Acceptable temperature gradient with UTH

I have read the care sheets, and they seem to mostly talk about air temp. I also understand that for UTH you focus on surface temp r/t air temp. In my 20gal setup (see pic), I have a 8 watt zilla on the left side of the tank, centered under the paper bowl. I put 3 liners between the glass and the newspaper to reduce the surface temp measured by a probe under the bowl taped to the newspaper, of 93F currently (thermostat in the mail). The bowl does quite a bit to trap heat and raise that temp.

My question is, because I'm using a UTH, how much need I be concerned with the ambient air temp in the rest of the tank? Directly over the heated area it appears to be 80 degrees. The other side is more like room temp, around 76 (But I could see this dropping when my house is more like 65-70 degrees). (With non-UTH I understand you want a gradient of 90 to 80 on cold side). Is my snake going to be happy enough knowing that she has a warm place to go to? How do UTH users control the ambient temperature in the rest of the tank during the winter?

If you could point me to a good care sheet that describes UTHs better that would be very helpful too.

http://oi60.tinypic.com/o758jm.jpg

I had a similar problem and had to buy a CHE. If I'm reading your post correctly it seems like you don't have enough of a heat gradient.

I was just logging in to ask the same question when I saw your thread. I have a very similar set up. I have been able to keep the temps right by covering a good 80% of the tank lid with plastic wrap to keep humidity and heat in the tank. However I did notice that the tank had dropped this morning from the usual 80 degrees the cool side runs at to 75. I live in Arizona and we had our first chilly night last night so I could easily see this being the reason it dropped. Wish I had an answer to your question, but I am in the same boat. I would like to avoid putting an overhead light on the tank since they tend to dry it out so much, but I just don't see that UTH generating enough heat to keep the cool side as high as it needs to be. Hopefully someone will come along soon who has encountered and corrected the same issue. Is there a such thing as an overhead/ambient heat source that doesn't eat up humidity?

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Originally Posted by kiiarah

I was just logging in to ask the same question when I saw your thread. I have a very similar set up. I have been able to keep the temps right by covering a good 80% of the tank lid with plastic wrap to keep humidity and heat in the tank. However I did notice that the tank had dropped this morning from the usual 80 degrees the cool side runs at to 75. I live in Arizona and we had our first chilly night last night so I could easily see this being the reason it dropped. Wish I had an answer to your question, but I am in the same boat. I would like to avoid putting an overhead light on the tank since they tend to dry it out so much, but I just don't see that UTH generating enough heat to keep the cool side as high as it needs to be. Hopefully someone will come along soon who has encountered and corrected the same issue. Is there a such thing as an overhead/ambient heat source that doesn't eat up humidity?

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75 is fine for a cool side temp, especially if it's only an occasional overnight temp.

@kiiarah thanks for the response and the idea to cover the top. Here's a thought, maybe we can cover the screen lid with something that insulates better than plastic wrap? That should keep the heat from rising out so easily.

Lets not think gradient and an uth does nothing for your ambient temps.

What you need is a hotspot of 88-90 and the ambient to be around 77-82. Your ambient temp can be the same in the entire tank if it stays in that range. Now an occasional drop to 75 will not be harmful as long as its only occasional and not for a long period of time.

The danger you are facing right now is having a uth that is not controlled. The newspaper is acting as a buffer right now but your snake can very easily go under the paper. Once it does it will likely choose that as its hide. So at that point your snake will be directly on the tank floor and open to being burned by the uth.

It may be beneficial to get a heat lamp of che to use for right now and just provide the proper ambient temps until your tstat arrives. A che or heat bulb can easily provide a hot spot on the hide and proper aired temps alone. A dimmer can be used to get the temps dialed in for that or a lamp stand. Using a lamp stand the closer to the tank the warmer the hotspot and the further away the cooler it will be. Both using distance or a dimmer only works well in a stable climate controlled room. The more temp fluctuation you have the more the hotspot and ambient will change throughout the day and night. To be best controlled a tstat on each heating device is best.

You can cover the sides and back with thick art paper of construction paper which will actually give you 2-3 degrees higher alone. Then what I did to mine was make a cardboard cutout with a heat lamp window. I think covered it with foil and laid it on the screen. This gave me more heat and better humidity control. My room stays at 68 and doing that my 40gallon tank still needed a 100 che hot side and a 60 watt bulb on the cool side paired with a uth. That gives you an idea of what may be needed later when you upgrade sizes.

In the future you may want to upgrade to a thick walled PVC cage but if your like me you may just like how a tank presents itself but know it takes alot to keep it right in a cold room.

I would get rid of the paper water bowl and get a heavier one like a dog bowl, or even a square Tupperware style. The paper bowl is going to be flipped easily.

I agree with KGM, a thermostat is a must. Those heat mats can get as high as 140 degrees unregulated. The actual glass temp has to be measured. You can get a budget hydrofarm on Amazon for a great price out members on here could recommend a higher end thermostat if you have some money to throw around. The dinner switches work and are cheap but you have to check and adjust them any time the room temps drop.

I have a towel on folded on top of the plastic wrap which I am hoping helps insulate it. You should pick up ahygrometer also if you don't have one already. Bps are pretty humidity dependent snakes.