Fan ???

It is really hot in my house, around 90deg, so I decided to put a fan over Twinkles tank.. I check the temps regularly and the ambient temp stays between 82-85, cool side is 78-82, and hot side is 85-90. Humidity is 60-70% (which is fine since she is in shed) but I have noticed that her eyes are prune... I have seen her shed before from beginning to end and have never seen her eyes like that. and I'm wondering if the fan is "drying" her out or if it is normal during a shed.

http://i1314.photobucket.com/albums/...g?t=1372897690

I would not blow a fan directly over a snake because the draft may cause a respiratory infection. Also those dial temperature gauges could be way off which they usually are. Get a digital thermometer with a probe to measure temperature to get a correct reading.

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Originally Posted by coleworld

I would not blow a fan directly over a snake because the draft may cause a respiratory infection. Also those dial temperature gauges could be way off which they usually are. Get a digital thermometer with a probe to measure temperature to get a correct reading.

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I have a digital thermometer, it's just hidden by the fan... How would you suggest I keep the temp and humidity down? If I take the fan away the ambient temp gets up to 95deg and the humidity get to 100% I'm just at a loss as to what to do...

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Originally Posted by coleworld

I would not blow a fan directly over a snake because the draft may cause a respiratory infection. Also those dial temperature gauges could be way off which they usually are. Get a digital thermometer with a probe to measure temperature to get a correct reading.

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I would recommend an infrared temp gun over any kind of thermometer that uses a probe. The temp gun is so much more versatile. You could literally check every square inch of that tank with a temp gun, whereas the probe will measure only where the probe is. A temp gun is probably the best herp-related money I've ever spent...

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Originally Posted by sho220

I would recommend an infrared temp gun over any kind of thermometer that uses a probe. The temp gun is so much more versatile. You could literally check every square inch of that tank with a temp gun, whereas the probe will measure only where the probe is. A temp gun is probably the best herp-related money I've ever spent...

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Ok I'll get one :D but what about the eye issue?

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Originally Posted by twinklestar

Ok I'll get one :D but what about the eye issue?

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lack of humidity

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Originally Posted by PitOnTheProwl

lack of humidity

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It doesn't get below 60%... And I have 2 hygrometers in the tank, one near the bottom and one near the top.

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Originally Posted by twinklestar

It doesn't get below 60%... And I have 2 hygrometers in the tank, one near the bottom and one near the top.

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Both look to be analog dials. As stated above, those have horrible accuracy and the humidity could be much lower than it is registering.

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Originally Posted by BHReptiles

Both look to be analog dials. As stated above, those have horrible accuracy and the humidity could be much lower than it is registering.

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So when I get a digital hygrometer where is the best place to put it? And I know you can calibrate the analog ones but I don't remember where I read how to do it..so for now I have taken the fan off and all I have is the UTH.

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Originally Posted by twinklestar

Ok I'll get one :D but what about the eye issue?

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Like the other good folks above have said, it's due to low humidity/dehydration. Do you cover the lid of the tank? If not, I'd cover a good part of it with foil to help keep the humidity up.


Other than that, get a rack/tub and stop fighting with the fish tank. :D

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Originally Posted by sho220

Like the other good folks above have said, it's due to low humidity/dehydration. Do you cover the lid of the tank? If not, I'd cover a good part of it with foil to help keep the humidity up.


Other than that, get a rack/tub and stop fighting with the fish tank. :D

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its not a fish tank, it's a reptile tank lol :P I plan to switch to a rack when I get a second one, but that's a whole other topic ;) as of now there isn't anything on the top so I'll try a damp towel for now until I can come up with something more permanent... Thank you for all the help :D

It's hot here as well and I have put a fan in the room. I keep it pointed up to help circulate the air coming from the ac vent and ensure its not blowing right on my girls 'reptile' tank. :P

Might wanna put him or her in nice humid soaking tub as well.

If your house is really 90F, you may want to turn the UTH off, at least during the day when its that hot.

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Originally Posted by FireStorm

If your house is really 90F, you may want to turn the UTH off, at least during the day when its that hot.

