# flat rock scorpion heating



## Justin (Jan 27, 2003)

Do flat rock scorpions nead any type of lighting if they have a heat pad?


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## Kugellager (Jan 27, 2003)

Truthfully, scorpions (or tarantulas fo that matter) do not need light to thrive as they are generally creatures of the night and can be found out in the wild at this time.   

I personally use reflector lamps to give warmth to my inverts and light for the plants I have in their enclosures; though one must carefully control the wattage of the lightbulbs used so as not to dry the critters out.  I have my lights on a timer which allows the simulation of the day/night cycle; which IMHO is more natural and probably somewhat better than no light at all.   At the moment in the winter I have them on about 15hrs a day which I decrease/increase from time to time as it warms or cools.  I also change the wattage of the bulbs to adjust the temps. 

I keep my house about 63 in the winter.  My bug room is closed of from the rest of the house and also happens to be where my computer is.  It rarely gets below 65 once the lights are out and never below the temp of the rest of the house.

In the summer it is plenty warm enough for my inverts to go without the heat plus the room I keep them in has nice large windows which provide plenty of indirect light.  Direct sunlight is a no no; especially with scorpions.

John
];')


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## Justin (Jan 27, 2003)

what about some thing like a 25 watt plus a heat pad? do you think that would be to hot?


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## atavuss (Jan 28, 2003)

I have an adult male and female flat rock in a 66 quart sterilite brand bin.  I put a 50 watt zoo med basking light in a clamp on ceramic type light fixture and the light is aimed right at the middle of the bin where a large flat rock is.  I sometimes see the female basking, she is not right where the light is aimed but off to the side a bit.  I have two hides and two water dishes in the bin.  this is the only scorpion setup I have that has a basking light.  I did this to bring the temp in their bin up a bit to simulate the conditions in their natural enviroment to stimulate breeding.  my herp/invert room never gets below 70 at night and daytime temps are low 80's.
I would exercise extreme caution with a light as it will dry the enclosure out quickly.
Ed


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## The Spaz (Jan 29, 2003)

I have a 29gal long tank that is housing 4, 3-ingstar emperor scorpions. During the day I have a 100wt bluelight on and at night I have a 150wt redlight. Underneath I have 2 heat pads 1 on each side. Also include are to medium sized cave sin the the 2 corners along with 2 small wooden half caves. Also 2 Rock water dishes, The substarte I use is peatmoss, coconut bark and a tropical rainforest blend which is about 3-4 inches deep. The question I have is this a good setup.? Also Seeing my scorpions are still youg is this the reason I don't see them out much. Also in a side not I will once in a while drop in a few floating fish sticks to feed the crickets but once in a while I will see my emperors eating them. I know they eat the crickets and mealworms I give them but I just thought this was weird. The conclusion I came up with is that they were taken away from there mom too early. Well I think I have a good setup I just want to hear your feedback. Go Scorpions!


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## Kugellager (Jan 29, 2003)

It seems a bit much in the heating department for a 29 gallon tank. I use a 60w regular lightbulb on a timer for my 20 long H.spinifer enclosure and they are doing fine.  I got them as sub-adults and now they are full grown.  They require the same conditions as the Emperors. 

The 60w keeps it about 100 right under the lamp and in the mid-upper 70's on the opposite end of the tank. This end of the tank is where thay have dug their burrows.  I have most of the top enclosed with plexiglas except where the lamp is.  This keeps the humidity up and the temps more stable.

You should not have the heating pads underneath the tank but place them on the sides as scorpions burrow down to escape too much heat.  Because of this you risk the chance of frying one of them should they burrow down toward the heating pad.  Humidity and misting of  the enclosure is also very important with this species.

John
];')

P.S. Spaz, I am originally from Liberty Township and went to school in Hackettstown...anywhere near there?


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## The Spaz (Jan 29, 2003)

> _Originally posted by Kugellager _
> *It seems a bit much in the heating department for a 29 gallon tank. I use a 60w regular lightbulb on a timer for my 20 long H.spinifer enclosure and they are doing fine.  I got them as sub-adults and now they are full grown.  They require the same conditions as the Emperors.
> 
> The 60w keeps it about 100 right under the lamp and in the mid-upper 70's on the opposite end of the tank. This end of the tank is where thay have dug their burrows.  I have most of the top enclosed with plexiglas except where the lamp is.  This keeps the humidity up and the temps more stable.
> ...


I am originally from Buffalo, NY but I am currently living in Flemington,NJ. You think that the heating is too much. Maybe my tank temp gauge is wrong it says it's only 75-80. Also they are hiding in a burrow and I don't see them come out a lot is this due because of them being so young. What do you think of them eating the floating fish sticks that I put in there for the crickets to eat? My scorpions have molted I believe 3 times since I have had them. When I bought them they were like an 1-1.5 inches long. What ingstar would they be now. They are well taken care of though. The pet shop had them in very poor conditions so I saved them and took the bashing from my girlfriend when I brang them home but they are worth it. If my lamp is to hot what what should I use? Thanks for replying. Go Scorpions!


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## Kugellager (Jan 29, 2003)

If the temp. gauges are between 75-80 that is fine; though 85 is ideal for them. If they are molting and growing then the overall conditions you are keeping them in are also fine. I would still recommend not putting the mats on the bottom...if they remain there I would watch things carefully and try not to allow them to burrow deeply over them. 

I don't see anything wrong with the fish sticks...never heard of anyone using them though.

I have been to Flemington many times.  I had an aunt and an uncle that used to live there. Been to the race track there a few times too.

John
];')


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## The Spaz (Jan 29, 2003)

> _Originally posted by Kugellager _
> *If the temp. gauges are between 75-80 that is fine; though 85 is ideal for them. If they are molting and growing then the overall conditions you are keeping them in are also fine. I would still recommend not putting the mats on the bottom...if they remain there I would watch things carefully and try not to allow them to burrow deeply over them.
> 
> I don't see anything wrong with the fish sticks...never heard of anyone using them though.
> ...


I just moved the heat pads to the side of the tank! Seriously do you think I should move down to a lower watt bulb> I am just saying this becasue the next size down is 60 watts and I don't want it to get to cool in there. They seem to have no problem in the molting department. Also maybe it is too warm and that might be why they don't come out too much. What do you think. Go in the chat room if you can so we can exchange questions. Thanks again! Go Scorpions!


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