UTH is hot; tank is cold

Current setup:
Glass tank, 20 gallon, about 2'x1' for a 3'6" ball. (kind of small, but we're just starting out here)
Reptile liner thingy. It's kind of felt-like.
Some aspen.
ZooMed 8W UTH.
The $12 Acurite thermometer/hygrometer everyone recommends, unit on cool side, probe under liner directly over UTH.
Whole thing up on bricks for circulation.
CHE above.

UTH is very hot. But I don't think the snake can get burnt because of the liner. Either way, the rest of the tank is too cold. Like 75-80 cold.

I'm aware that I need some sort of regulator for the UTH but even with it hotter than it should be and the CHE running, the rest of the tank is no warmer at all.

Can anyone recommend a regulator and possibly explain what the different types do and what their pros and cons are?

I love this gif. :banana:

I would recommend insulating the back and sides of the tank with 1" foam. You can get a sealant and paint it--make sure it's for foam.

You can use a thermostat for the UTH with a sensor right where the snake can get.

75-80 is fine for the rest of the tank. if it drops below 75 then something needs to change. i keep mine at 80 everywhere, and 93 on the hot side. works great. also depending on how many snakes u have and how much u want to spend, u can get thermostats from $25-300 or more. i use the reptitemp 500 cuz its 25 bucks and works good for my 2. and i have a red bulb on the majority of the time

75-80* for ambient temps are just fine.

Work on getting a thermostat to control that UTH. You may think that your snake can't get under the substrate, but they are pretty good at being in places they shouldn't be :)

It is best to take preventative measures and control the UTH rather then dealing with vet bills from burns later.

Once I get the thermostat, the UTH will obviously stay much cooler as planned, but will the habitat then be warm enough for the snake an inch of glass, reptiliner, and aspen away?

Moved the CHE towards the cool side and all the temps seem cherry, though I'm only measuring where the snake lies. She isn't trying to burrow. I think I'm ok for now, but the pet store should have a t-stat in this week.

If you have the CHE and the UTH, you will be just fine.

Once you get the thermostat you won't need the repti carpet. Just a thin layer of aspen.

Why do you have an inch of glass on your tank? Most tanks use 1/8" glass.

This is exactly where you should be taking your temps so that is good. She might not be trying to burrow now, she may not ever try and burrow. Many snakes will inadvertently move the substrate while getting into a coil or while just moving around.

The inch is everything combined. Couldn't figure out a clear way to say that. I suppose the word "combined" might have helped.

I'm measuring the temps with the AcuRite probe on top of the substrate in the hot hide. Literally where the snake lies. As far as I've read, it should be on the glass underneath everything or on the UTH outside the tank. I've put it where I have because I want to know what the snake is feeling, rather than the out-of-control UTH, which I know is way too hot.

You're right about the liner. I had forgotten why we had even gotten it: solely to keep the snake from getting burnt. Think it can with the liner in place? I wouldn't think so unless it gets underneath, but we're trying to keep an eye on it. I check everything about every half-hour that I'm home and awake.

Ahh that makes more sense! haha

Your positioning is pretty smart especially since the way you have it set up. When you get a thermostat, I would put the probe under the substrate right where the UTH is (inside the enclosure). The thermometer probe always goes inside the enclosure, the thermostat probe always goes on the outside.

It is unlikely for the snake to become burned with the repticarpet although they always do seem to find their way into the nooks and crannies we don't want them in. Although it is very unlikely, it is still possible. Just make sure you check on the snake every once in a while to make sure it hasn't gotten under there. Once or twice a day should be fine. Remember, poking around the snake and constantly watching it will stress the snake and you out! :)

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Originally Posted by ClarkT

I would recommend insulating the back and sides of the tank with 1" foam. You can get a sealant and paint it--make sure it's for foam.

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Blue or pink foam, white isn't worth it to deal with.

To add to the make sure it's for foam... you can make napalm. So WATER based contact cement if you're sticking something to the foam...

and if you're going to paint it.... good luck. I generally put something on top of foam before I paint it - like glue+paper.

Well, thanks a lot everyone. The temps are holding, so I shouldn't have to insulate. Now that I've got everything pretty much right in the tank, I'm focusing on disturbing the enclosure as little as possible. I've ended up with a pet mouse because of refusal, but that isn't really surprising with all the hubbub the snake's gone through this week. The temps are a little warm inside the hot hide but the snake won't freaking leave it. I've put a little pile of substrate in front of the entrance to see when it does leave. It worries me a little and I want to check on it, but I don't want to disturb it and delay feeding. Should I lift up the hide and give it a poke to see if it's still alive or just let it be?

