Temp Gun vs. Digital Thermometer

I just got my temp gun, so I've suddenly become obsessed with the temperatures in my tank to make sure they're perfect for when my little guy comes. The problem is my Digi Thermometer and my temp gun are giving me totally different results. For example, on my cool side, the thermometer currently reads 79. But my temp gun shows anywhere from 86-90 degrees on the cool side, depending on where I point it. How can there be that much of a difference? From 79-90? Do you think there is something wrong with my thermometer or temp gun? By the way, I've got a human heating pad with newspaper for substrate right now. I felt the surface, and it definetely does not feel like 90 degrees.

It's hard to "feel" 90 degrees accurately. If you have another digital thermometer, I'd double-check with that, and if not, I'd double-check with a new battery/set of batteries in each device. Also, try placing the probe or the readout portion of the thermometer, whichever isn't on the cool side now, over there and see what it says then.

what size is the enclosure? is it glass? maybe the whole glass bottom is heating up from the heat pad (whiich is only under one side right?) the temp gun will tell you surface temps and the digi therm. will tell ambient. what are the temps on the hot side? maybe you need to lift the cage a little so air can circulate underneath.

I definitely need to get a temp gun, I have read a post somewhere that temp guns tend to more accurately tell surface temps than say a probe, and usualy they register higher temps than a probe does. So if say your probe is telling you surface temp is 90 its not unlikely that its closer to say 95. Again this is what Ive READ Ive got to buy a temp gun soon.

Seems like the batteries are okay. It is a glass tank, and it's about 30 gallons, maybe even 35, I think it's longer than most tanks. I'm about ready to just ditch this thing and get a rubbermaid. I've tried a heating pad on one side, I've tried a bulb on one side, I've tried 2 heating pads, I've tried a heating pad on one side, and a bulb on the other side, and nothing has given me the correct temperature gradient for this temp. I even got it to the point where the temp seemed okay on the cool side and on the warm side, but in the middle it was too cold. It's ridiculous. Maybe I'm being too anal with the temperatures, but I just want everything to be perfect for my new snake. I'm not taking ANY chances after my last one died, even though everyone assured me that it wasn't my fault. It's also bad with humidity. It reads 50-60% on one side, and 40% on the opposite end of the tank.

Anyway, so if the temp gun measures surface temp, and the thermometer measures ambient temp, which one should I be concerned with? If the ideal is to have the cool side at 80 degrees and the warm side at 90 degrees, is that referring to the surface temp, or the ambient temp?

I appreciate your help. I'd like to have everything just right before my snake comes.

Gen your hot spot should be just that, a general location your new buddy can crawl to for some xtra warmth( typicaly 88-92 degrees) and wich will naturaly produce a heat gradient (closer he gets the warmer, the farther away the cooler) so long as the coolest part of the enclosure is above 75-76 he'll have lots of sots to choose for that "aahh thats just the right temp" feeling. :P

Sorry bout the double post but I cant seem to get into the post edit. Just to make it clear the coolest portion of the tank will most likely register on the surface whatever the ambient temp is, maybe a wee bit higher. So iif your ambient temp is 80, the surface all the way on the cool side will probably be right around 80, therefore the center of the tank (surface) will be maybe 85, and your hot spot 90 (just as an example) :)

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Originally Posted by beaglegod

So iif your ambient temp is 80, the surface all the way on the cool side will probably be right around 80, therefore the center of the tank (surface) will be maybe 85, and your hot spot 90 (just as an example) :)

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See, that is exactly what I would want, but I just can't seem to make it work. My cool side was getting below 75 especially during the night, sometimes around 73, which was why I thought I should have some sort of heating on both sides of the tank. But I just can't seem to get it right.

The temps just seem to be all over the place when I measure with the temp gun. Even if it's 80 on the cool side and 90 on the warm side, the middle is never around 85. It's always like 90, or 77. It's either is too hot or too cold. I'm starting to get frustrated. Everyone always says how easy it is to maintain temps and humidity with rubbermaids, so I'm seriously thinking of switching. What do you guys think?

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Even if it's 80 on the cool side and 90 on the warm side, the middle is never around 85. It's always like 90, or 77. It's either is too hot or too cold.

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Try putting the probe from you digital thermometer in the middle,leave it for 10 min and see what it gives you, than move it to the cool side and do the same. Im not too familiar with temp guns and perhaps its so sensative and so focused it may not be giving you a general idea of what gradient you have. The only reason Im suggesting this is because 90 on one side and 80 on the other sounds pretty damn good to me.

Okay, I tried that. The thermometer says 80 in the middle AND 80 on the cool side. Is that okay? And what about the fact that the humidity reads 40 on one side and 60 on the other side (The side with the water bowl of course)?

Gen, it certainly wouldn't hurt to try a Rubbermaid, and you'll need to make that decision soon to have time to get set up, but it's possible you're worrying too much. Let me ask you this: where is your water dish, what material is it made of, and how big is it? That may seem like a silly question, but if the dish is plastic or at one end or too small, it may be that getting a 8" or 9" terra cotta or glass dish and putting it right in the middle will solve your problem with the middle being a bit cool. Humid air holds heat better than dry air, so if your water dish conducts heat well and is ~2/3 on/under the heat source, the air in the middle may be humid enough to hold the heat for a gradient better.

