Hydrofarm T-Stat Issue

Well, I've heard a lot of you guys say that this particular thermostat can be as much as 3 degrees off. I'm beginning to think it's more like 10.

I leave for work at about 10am every day. Usually get home around 5:30. Check my tank. The Accurite says my tank is at 108 freaking degrees. Hydrofarm is at 98. I set it for 93. I'm having a really hard time getting this thing to regulate itself properly... obviously. Which one do I trust here, Hydrofarm or Accurite? I was doing better with the light-dimmer and Accurite (or at least I thought I was). The temperature in the room rises and falls fairly significantly by day and night. I'd have to check to see the exact changes. But, could that be causing the Hydrofarm to overreact?

I got a 20gallon ZooMed. UTH, obviously. One bulb and blacklight on top as well. The probes are buried under about 3/5 or 4/5 of an inch of shredded coco-husk.

Need more info or want pictures, please let me know.

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Originally Posted by BWyant

Well, I've heard a lot of you guys say that this particular thermostat can be as much as 3 degrees off. I'm beginning to think it's more like 10.

I leave for work at about 10am every day. Usually get home around 5:30. Check my tank. The Accurite says my tank is at 108 freaking degrees. Hydrofarm is at 98. I set it for 93. I'm having a really hard time getting this thing to regulate itself properly... obviously. Which one do I trust here, Hydrofarm or Accurite? I was doing better with the light-dimmer and Accurite (or at least I thought I was). The temperature in the room rises and falls fairly significantly by day and night. I'd have to check to see the exact changes. But, could that be causing the Hydrofarm to overreact?

I got a 20gallon ZooMed. UTH, obviously. One bulb and blacklight on top as well. The probes are buried under about 3/5 or 4/5 of an inch of shredded coco-husk.

Need more info or want pictures, please let me know.

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Don't put your thermostat probe in the enclosure. Keep it outside. Some people keep their probes successfully inside, but I wouldn't risk it. The snake could move it off the heating source and create temp spikes.
If it says 98/108 degrees, then the Thermostat shouldn't even be on if it's set to a max of 93. Could your bulbs be making it too hot as well?

As for which to trust more, Hydrofarm or Accurite. Neither. Both aren't very accurate. And the thermostat isn't meant to be used as a thermometer. I've had 4 Accurites and 2 of them were 10 degrees off from one another. The remaining two matched up with my temp gun.
I would invest in a temp gun.

Thanks for the reply,

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Originally Posted by satomi325

Don't put your thermostat probe in the enclosure. Keep it outside.

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Really? How's it supposed to control or know the temperature in the tank then?

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Originally Posted by satomi325

Some people keep their probes successfully inside, but I wouldn't risk it. The snake could move it off the heating source and create temp spikes.

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I've got the cord, just before the probe, duct-taped down to the glass for exactly that reason. Snake moved it once. I said "Oh, no, you won't outsmart me."

Are there any other risks of keeping it inside?

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Originally Posted by satomi325

If it says 98/108 degrees, then the Thermostat shouldn't even be on if it's set to a max of 93.

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That's what I'm saying! LoL.

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Originally Posted by satomi325

Could your bulbs be making it too hot as well?

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I doubt it. I mentioned that I thought I had things set up properly before when it was just the Accurite and light-switch dimmer, I think. I haven't had this trouble getting the temps stable before, but I guess I was only looking at one temp reading and assuming that I could reasonably trust it at that time. I just got the Hydrofarm a couple days ago.

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Originally Posted by satomi325

And the thermostat isn't meant to be used as a thermometer.

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Ok, I'm stupid. Explain what you mean by that.

Really? How's it supposed to control or know the temperature in the tank then?

By attaching the probe directly to the UTH, you can control the temperature of the UTH, then you your thermometer to set the thermostat to the right setting.

I've got the cord, just before the probe, duct-taped down to the glass for exactly that reason. Snake moved it once. I said "Oh, no, you won't outsmart me."

Are there any other risks of keeping it inside?

The tape isn't inside the cage right? Tape inside the cage is a major no no.

That's what I'm saying! LoL.



I doubt it. I mentioned that I thought I had things set up properly before when it was just the Accurite and light-switch dimmer, I think. I haven't had this trouble getting the temps stable before, but I guess I was only looking at one temp reading and assuming that I could reasonably trust it at that time. I just got the Hydrofarm a couple days ago.



Ok, I'm stupid. Explain what you mean by that.

Meaning that you shouldn't use the thermostat to measure temperature. The thermostat needs to be set to the temperature that makes the cage the right temperature. for most of my cages my thermostats are set at 100-102.5 degrees to create a 90 degree hotspot. Try to think of the thermostat set temperature as a number and not as a temperature.

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Originally Posted by BWyant

I've got the cord, just before the probe, duct-taped down to the glass for exactly that reason.

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Please get the tape out of your enclosure! Snakes and tape don't mix well.

Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk 2

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Originally Posted by DrDooLittle

Please get the tape out of your enclosure! Snakes and tape don't mix well.

Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk 2

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Why is tape bad? Chemicals?

I trust my one Hydrofarm just slightly more than the accurites I run but I trust neither of them completely. Anyone walking into my reptile room would freak looking at what temp the thermostats say lol.

Just double check occasionally with a reliable temp gun and adjust accordingly

Never, ever use tape inside the enclosure. It can do some nasty damage to snakes. What you do is layer it from the bottom up like so: UTH, probe in the middle of the heater, then bottom of tank, glass, accurite probe, substrate (1/2").
Aside from getting knocked loose, there is just a lot of variables to contend with. Moisture, urination, defecation...snake. It's safer to have it at a constant. If you want to secure a probe, (thermometer) I've heard using hot glue works well without the risk of sticky tape getting stuck to your baby. I don't personally have my thermometer probe secured, but I check my temps 2 times a day with a temp gun and the probe doesn't get moved too much by my girl. I have a red heat light on a dimmer + the thermostat / UTH and when I got the light I had to adjust both quite a bit to get a good zone. My thermostat is set for 94, and the red light is about half power. That keeps her hot side hide (right on the glass reading) at 89-92 (the range I blame on the hydrofarm stat...herpstat ordered should be here in a week hopefully!) and her cool side hovering from 77-80. It definitely takes some tweaking, but I was more comfortable having the UTH only hitting 88 by itself and using the red light to bring it up to 90 range, then having my tstat set at 95+ to get the glass at 90.

A thermostat is meant to control the temperature. Not to tell you how hot your enclosure is. You need to use a temp gun / thermometer to see what your enclosure temps are. (Because a tstat is meant to be used outside of the enclosure)

No, snakes will find a way to get themselves stuck to it, and pulling tape off of a snake can really hurt them

Tape can get stuck to a snake, removing scales and skin.