Hey, so, I've always used heat mats with glass enclosures to heat my corn snakes' enclosures but recently I got this 4x2x2 PVC enclosure and I'm quickly learning that's no longer an option...
How do you heat your own PVC enclosure? Is the heat source outside or safely contained inside? And because I'm getting mixed answers about this, do you think basking rocks are safe?
Hey friend!
For my PVC enclosures, I use Flexwatt heat tape on the outside of the enclosure and control it with a Reptile Basics thermostat. My Animal Plastics PVC enclosures have a groove on the underside of the cage bottom where the thermostat probe goes, and I calibrate my temperature on the inside each season with an infrared heat gun.
Another good option for heating PVC is a radiant heat panel and thermostat combo, which would go inside the cage instead of outside (thermostat body outside, probe and RHP inside).
I think basking rocks get a bit vilified because they have historically been used incorrectly and can very easily overheat and cause injury to your animal and/or damage to your enclosure. When controlled with a quality thermostat, they should be perfectly safe. The issue with basking rocks, though, is that they heat only a very small area so they're not ideal for creating the heat gradient necessary for your snake. Also it's a pain to figure out where to put the thermostat probe so that it gets a proper reading without getting knocked around by your pet. Also they get ka-poo'ed on and they're basically impossible to clean properly. Sooo... Maybe no basking rocks.
