Do i REALLY need a thermostat?

[metalgod]

Thanks for the advice, I'll make sure I get a thermostat if and when I get my snake.

[vampire]

i think thermostats are a great thing to have i would not set up a tank with out one

[spirit975]

Wow, i've just read through some of this and, to be honest, i can't believe people are still arguing against the need for a thermostat. Are photographs showing proof that a heatmat can reach temperatures high enough to kill many, if not most species of snake not enough? Maybe some people just need to learn the hard way, it's just a shame that some poor creature will suffer in the process. For the sake of an £18 thermostat, is it really worth the risk?

[bitis666]

nice post

I personally have had a snake, was a 2 yr old male royal that had been kept with a stat ..."apparantly" but i didnt believe what they told me, they said the stat went "pop" , and i instantly thought then if thats so ....the mat wouldnt be on at all, but il get back to the point....this royal had SEVERE burns all along the underside it was horrible, spent weeks bathing it in ...tamodine is it called? and rubbing lotion on the belly twice a day...., i dont think i have any pics but they were so bad, that there was no way he could feed, if he had, he would most likely have split open , ive never seen anything as bad.Things like this make me quite angry...

And for this reason i say that not using even a matstat is just unconceivable, i mean they only cost 20 quid, what more can i say lol

*edit* i will try find pics of the burns

can i use FB links for pics here, i found a pic of his tail and this was 2 sheds after i got him, the end of his tail actually fell off later on but healed nicely

[xAnniex]

Originally Posted by spirit975

Just thought i`d share a mini experiment with you..

Set up a mat and empty tub without a stat to see what kinda temps it would reach. Its only been set up for an hour, and i think its pretty scary. If there was a corn in that tub it would have been dead around half an hour ago.

The white thermometer is measuring the floor of the tub on top of the kitchen towel, the black one is measuring temps underneath the substrate on the inside of the tub (maybe where a burrowing snake may sit). Pics were taken at 5 minute intervals.


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And this one is measuring the temperature on the surface of the mat under the tub:

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Temperatures are still rising, the mat surface thermometer has maxed out at 158F.

Just thought it may be of some interest.

i have thermostats for all of my snakes, other wise they get cold

[Solarmoon]

Excellent experiment - I'm not surprised with the temps!

Don't you find it frustrating that people don't do their research and that includes retailers!!

[we2kings]

do u mount the stat probe touching the heat mat or 1 inch above it as i am bit concerned now after seeing thread
mine is 1" above after being advised by southern aquatics

[Ssthisto]

I mount the stat probe as close to the mat as my reptile can get, because they do not effectively heat up the air enough to give a true reading on a probe that's further away.

[kingball]

my god i put a heatmat under a rub tonight and took readings every 10 mins went up 5 degrees each time last check was over 130f thats shocking and reptile shops say you dont need a stat

[kelboy]

Originally Posted by xAnniex

i have thermostats for all of my snakes, other wise they get cold

Sorry? A thermostat won't make your heating element warmer.