Temperature question

What temp should the air be inside my tank on the hot side?
I have my heat pad set at 90 with a rehostat. (Will be getting a tstat as soon as i can.) But the air temp gets to low 80s. Without nightime heat lamp on the hot side to keep temps up.

The entire tank can be 77-82. That's a good range. Most shoot for a tank at 80 with a 90 hotspot.

Ambient temp of 80 is fine. As long as the hot spot is where it should be. If your heat pad is set to 90, is the hot spot at 90? All of my UTHs are set to a higher temp in order to achieve about 90 inside the enclosure at the hot spot. Have you read over the caresheet? It really will answer a lot of questions about husbandry.

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Originally Posted by Skittles1101

Ambient temp of 80 is fine. As long as the hot spot is where it should be. If your heat pad is set to 90, is the hot spot at 90? All of my UTHs are set to a higher temp in order to achieve about 90 inside the enclosure at the hot spot. Have you read over the caresheet? It really will answer a lot of questions about husbandry.

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They are using a dimmer. I little low is better than to hot from a temp change.

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Originally Posted by KMG

They are using a dimmer. I little low is better than to hot from a temp change.

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OH! Didn't see that! I thought he meant one of those crappy Petsmart rheostats you can find in the reptile section. They're awful for fluctuating temps, but 100 times better than a dimmer.

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Originally Posted by Skittles1101

OH! Didn't see that! I thought he meant one of those crappy Petsmart rheostats you can find in the reptile section. They're awful for fluctuating temps, but 100 times better than a dimmer.

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Im using a zoomed rheostat. I bought it because i was told i needed either a rheostat OR a tstat. I wasnt clear on the difference and bought the cheaper one. Aaand im a she. Not a he lol

And also, my temps get as low as 75 on the cool side without a nightime heat lamp on

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Originally Posted by deathangel579

Im using a zoomed rheostat. I bought it because i was told i needed either a rheostat OR a tstat. I wasnt clear on the difference and bought the cheaper one. Aaand im a she. Not a he lol

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Apologies lol I guess it's steriotypical to say "he" on here when you're unsure...even being a female myself! There are people on here who swear by those cheap rheostats, but you really have to have extremely consistent temps in your house/room in order to make it work, and not many people are usually willing to take the chance of a temp spike since they aren't very reliable like most thermostats. I guess it's safer to keep the rheostat at a lower temp, but once you get a reliable thermostat it will take some trial and error to figure out what to set it at. Given my room temps and different fluctuations, mine are set at around 100-102 in order to achieve 92 inside the enclosure with a temp gun. But when I lived up north, and I lived in an old drafty house in the winter, I had to keep mine as high as 108 in order to get the same temperature.

As long as it doesn't drop below 75 I wouldn't worry.

A rheostat is a dimmer. I would honestly rather the dimmer vs. The cheap tstat sold at pet stores. Dimmers are much better in strictly controlled rooms.

As soon as i can afford it, im getting a herpstat and a temp gun. I was given wrong information and spent money on a rheostat.