ambient side stuck at 70

I'm a new owner with a new baby pastel, and I don't know how to raise the cool side of the tank past 70.In the 15g tank, I've got a medium sized Exo Terra heat mat underneath, and a 100w Red light with a dimmer switch above that. That was on pretty much all night and when I measured again this morning the hot side is 90-95 while the cool side of the tank is still just 70. All my windows were shut and my heat was on so it wouldn't get to like 60 in my house. What am I doing wrong?

Is your lid a screen or piece of glass? The glass lids are easier to maintain ambient temp. If its screen, my suggestion would be to cover half to 3/4 of the screen with a damp towel. It should hold some more heat in and also can help with humidity. What's your humidity like by the way?

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Originally Posted by interloc

Is your lid a screen or piece of glass? The glass lids are easier to maintain ambient temp. If its screen, my suggestion would be to cover half to 3/4 of the screen with a damp towel. It should hold some more heat in and also can help with humidity. What's your humidity like by the way?

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Humidity ~70%
I put a piece of foil and some cardboard over that, and I change that to a damp towel? It is a screen top. Also, I have a piece of 1/2in. wood that would fit over this well, would that work ok?

It should. Is the heat mat being regulated by a thermostat? And what are you using for substrate? What is the actual temperature in the room and what are you using to measure your temperatures in the tank?

Alright so you humidity seems good. I'd use the wood and maybe glue the foil to the underside to reflect the heat back in. After that you should be dandy. Experiment with how much of the tank you need to cover to get 80 degrees. Good luck

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Originally Posted by interloc

Alright so you humidity seems good. I'd use the wood and maybe glue the foil to the underside to reflect the heat back in. After that you should be dandy. Experiment with how much of the tank you need to cover to get 80 degrees. Good luck

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What about air flow this seems like a disaster waiting to happen. We simply don't have enough information yet to know where the problem lies.

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Originally Posted by The Serpent Merchant

It should. Is the heat mat being regulated by a thermostat? And what are you using for substrate? What is the actual temperature in the room and what are you using to measure your temperatures in the tank?

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I don't have a thermostat for the heat mat. My substrate is cypress mulch. The actual temp in the room is ~71(+-2). Fritz Aquarium Thermometer for tank temp measure.

Ok first off I would just unplug the heat pad unless you get a thermostat for it. It can and will burn your snake. Second I think your thermometer is the problem here. Most of those types of thermometers are inaccurate and usually measure the temperature of the glass and not the air. I would go to Wall*Mart and buy an indoor/outdoor digital thermometer with probe. They cost $12 and work much better. A 100watt lamp is more than enough to heat a 15 gallon tank so I think that something else isn't working right.

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Originally Posted by The Serpent Merchant

Ok first off I would just unplug the heat pad unless you get a thermostat for it. It can and will burn your snake. Second I think your thermometer is the problem here. Most of those types of thermometers are inaccurate and usually measure the temperature of the glass and not the air. I would go to Wall*Mart and buy an indoor/outdoor digital thermometer with probe. They cost $12 and work much better. A 100watt lamp is more than enough to heat a 15 gallon tank so I think that something else isn't working right.

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Thanks for the advice. I will get some upgraded equipment and post back to let you know if that worked/didn't.