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this is good advice and is what I do if my room gets too hot. why have a uth running when it's that hot.

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Originally Posted by FireStorm

If your house is really 90F, you may want to turn the UTH off, at least during the day when its that hot.

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Originally Posted by don15681

this is good advice and is what I do if my room gets too hot. why have a uth running when it's that hot.

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:confusd::confusd: your stat should have it off anyway :gj:

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Originally Posted by PitOnTheProwl

:confusd::confusd: your stat should have it off anyway :gj:

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YES!! Couldn't agree more.

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Originally Posted by PitOnTheProwl

:confusd::confusd: your stat should have it off anyway :gj:

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If the house is at 90, and the hot side is hitting 95 without the fan, something is putting out heat. If the room is 85 or warmer, my experience has been that the snake will be fine without the hotspot.

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Originally Posted by FireStorm

If the house is at 90, and the hot side is hitting 95 without the fan, something is putting out heat. If the room is 85 or warmer, my experience has been that the snake will be fine without the hotspot.

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I never said the animal wouldn't be okay without a hot spot, one of my friends doesn't run any heat at all.
What I said was there is no need to remove the hotspot if you have something regulating it.

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Originally Posted by PitOnTheProwl

I never said the animal wouldn't be okay without a hot spot, one of my friends doesn't run any heat at all.
What I said was there is no need to remove the hotspot if you have something regulating it.

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I didn't interpret what you said that way. I wasn't intending my statement as argumentative, either, sorry if it came off that way. Just clarifying how I came to the conclusion that it needed to be turned off. And I figured I might as well add the part about the temps for the OP, so she wouldn't think it had to be 90 degrees before she turned the hotspot off. Guess that's what I get for posting when I'm tired....

Though, I can see how even a heat source on a thermostat could still be heating even though the room was very hot (not directing this at anyone in particular, just thinking out loud). The way most people set up an UTH with a thermostat, the probe is between the glass and the UTH, under the tank. Which means that the thermostat is usually set slightly higher than the desired temperature in the enclosure. So, for example, if the desired hotspot temp is at 90, the thermostat could be set to 95 (just making up #s here). This setup might work fine as long as the room temps are cooler, but if the room got up to, say, 90, the thermostat would still be trying to maintain the heat source at 95 and the hotspot in the enclosure would be hotter than desired. So, the thermostat would need to be adjusted to compensate for the higher ambient temps.

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Originally Posted by FireStorm

I didn't interpret what you said that way. I wasn't intending my statement as argumentative, either, sorry if it came off that way. Just clarifying how I came to the conclusion that it needed to be turned off. And I figured I might as well add the part about the temps for the OP, so she wouldn't think it had to be 90 degrees before she turned the hotspot off. Guess that's what I get for posting when I'm tired....

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I didn't take it any way other than both of us stating our opinions. :grouphug:

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Originally Posted by sho220

I would recommend an infrared temp gun over any kind of thermometer that uses a probe. The temp gun is so much more versatile. You could literally check every square inch of that tank with a temp gun, whereas the probe will measure only where the probe is. A temp gun is probably the best herp-related money I've ever spent...

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x2. i got the pro exotics PE-2 for like $35. use it every day.

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Originally Posted by TheSnakeGeek

x2. i got the pro exotics PE-2 for like $35. use it every day.

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Nothing to do with this thread, but your avatar reminded me... I like your photo. Goodluck with the contest!

Quick update:

so the day after the original post Twinkle shed and it was bad... So I gave her a good soak and rub down, she didn't like the soak but seemed to enjoy the rub down... I calibrated one of my analog hygrometers and it was about 5% over, fixed it and compared my other one to it, which is about 12% too high -.- now I'm wondering if the whole thing is wrong and it shows the wrong temp as well... I have a damp towel over 1/2 of the top and that's it... Humidity is finally under control... Now to go get better equipment for the set up I have and one day when I start adding to my collection a rack system :D thanks for all the help and input

digital is the way to go ;)