UTH too big?

Hi...I have a 20 gallon long that has 2-8 watt uths underneath on either side. I don't have a bp at the moment, but am looking to purchase one soon...so I want to get the tank set up now so I have time to fiddle with it. Anywho...

I had a problem with humidity being too low before. I've read that if you have your water dish over the uth a little, it will help with humidity. Problem is that the uth is so small, I can't really put the hot hide over it and even a small part of the water dish. They're on top of each other.

I have a thermostat for the hot side uth. Would it be possible to put the next size uth on there, even though it's supposed to be for 30-40 gallon tanks? Or am I asking for trouble? Any input would be appreciated :).

hey i would sugest you use a substrate that is good for humidity, your heat pad should cover one side of the tank which will give it enough room for a hiding spot and the water dish, i keep my snakes at 50% humidity all the time and during a shed i will spray the enclosures a little to boost it to about 60%-75%, what is ur humidity at right now?

its so great that you are waiting to make sure everything is good before you get the snake. what i did was i bought the 30-40 gallon uth for my 20 gallon long tank for the same reason and i figured it would be cover a large part of the hot area to help with the ambient temps. so to answer your question no there would be nothing wrong with that, infact it would be a good thing i think. good luck

When I had it set up before, my bp (who passed away) had mites, so I had him on paper towels awaiting stuff for treatment. I struggled with humidity, only getting it to about 20-30%. It would get to 50% or so only after I misted...which was quite a bit. I had a humidifier running constantly in the room where we kept him and it didn't do anything. When I get my next bp, I plan on using aspen. I'm not sure that the substrate would make such a difference...it's so dry in our house. I'd just hate to set it all up to tear it down cuz I have to add another uth. Although, I'd MUCH rather tear it down before I get a bp, not after. Thanks for the advice :)

hey, i currently have all my snakes on wood shaving(not pine) i have UTH and the room i have them in is 10 feet by 5 feet i also have a space heater which is set at 22C (76F) when it reaches this temp it shuts itself off and when it is below that temp it starts itself up again my humidifier works the same way its always set to about 45% and does the same as the heater maybe you should get a humidifier that has a setting opposed to one that constantly runs, i forget the brand of mine but i bought it at the wal-mart by my house for $49.99

I started using shredded coconut husk (sold as plantation soil) for a substrate. It worked like a charm to raise my humidity and keep it up. He likes to burrow in it too so that's an added bonus. I also use a very large water bowl in the center of the tank so he can submerge himself if he wants to. I have a 33 gallon long tank (36"x12"x18")

I thought about using the coconut as well...it's either going to be that or aspen. Thanks everyone for the help.

i use aspen shavings, coconut husk is great for humidity but its alot messier and hard to clean than the aspen shavings!