Gen you could do as Marla said and just make sure the water dish is wide and shallow enough and is partialy over your heat source to give more humidity to the air. Once youve got your humidity where you want it, you could always take your time setting up a rubbermaid enclosure and than you'll be able to use this one as a spare (or get more snakes ). Plus you wont have to put off the arival of your new baby Ball.

I've got a zoomed repti rock water dish. It's made of "foamed polystyrene" whatever that is. I don't have it directly in the middle, a little more on the cool side with most of it over a heating source. It measures about 7" by 5", sort of an oval shape.

By the way, I'm well aware of the fact that I'm worrying too much. :) My boyfriend keeps telling me I'm a crazy person, but I can't help it. I appreciate your advice, keep it coming!

Gen, I'm pretty sure that's not going to conduct the heat as well. Maybe try adding a small dish to the warm side or middle, but make it a heat-conductive material -- metal, glass, ceramic, anything like that. I'll bet if you get the humidity solved, the temp problem gets better.

I will try it out and let you know how it goes. Any ideas on where to get a good dish like that?

Definitely let us know how it goes. If you want a small dish, try a terra cotta dish for under a pot from WalMart, Home Depot, or a garden store -- the 3"-4" ones typically are under a dollar. For something bigger, there's terra cotta and ceramic dishes for under pots for up to about $8 at those same stores, or a Pyrex 8" pie dish for about $3. It might well be worth it to get a couple in different sizes, like a 4" and an 8" so that when the ambient humidity changes you are prepared.

Thanks, you're the greatest!!

LOL Glad to help! I want your bp to be happy and you to be able to relax and enjoy him and your spring break! :)

I can honestly say that I am feelin Gen on this whole issue! I had a thread about this in the BP Husbandry section. There is sumthin about the glass tank with the screen top! These things are psychotic & they are takin us to nuts-o-ville with them! My UTH keeps my warm side in the vacinity of 88-94F but i had to put a water cup, a humidity mat AND a wet towel over there to keep the humidity right around 50%. Now Hissy is goin into shed & keepin the humidity over 70% on the warm side is a constant misting struggle. The cool side tho, without a supplemental heat lamp, is 73F & like 80% humidity!! I don't even put the wet towel over the cool side! So, I had to toss a heat lamp over the cool side. I just leave the heat lamp up higher so that the heat isn't overbearing. Now the temp on the cool side is around 77-81F & the humidity never drops below 66%. And the thing is, I only have a 20 gallon & it's a 20 gallon tall, not wide!! I don't have enough room for a new snake or reptile of any sort so once Hissy gets a little bigger & I feel like she is too big for the 20 gallon tall (I don't wanna hear this "they can live in a 20 gallon until they are 3 feet long" crap) I will be switchin to a Rubbermaid fo sheezy! Until then, i will continue to go psycho over the temp & humidity conditions of my tank!

By the way, let us cross our fingers that Hissy's shed (her first from start to finish with me) is a good one. As some of you may remember, I bought her in mid shed &, as is all too often the case with pet stores, her tank was WAAAY too dry so the shed was miserable! She was very relaxed with me holding her today even tho she was in shed so i was really happy with that. We have made a ton of progress! I soaked her twice today! I also used vinegar & water to get that nasty ass hard water film off her tank, so thanks to those who suggested it. I didn't realize she was gettin ready to go to shed mode until i picked her up to spend some time with her & the light hit her eyes. Baby blues & cloudy. Here is to a successful shed! I figure that there is no better test for how well you are keeping the living arrangements than a shed!

OK, I am rambling now.

Good sheds and lack of RI and neurological symptoms are ususally the best indicator we have that our snakes are doing well, so you're right Eddie. I hope this one goes well for her. A humid hide is the easiest way to make sure they have enough humidity available when it's a struggle, so you may want to think about providing one of those when she's in shed. Also, I'm glad the vinegar and water worked for you. Vinegar is useful for cleaning glass of any kind.

I to struggled with my glass tank and temps and humidity. I got the Tropic Aire and problem sloved, that and some duct tape.
I use a human heat pad on hot side and a lamp w/ red 75 watt bulb on cool side.
Temps and humidity stay at 90-92 on hot and 80-82 on cool with 65% on hot and 50-55% on cool and 60% over all and around 78.5-81 degrees over all.

It stays pretty constant except if heat or humidity with in the house increase then some tweeking is needed. For that reason I have heat pad and light on a slide dimmer.
Check my temps with my temp gun and at the surface it will read the same as my digitals with probes that I have right on the floor surface on each end, so I assume they are both fairly correct.
So far Ozzy has had two great sheds, If I need to bump humidity up for sheds I just mist back wall of cage once or twice in 24 hr period or just stick a small pc of wet sponge in his hide with him and that takes it up to about 70-75%.

Hope this helps if ya wanna keep the glass tanks, you can make it work.
Good Luck

What size tank do you have jotay?

A 20 long.
I have talk with others who have bigger tanks who use a set up like mine and they just use a bigger air pump on the Tropic Aire and a bit higher wattage bulb