| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| carlb1981 |
Posted - 17/05/2012 : 22:01:08
hi all just spent the last few hours after work setting up viv ready for picking my royal up tomorrow and everthing was going well until i came to fit bulb, the bulb hangs below the heat guard and i dont know what to do to solve the problem, are ceramic bulb holders all roughly same length? mine seems to be on the long side but not sure if thats normal.
ive bought a 150w ir bulb, could it just be this is too big?
the guard i bought was the only type they had in stock and looks about right, any bigger and it would be hanging to low id think i will try posting pick if i can in a few mins im stressed to hell ive been looking forward to tomorrow and now i have this setback 
thanks carl |
| 20 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Lotabob |
Posted - 18/05/2012 : 23:03:33
They have scales so their skin could probably withstand more heat than our unprotected skin so yeah if you can put your hand on it then it wont burn the snake.
When everything is first switched on the cold end wont be hot enough, the light guards will be really hot but as everything gets upto temperature over the next few days the whole vivarium will warm up and then the bulb is dimmed by the stat and only needs very little power to maintain the temperature. My bulbs barely feel warm to the touch. It can take a good while for everything to very slowly settle in to what its meant to me doing and you may need to make the odd adjustment here and there until you get it spot on but once it gets there you dont need to do anything but enjoy your snake. |
| carlb1981 |
Posted - 18/05/2012 : 19:46:19
Ok thanks Chris my mind is at rest :-)
|
| chrisc |
Posted - 18/05/2012 : 19:44:34
if you can hold your hand on it then it will be fine, once the viv is up to temp an settled the guard will cool down a bit.
most of mine only feel slightly warm once its all settled |
| carlb1981 |
Posted - 18/05/2012 : 19:33:24
So I'm just being paranoid about the hide lol don't want the place he feels safest to be a danger to him, just to clarify if it can't burn me it won't burn him? |
| n/a |
Posted - 18/05/2012 : 19:29:30
They're pretty wise. Obviously you wouldn't let them coil round an unguarded bulb or sleep on an unstatted mat, as royals sense heat chiefly through the nasal pits and not via any part of the body as mammals do. But I've never seen mine basking atop a hide and although I've seen snakes doing their gymnastics round a bulb guard (heart in mouth!)they do move away fairly soon. It's a common sense thing but I reckon that as long as you've got stat/guard in place, you've nothing to fear on the whole. |
| carlb1981 |
Posted - 18/05/2012 : 19:02:36
One last question
How hot does something have to be before it would burn a snake, if it doesn't burn my hand could it still burn my snake, just wondering as things in the area of the bulb feel fairly hot to touch but not too hot to burn me, like his hide feels quite hot but I can keep my hand on it should I move it somewhere further from the lamp? |
| carlb1981 |
Posted - 18/05/2012 : 18:53:36
quote:
Originally posted by BurnedAtTheStake
Ah don't worry about that - as long as the temp is maintained, the bulb light doesn't matter. In fact it's good as there's power in reserve for a cold night (can still happen at this time of year.) In summer, in my viv stack in my south facing front bedroom, I can scarcely see any light from my bulbs at all lol. But they're still working.
Lol up here in newcastle cold nights are what we get most the time |
| n/a |
Posted - 18/05/2012 : 18:21:25
Ah don't worry about that - as long as the temp is maintained, the bulb light doesn't matter. In fact it's good as there's power in reserve for a cold night (can still happen at this time of year.) In summer, in my viv stack in my south facing front bedroom, I can scarcely see any light from my bulbs at all lol. But they're still working. |
| carlb1981 |
Posted - 18/05/2012 : 17:55:43
Think I need to get a smaller bulb the temp directly under it is around 34-35c and the stat is barely putting any power to it, it looks switched off until you look closer and can see the element is just about on, maybe a 100w would of been a better choice |
| n/a |
Posted - 18/05/2012 : 16:38:38
Your cool end temp tends to reflect the ambient temp of your room, and if it is too cool for the snake, the snake will just stay where the temp suits it. Unless it fancies a stroll, when it will take exercise and return to a spot in the most comfortable temp. Though royals do tend to snooze most of the time lol.
Personally I make sure that the warm end is 32/33c and let the cool end take care of itself. Not terribly technical, but it seems to work. In a 3' viv one warm end is fine.
Sounds like once the bulb's guarded ok, you're just about set for tomorrow! |
| carlb1981 |
Posted - 18/05/2012 : 16:17:01
I've just ordered the one I found, I just moved my hot end temp probe and the temp was way too high on top of the hide over 45c so turned stat down, only thing is at that temp the cool end was only reading 22c so think this might drop further now I've turned it down is this normal in a 3 foot viv will I need 2 heat sources? One for either end? |
| Lotabob |
Posted - 18/05/2012 : 13:14:42
Or if you donrt wanrt to spend too much spent £2 on a flush ceiling attachment for the bulb and it will fit. I use these.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2-x-CERAMIC-VIVARIUM-HEAT-BULB-LIGHT-LAMP-HOLDER-REPTILE-/150814968733?pt=UK_Pet_Supplies_Reptiles_Spiders_Insects&hash=item231d45cb9d#ht_575wt_1270
Shop around for them I got them for about £1.50 each and are what your guard are made for, its the cheaper option anyway. |
| Kelfezond |
Posted - 18/05/2012 : 11:00:24
reptiles ink over on rfuk builds custom sized cages quite reasonable prices too |
| carlb1981 |
Posted - 18/05/2012 : 10:38:23
quote:
Originally posted by BurnedAtTheStake
I prefer the guard that's all in one piece and I screw it to the viv ceiling with screw eyes - these can be undone and refixed by hand (ever tried to use a screwdriver on a viv ceiling when it's in place? Aaarrgggh!)
Might give that a try its a good idea |
| carlb1981 |
Posted - 18/05/2012 : 10:34:55
Yes I encountered that problem when trying to screw the bulb in, the one I found on ebay would be much easier |
| n/a |
Posted - 18/05/2012 : 10:01:11
You have my sympathies! Dratted bulb guards! Yes, as Blackskull says, the pro-rep ones come in two sizes, and also ceramic guards are much longer. Don't worry about the length in the viv, the snake won't, it might make it a bit fiddly to clean etc but that's all.
Another grouse I have about those guards with the access flap for bulb changing is that you can't get your hands in to unscrew the damn bulb unless the light fitting's one of those that screws to the viv ceiling. Fittings on flexes wobble about. I've had to secure the flex outside the viv with a cable-tie, and when the bulb needs changing, I cut the cable tie, pull the flex through so the bulb dangles below the guard, change the bulb ...again fiddly!
I prefer the guard that's all in one piece and I screw it to the viv ceiling with screw eyes - these can be undone and refixed by hand (ever tried to use a screwdriver on a viv ceiling when it's in place? Aaarrgggh!) |
| chrisc |
Posted - 18/05/2012 : 06:02:05
for a temporary fix till you get longer guard you could make a square wooden frame to put between the guard an the roof so it sits low enough to cover the bulb just make sure that there are no gaps that the royal can get through.
also you want the hot end thermometer probe directly underneath the bulb to measure the hot spot, the stat probe is ok fixed to the wall |
| carlb1981 |
Posted - 17/05/2012 : 22:53:15
if the petshop dont stock longer ones or cant find any locally then i'll order one
thanks for the help |
| blackskull |
Posted - 17/05/2012 : 22:51:09
just a few quid cheaper lol
i tend to use the same ones as im happy with them, even if they are more money |
| carlb1981 |
Posted - 17/05/2012 : 22:48:33
found these on ebay
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/180874704804?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1952.l2649 |