I must say getting our first ball had proven to be quite the learning experience. Stevepoppers and I have done nothing but research since getting her and have worried constantly about temperatures and feeding. She's in shed right now, and our humidity seems to be sticking between 50-60%. Could not having our humidity raised be part of the problem with her refusing to leave her hide? And if so, what are some of the best ways to raise it. We mist every few hours and have covered the screen with wet towels and foil, and it just doesn't seem to raise very much.

50-60 hum is good. U need a thermostat though. When u get one just make sure you attach the thermostat probe DIRECTY to the UTH. And your thermometer goes where the snake will be. That way u know the temp of the pad.
If I were you when u get the thermostat and get it all set up I'd chooseto use the Aspen or carpet. You don't really need both. And be careful because your snake will move that Aspen so I hope your takig the current temps on top of the repti carpet. If your worried about her getting under the carpet you can always just put some tape around t.
Good luck :). Jeremy.

Thanks. We've been considering removing the aspen. Gonna get some double-sided tape from the store to put under the carpet as well. The pet-store in the area is ordering a digital thermostat for us that should be in by Thursday (*crosses fingers*)....I think we're gonna wait until Friday or Saturday before disturbing her tank at all, so she gets more acclimated.

....Ball pythons are shy secretive animals. They RARELY leave their hides when they are happy. If your ball python is in shed, it will most definitely not come out of its hides until it is finished. This is completely normal.

Let me tell you this, if you were looking for a display animal, you got the wrong species, haha. Ball pythons will spend about 90% of their time in hides, coming out occasionally to look for food.


Please: DO NOT PUT ANY TAPE IN THE ENCLOSURE. Trust me on this one. You will end up peeling it off the snake at some point. I learned this the hard way. Many people learned this the hard way. Save your self the trouble and don't put tape in the enclosure. Hot glue could also work.

Also, I would try getting your humidity into the 70% range while she is shedding. While 50-60% isn't bad, the shed could still go bad and then you are left with a bunch of stuck shed to remove. Misting once or twice a day should help.

We do mist and it's actually usually towards the mid sixties. I've gotten used to the fact that it would be in the hide most of the time, but it's getting hot in there. It hasn't even moved to the cooler hide in days. That is what was worrying me.

We had the liner taped down and took it all out after seeing the strong warnings against it. It just made sense once someone mentions it.

Just waitin on that thermostat...

Don't worry about which hide the snake is in. As long as it doesn't get hotter then 95* he will be fine.
The reason you have a temp gradient is so the snake can choose. It is not uncommon for a snake to favor the warm side or favor the cool side.

Well, it is hotter than that. By a few degrees, usually. As long as my AcuRite is accurate and right.

wat do

Well, she wouldn't come out because of the shed. She may have actually been switching hides and I didn't notice. She did shed, and it was in pieces. Not really surprising the way things have been changing since we got her. Things will be more consistent for her next time. I actually caught her during the shed in the middle of the night. Tried filming it, but she did everything inside of her hide. Not a very exciting video, but exciting being there. Only a tiny bit of shed stuck to the tip of her tail.

The thermostat arrived at the petshop yesterday. Turned out to be a Reptitemp 500R. A little overpriced, but I'm just glad to have it. I'm still fine tuning it. The delay between the temperature of the UTH and the other side of the repticarpet makes it difficult. We're waiting until after we feed her tonight to change all that. Sunday, hopefully.

If you have the thermostat then you really don't need the reptile carpet, it will just make it harder to get the right temps since the UTH only heats surfaces and doesn't heat through materials very well.

A thin layer of aspen, cypress mulch, paper towels, or newspaper works well.

Yeah, we're just waiting til after she eats to change the bedding because we don't want to get her stressed again.

She ate! Can't tell you how pleased we are. Lol. We're gonna wait til Sunday evening then take the repticarpet and aspen out. I think we're gonna use newspaper from here on out. The aspen, honestly, just seems like it's gonna be a PIA. Temps have been perfect since setting up the thermostat. It's so relieving knowing that everything is finally stable husbandry wise and that she's eaten.

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Originally Posted by cboocks

She ate! Can't tell you how pleased we are. Lol. We're gonna wait til Sunday evening then take the repticarpet and aspen out. I think we're gonna use newspaper from here on out. The aspen, honestly, just seems like it's gonna be a PIA. Temps have been perfect since setting up the thermostat. It's so relieving knowing that everything is finally stable husbandry wise and that she's eaten.

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:gj:

Excellent news!