CIH question

[Dewey 68]

I'm setting up a 10 gallon tank for a ball python that will be coming home for Christmas.

Currently I have a UTH installed, but the temps are not getting warm enough to be called "warm side". I don't have it insulated, but it's only getting up to around 80 degrees. I have one of those green reptile mats down, and the Acu Rite probe is currently taped on top of that for setup testing. Even if the probe is directly on the glass above the UTH, it was only getting to around 85 degree.

My long-range plan is to move the snake when he gets bigger to a 30 gallon tank that I have currently sitting empty.

I have a Reptimed 500R thermostat ready to go, so I'm thinking that I may go with a 100 watt CIH, so that I can use it on the 30 gallon when he gets bigger, and the 500R can keep it from getting too hot on the 10 gallon tank.

Anyone see any reason not to get the bigger emitter to plan for the future?

Thanks.

[Crawdad]

How long has the UTH been plugged in? Is your thermostat at max? Where is the thermostat probe placed?

[Kaorte]

Do you mean a CHE? Cause I am not sure what a "CIH" is.

Ditch the reptile carpet and replace it with newspaper or paper towels. Reptile carpet will get soiled quickly and it is impossible to clean completely. It will start to smell, and that means bacteria is growing. Reusable bedding is not the way to go with these guys.

Do you have the 10g up on the little rubber stoppers that the UTH comes with? The UTH needs proper air flow in order to heat up properly. The UTH should get well over 100*F unregulated so either you are not doing something right or the UTH is faulty.

If anything you should only use over head heating as a supplement. CHEs and lamps will cause your humidity to drastically fall and leave you in a constant struggle to keep it up. You are better off avoiding over head heating as much as possible.

[Dewey 68]

Do you mean a CHE? Cause I am not sure what a "CIH" is.

Ditch the reptile carpet and replace it with newspaper or paper towels. Reptile carpet will get soiled quickly and it is impossible to clean completely. It will start to smell, and that means bacteria is growing. Reusable bedding is not the way to go with these guys.

Do you have the 10g up on the little rubber stoppers that the UTH comes with? The UTH needs proper air flow in order to heat up properly. The UTH should get well over 100*F unregulated so either you are not doing something right or the UTH is faulty.

If anything you should only use over head heating as a supplement. CHEs and lamps will cause your humidity to drastically fall and leave you in a constant struggle to keep it up. You are better off avoiding over head heating as much as possible.

Yes, CEH, sorry.

The tank is on the stoppers, the UTH is attached directly to the glass, per the instructions. The thermostat is not hooked up right now.

I can try it with newspaper, that's no problem, but it sounds like the UTH is not getting hot enough. It's been on for 16 hours or longer. This one is a Exo Terra Heat Wave, small model, purchased from Reptile Supply.

I might go to PetCo and get a different one and put it on the other side, and see how hot it gets.

Our house is set to cool down to 60 degrees in the winter during weekdays as no one is home, so I need to get something that will work better than this.

[Kaorte]

your house getting cold shouldn't prevent the UTH from heating up all the way.

I would take the UTH back and try and get another brand. I personally like the zoo med heat pads.

If the UTH isn't getting past 90* unregulated then there is something wrong with it.

[Dewey 68]

Put newspaper in, and put the Acurite probe onto the glass. I put the newspaper back down, and put a digital probe thermometer onto the top of the newspaper.

The top of the glass is reading 93.2 degrees. The top of the newspaper is at 82.7 degrees. The ambient air is 62.4 degrees. I have the Acurite fun tacked to the back of the tank.

I think I'll get a bigger UTH from Petco, put it on the other side, get some foam board for the sides and back, and see what my temp's are after that, before I look at a ceramic infrared heat emitter (that's where I got CIH from). I can regulate them both with the 500R, and can put a reostat inline for the cool side if I need to regulate it further. How does that gameplan sound?

I'm hoping I can get temps and humidity set before the weekend, then we could go pick up the new family member. The BP is a christmas gift for my 7 year old son, but I know that I'll be the main caretaker.

[Dewey 68]

Bought some pink foam insulation from Home Depot, and a Pet Med UTH from Petco. The Petmed UTH has been on less than an hour, and it's already over 100 degrees on the other side of the glass according to the Acurite. It's definitely getting hotter than the Exo Therm unit. I'll let it ramp up tonight, and see how hot everything gets, and then start working with the thermostat tomorrow.

[Kaorte]

Sounds much better I hope everything works out. You are on the right track!

[j_h_smith]

If you've got this UTH on a 10 gal glass aquarium, I bet you wake up to a cracked glass where the UTH is set. Without a thermastat, the temps could get up to 110 -120 degrees, and the thermal shock with crack the glass. Don'r ask me how I know about this.

Good Luck
Jim Smith

PS I also believe you should ger rid of the reptile carpet. It will get stinky very quickly.

[Kaorte]

If you've got this UTH on a 10 gal glass aquarium, I bet you wake up to a cracked glass where the UTH is set. Without a thermastat, the temps could get up to 110 -120 degrees, and the thermal shock with crack the glass. Don'r ask me how I know about this.

Good Luck
Jim Smith

PS I also believe you should ger rid of the reptile carpet. It will get stinky very quickly.

A UTH unregulated should not crack the glass...
It heats up slowly and maintains a pretty steady temperature so it wouldn't cause "thermal shock".