Boa Imperator terrarium cold end temperature – is 22°C enough?

Question

I'm dry testing "kids" terrarium for my future boa imperator. I used heat mat on the side to convert conductive heat transfer into more of a radiant one and slow down heating and cooling. Seems to work good, I'll check tomorrow when my remote thermometer finally arrive.

My problem is that on the cold end I'm consistently getting 22°C ≈ 71 F with heat pad on and basking light off.

I haven't add drain layer and substrate yet, because if I should mount an additional heating mat under the terrarium, I'd rather do it now. I also considered a cover with very weak heating bulbs (black of course) etc

But the point is – maybe it is warm enough? Especially for a nighttime temperature?

Answer 1

I am no snake expert, but from what I have found, your night temperature should be a little warmer. If we look at the graphs on this site about the temperatures the Boa Imperator lives in naturally we can see that the lowest annual temperature at night on average is at about 77 F ≈ 25 °C.

Since you might not want to go by the lowest average, I would recommend going for something a little safer, so you can be sure your snake is feeling comfortable and if the temperature drops a little you are still in a safe margin.

This page about the living conditions for Boas recommends 80-85 F ≈ 26.5 - 29.4 °C for the cooler side of the terrarium, since they create one with a warmer and a colder side.

All in all, I would suggest you get the heating mat for under the terrarium as to raise the temperature to fit the usual living conditions of your snake.