they aren't suitable for day-time lights (from the snakes point of view), and look a bit daft on red lights to (from an observers point of view) because every few minutes the light goes on and off.

The pulse are the next tier up. They basically work the same as an on/off thermostat except that they turn the appliance on and off much more often. Even within a few seconds I think. Therefore the temperature is being kept at a much more accurate range (about 1-2f degree range each way).
However they are even worse to use on lightbulbs than the on/off thermostat, as they will turn the lightbulb on and off every few seconds.

The dimmer thermostat is the latest, I think, and can be used on any appliance. They work by supplying a continuous stream of energy to the appliance at just the right amount to keep the temperature at the desired level. For example if its connected to a 60watt bulb it will heat the probe up to the desired temperature by supplying maximum power to the bulb (in this case 60watt) and then when the desired level is reached, instead of turning off, it reduces the supply of electric to the bulb to the desired amount. So the bulb is still on, but it will be alot dimmer and may only be operating at half capacity or less (in this case 30watt) in order to maintain that temperature. If you open the cage door, it will get brighter again, to compensate for the extra heat lost through the door.

thanks mate thats cleared things up for me
if i was going to get a corn snake, what temp, light sources would i need etc.