Wood table + UTH?

[NightLad]

Hi everybody,

A question struck me as I was getting my snake setup together last night. The table on which my tank is placed happens to be wood. Since I’ll be using a UTH, should I be concerned? I plan to elevate the tank on small lifts under each corner to prevent trapping heat, and I was going to layer the bottom with tin foil. Are there any other precautions I should take?

When I was younger I used a UTH for my lizard and just padded the bottom with a towel and it seemed to work out okay. But I don’t think that older UTH was set as hot as I’ll need for the BP.

Thanks!

[lord jackel]

You need to make sure and use a Thermostat to regulate the temp of the UTH. This makes sure you don't burn your animal...this same safety will keep any hard from coming to the desk (wood)

If you need a recommendation on the Thermostat let me know.

Hope this helps.
Sean

[NightLad]

You need to make sure and use a Thermostat to regulate the temp of the UTH. This makes sure you don't burn your animal...this same safety will keep any hard from coming to the desk (wood)
If you need a recommendation on the Thermostat let me know.

Thanks Sean! I should have mentioned that I am going to pick up a thermostat tomorrow at the expo. According to the care-sheet, Johnson Control, Ranco, Herpstat and Helix are all good brands. If you have a particular model and/or brand you find is better than others, I'd be very interested in hearing your recommendation. Thank you!

[lord jackel]

Thanks Sean! I should have mentioned that I am going to pick up a thermostat tomorrow at the expo. According to the care-sheet, Johnson Control, Ranco, Herpstat and Helix are all good brands. If you have a particular model and/or brand you find is better than others, I'd be very interested in hearing your recommendation. Thank you!

All those brands are very good.

Ranco/Johnson are both on/off - meaning you set a temp and a difference. So the unit heat up to the temp then shuts off till the difference temp is met then turns back on (ie. you set 98 with a 3 degree difference. So it is on till it hits 98, shuts off till it cools down to 95 then turns back on)

Helix/Herpstat are proportional - they are basically always on but as it gets closer to the set temp is lowers the amount of power used...so in this way it holds the temps to a degree in most cases and uses less power over all.

All will work for your needs, Helix and Herpstat will be more accurate but will also be $50 - $70 more.

Hope this helps,
Sean

[Brimstone111888]

My ranco works great.

[NightLad]

Helix/Herpstat are proportional - they are basically always on but as it gets closer to the set temp is lowers the amount of power used...so in this way it holds the temps to a degree in most cases and uses less power over all.

All will work for your needs, Helix and Herpstat will be more accurate but will also be $50 - $70 more.

Thanks very much for the information! Yes, JLC was kind enough to tell me about the difference between the 'set it and forget it' and the manual set models in another thread. I should have mentioned that earlier, sorry! I will be getting either a Helix or a Herpstat tomorrow. The room the snake is in does change temp from time to time, so its better I go for the automatic, even if it is a little more expensive.

Thanks again!