Cool side still too cold. Do I also need to weakly heat it?

[jplehmann]

Here are the measures I've taken to create a gradient in my 20 gallon. I know the air doesn't have to be as warm b/c I have the UTH, but I am worried that soon in winter, the cool 2/3 will be dropping down to 70 F.

* 8W UTH under L side with Hydrofarm thermostat set to 90 F (measured on top of glass)
* 50W night heat lamp on L side as well
* R side 2/3 covered in plastic wrap
* Cardboard covered on 3 sides

On the hot L side 1/3, air temps are 78-85 (85 on top of the bowl directly under, 78 at the cool edge of hot area). But on the cool side, temp 73 (expected to be lower in winter).

I was hoping the heat from the 50W would spread out more through the tank, but that doesn't seem to really be happening. Do I need another weak heat lamp on the other side of the tank? Or maybe a weak bulb that runs down the center?

(In pic, hide soon to be replaced with something heavier)

[KMG]

If it were me I would want more heat.

It looks like your using a lamp stand. If so, you can use the lamp fixture spring clamp and hook that to the lamp stand so the lamp could be adjusted to a different angle. This way you cold point the lamp more toward the center of the tank to deliver more heat to the cool side. Doing this may allow you to use a larger watt bulb since the hot spot created by the bulb will now be farther away making it cooler.

Another thing I think of is switching from the blue bulb to a red. I like the look of the blue night bulbs too but they don't deliver the same heat it seems as a red one.

I would also put cardboard on top of the plastic wrap to insulate the top which should trap some heat as well.

[Velrys]

Agreed the red bulbs are more intense and will provide hotter temps. Also you could think about moving the bulb towards the center of the hab to provide that heat more evenly if you are trying to up the ambient temp.

It seems like you have all the bases basically covered... but it would go a long way towards the heat retention of your set up if you have some substance in your tank. Newspaper Styrofoam and a wire metal bin? don't really make up any substance.

At petsmart you can find earthenware hide and water bowl, the grey or tan ones. They will absorb the heat provided and hold onto it. Aspen will keep the heat away from the glass bottom and inside the tank.

[jplehmann]

If it were me I would want more heat.

It looks like your using a lamp stand. If so, you can use the lamp fixture spring clamp and hook that to the lamp stand so the lamp could be adjusted to a different angle. This way you cold point the lamp more toward the center of the tank to deliver more heat to the cool side. Doing this may allow you to use a larger watt bulb since the hot spot created by the bulb will now be farther away making it cooler.

Another thing I think of is switching from the blue bulb to a red. I like the look of the blue night bulbs too but they don't deliver the same heat it seems as a red one.

Good idea, I thought of angling it this morning but had not tried very hard yet. I did NOT think of bumping up the wattage from 50W to 100W which is what I can try, per your idea of hotter bulb. I was shying away from red b/c don't you not want to use those at night (and I need a 24h solution).

I would also put cardboard on top of the plastic wrap to insulate the top which should trap some heat as well.

Good point, I thought of this this morning and it was good for 1 degree on the far side.

- - - Updated - - -

Agreed the red bulbs are more intense and will provide hotter temps. Also you could think about moving the bulb towards the center of the hab to provide that heat more evenly if you are trying to up the ambient temp.

It seems like you have all the bases basically covered... but it would go a long way towards the heat retention of your set up if you have some substance in your tank. Newspaper Styrofoam and a wire metal bin? don't really make up any substance.

At petsmart you can find earthenware hide and water bowl, the grey or tan ones. They will absorb the heat provided and hold onto it. Aspen will keep the heat away from the glass bottom and inside the tank.

Great point about mass for heat retention. This could be my primary issue at this point.

[KMG]

I understand not wanting to use red as I tried the same thing and just love the look of the blue. However I just could not get to where I needed to be with the blue bulbs.

I would not jump to a 100 watt bulb. I would go to a 60 watt. If you go higher get a dimmer so you can dial it in. Turning down the bulb will also make it last longer.

Have you thought about a che? I have one that has been pumping at full power for over 2.5 years. No light, just all heat. Then you could add a small blue bulb for just effect or maybe even go to LEDs and save power. If you do get one go ahead and get the wire basket style fixture for it. They don't trap the heat and cool the unit like the bowl style. That's what I use and I'm amazed that its still going. I also use lamp stands for all my lights and not having to move them around all the time extends their life as well.

[MarkS]

Personally I don't think that's too cold. Average lows in Ghana Africa for every month of the year are between 70-73 degrees with the temps often dipping into the mid to low 60's. As long as your snake has a decent hot spot, those cool side temps don't seem out of line to me.

[Velrys]

Agreed Mark.

I generally don't concern myself with ambient temp, only hotspot temp the animal is physically capable of moving to where it's desired temp can be reached. The only exception being keeping the room at 68+ during winter.

Though even in this case the suggestions I made above would improve efficiency of the heating element(s) and even out the heat of the tank rather than allowing it to bounce up and down so much.

[jplehmann]

Agreed Mark.

I generally don't concern myself with ambient temp, only hotspot temp the animal is physically capable of moving to where it's desired temp can be reached. The only exception being keeping the room at 68+ during winter.

As a newb, I guess I was concerned that just as the animal may choose to burn itself on a hot surface, it might also choose to let itself remain in overly cold spots.

Though even in this case the suggestions I made above would improve efficiency of the heating element(s) and even out the heat of the tank rather than allowing it to bounce up and down so much.

Here's a pic after I made 2 improvements: a lot of substance on the hot side to radiate/hold temps, and cardboard on the top.

Regarding substrate, I'm torn because it seems like there's no agreement on what is safe to use. Aspen seems to be the leader, but there's still debate. Thus for now I guess I'll stick with this setup even though the temps are a little lower than I'd like.

(BTW clay pots are very hard to cut, not worth the cost savings

[200xth]

Regarding substrate, I'm torn because it seems like there's no agreement on what is safe to use.

There's tons of safe things to use. Aspen, pine, paper towels, kraft paper, coco fiber, old newspapers...some people have biological substrates. You can use all sorts of things.

I wouldn't get too hung up on some of these things. You'll probably end up trying multiple substrates as time goes on, anyways.

As far as the temps, I agree with what MarkS said. Those temps are fine. FWIW, my cool side temps are always down around 72 (sometimes a degree or two colder).

[MarkS]

Actually clay pots are pretty easy to cut if you have a masonry blade. I picked up one for my power jigsaw (some people call it a scroll saw) and it works great for cutting tile or clay pots.