Belly Heat VS Back Heat

I know on some sites that's this topic has already been addressed but each post always has a different outcome or the asker has different climate situations.

I live Central Pa so we get really cold winters and hot summers. I rent a finished basement in a house so its always cool unless the heat is on and in the spring and summer it never is cause its oil heat and I hate paying the price of oil. It stays around 70 degrees maybe a little colder. Which suits me fine because I like the cold but for snakes its not the best. On my tanks I have a heat lamp and a heat mat but once I switch to racks I think I will just need the heat tape because since I won't be dealing with a high tank I wont have to worry about keeping the all the extra air space warm. So what would work better for me belly or back heat?

Belly heat. Back heat will have a lower temp on the bottom rack and a high temp on the top and it's all ran off of one strip (most of the time). Belly heat is individual so you can adjust each shelf and potentially use more thermostats. All the back heat setups I have used, have maxed out at one point or the other in the winter. From the info you gave, I would definitely go belly heat as my personal preference.

From what I observed on other peoples DIY racks with back heat, the snakes just don't seem to like the back heat when they get cold. You can find them all bunched up on the side trying to get to the heat... and heat rises so it's harder to get that ambient air temp throughout the tub.

I can run on and on about how belly heat is better, but I have heard some good points on back heat, I just can't remember them.

Oh yeah, and I'm sure it depends on the snake. I'm speaking for balls.

Back heat works if you keep your room temperature higher. I have a friend (local) who keeps his snake room at 82 and he has great success with back heat. Me on the other hand, my snake room is joined with my office and I would die if I kept the room that warm, so I opt for belly heat.

It depends on the situations. If you are making your own rack, you can set it up the way YOU want it...if you are buying, your options are more limited.
For example - if you're buying a rack and ask for belly heat, you aren't getting separate heat/separate plug for each shelf (unless you go right to FB/ARS); but, with a DIY, it isn't that much more time, money, or labor to do that.
I'm not a big fan of back heat; though I do have one rack with it, and it works great because of how it is set up. Even in a 65-70 degree room, I get appropriate temps throughout the tubs. Other people I know have not been so lucky with different set ups.
Dual side radiant heat is also a good option in a cool area.

I don't heat the room they are in because its in my bedroom and I can't stand heat. I was thinking about belly heat daisy chained to one plug or have like 3 different sections with separate plugs since I don't have enough animals to fill up one rack yet.

Originally Posted by SilverBlaze

I don't heat the room they are in because its in my bedroom and I can't stand heat. I was thinking about belly heat daisy chained to one plug or have like 3 different sections with separate plugs since I don't have enough animals to fill up one rack yet.

Good idea! That's what I did on my first DIY rack. 7 bin's on four different plugs and I just plugged them in as I got more snakes.

Another question I had was the bedding. Is there a bedding that holds heat better then others? I would normally use paper towels or newspaper. Like I said before the room that they will be going in isn't heated. The room is about 65 degrees.

What size tubs are you using?
In a cool room like that, tub size and rack configuration are important pieces of the puzzle. Many people use 3" heat tape on 28-34qt tubs; but you may find that you have to run it too hot to maintain adequate temps throughout the tub. If you are going to go with belly heat, you might want to think about 11" tape.

Heavier substrate, like mulch, will hold heat better; but it also tends to lower the surface/basking temp unless the snakes push it out of the way (which many will).

28 qt and yes I had already planned on using 11'' heat tape.