Ball python Temps?

I am very paranoid right now, his temperature seems to be around 90 or 92 and the heat pad doesn't really feel like it's that hot. He's in a small tub that seems perfectly fine for him since he's just a baby. But I don't know why I'm really scared about his Temps, they seem to be fine though. Where exactly should the heat pad go? I have it placed on the far side of the tub and im using aspen bedding. The temp at the bottom of the tub is 90 but should that be perfect? Any tips? What are signs of him doing well?

If the uth is on a tstat and setup correctly you are good. The uth can go under the tank where ever you want it. The uth goes OUTSIDE the tub on the bottom with the tstat probe between it and the bottom of the tub.

The substrate over the uth needs to be thin. Always take the temp reading on the bare tub floor over the uth.

I'm using a dimmer, i use a dimmer with my leopard gecko and it works great, should i get a digital thermometer instead of using an analog?

Dimmers can work but the best setup is using a good quality tstat. I like Herpstat. When you consider how long they last vs price they are a good deal. Do it right the first time and get a good one.

The issue with a dimmer is they are not aware of the changes around them. If the room gets hot the dimmer doesn't know it and makes the uth hotter than it should be. A tstat in that same situation with a tstat keeps the uth at the desired temp because it knows the room got hotter. It works the opposite in a cold room.

A dimmer is best for rooms that have little to no fluctuation in temp throughout the day and year.

The analog will work fine for your ambient temps but you should get a IR temp gun to measure the surface temps. They can be had pretty cheap on Amazon.

Ok i placed the analog on the very bottom of the tub right on the hot spot and im getting 90 to 92, thats perfect right? How big should the hotspot be? Sorry for all the questions! Lol

I would say that trying to use the analog thermometer like that is not giving you the correct temperature. It is made to measure the temp of the air, not surfaces. I would say that if it is saying the hotspot is 91 it is actually much higher. I would reduce the dimmer to drop the temp. When I got a temp gun I found the numbers I thought I was providing were actually off. A temp gun really took my keeping to the next level and much more accurate.

You can also get temp guns at the hardware store but they may be more expensive than the el cheapo ones online.

The hotspot should be large enough for the snake to get its entire body over it.

Definitely get a digital thermometer with probe and put it under substrate like KMG said. Even though the tub doesn't feel hot doesn't mean it isn't. As humans our body temp is higher then bp hot spot so normally it wouldn't feel hot unless its actually hotter then our body temp. If you walked outside for 20 mins in 20 degree weather and came back in and touched it then it would feel hot due to your body temp being lowered from being outside.
I use lamp dimmers and yes like KMG said you do have to keep an eye on them due to the changes in temp in your home. I'm constantly monitoring temps so its not a big deal to me. I would be checking all the time with 3 temp guns in all my herps enclosures even if I did have a thermostat. I want to upgrade and get a few herpastat 4s but the price drags me down a little. Especially bc I need 3 of them.

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Originally Posted by chrid16371

Definitely get a digital thermometer with probe and put it under substrate like KMG said. Even though the tub doesn't feel hot doesn't mean it isn't. As humans our body temp is higher then bp hot spot so normally it wouldn't feel hot unless its actually hotter then our body temp. If you walked outside for 20 mins in 20 degree weather and came back in and touched it then it would feel hot due to your body temp being lowered from being outside.
I use lamp dimmers and yes like KMG said you do have to keep an eye on them due to the changes in temp in your home. I'm constantly monitoring temps so its not a big deal to me. I would be checking all the time with 3 temp guns in all my herps enclosures even if I did have a thermostat. I want to upgrade and get a few herpastat 4s but the price drags me down a little. Especially bc I need 3 of them.

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Have you seen they are coming out with a Herpstat6? Pretty cool!!!!

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Originally Posted by KMG

Have you seen they are coming out with a Herpstat6? Pretty cool!!!!

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No I didn't. But thanks for letting me know! I'll look into it. I'll only need 2 then. If only they would come out with a 12 lol

ok thanks guys, im going to the pet store to get a zoo med digital thermometer with a probe asap, it sucks how stores like home depot dont sell thermostats.

This would be your better choice.
I know my Walmart and Home Depot carry this one.

http://www.acurite.com/digital-indoo...r-00891a2.html

So i got the thermometer and it's at 92 and 93, thats pretty good right? I just hope that this thermometer is accurate. Also, i know that ball pythons take it really easy during the day, so its completely normal for him to be on the heated area almost all day right?

Alright so were exactly should the probe be? I put it inside the cage in the substrate and it also makes contact at the bottom of the cage, is that fine?

You might also try setting a bag of rice or something on top of the probe for a couple of hours and then checking the temperature. When the snake sits on it for awhile, its body will trap heat and the temperature will go up higher than when the probe is just sitting there. I have my heat mat on a dimmer and set it so that the hot spot is around 87-88 with no snake on it. It goes up to about 91-92 after he's been sitting on it for awhile. (The rest of the enclosure is on a thermostat and stays constant, and the bottom of the tank under the heat mat is also very well insulated, so the heat mat and how much it changes when it gets sat on is very predictable, even if the outside room temperature changes.)
If nothing else, it's good to know the difference in how hot it might get when it's being sat on as opposed to when it's not. Better not to worry that a new snake who's too nervous to come out and switch to the cool hide will overheat when its body insulates the basking spot and ends up way hotter than you thought it would get.

Well i guess i dont have much to worry about anymore since the temps are perfect. Im just a bit scared about feeding. Where i got him from they feed live hoppers, can i transition him to frozen hoppers?

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Originally Posted by Nathan7004

Well i guess i dont have much to worry about anymore since the temps are perfect. Im just a bit scared about feeding. Where i got him from they feed live hoppers, can i transition him to frozen hoppers?

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If you haven't fed him yet start with the live hoppers. After he eats 4 times for you then you can try switching. That's what was recommended to me. Just make sure you don't leave any live prey unattended. If he has already ate for you a few times go ahead and try frozen.

Ok thanks for the tips :)

Quick question, how much of the tank should the heat pad cover? Right now its just covering one side of the tub but not half of the tub, is that ok?

As long as the snake fits on the pad it will be good.

Alright perfect, he spends pretty much the whole time just sitting on the heat so i guess im doing everything thing right

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Originally Posted by Nathan7004

Alright perfect, he spends pretty much the whole time just sitting on the heat so i guess im doing everything thing right

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Yeah mine did at first also but for the last 5 days he has been in his cold hide. I swear he hears my alarm go off in the morning bc the only time I see him is when I wake up for work and shine a dim light in to check on him and he always has his head poking out of his snake cave looking at me in the morning lol every day.

Just keep monitoring those temps. If you have a ir temp gun even better! I always like having a couple devices to compare. I use 2 temp guns plus a probe thermometer under substrate and another on top of substrate.

Yup im really checking his temps like every 10 min lol, this morning i realized that my heat pad isnt working well i think im going to switch it out with another bigger heat pad, can i use a zoomed heat pad without peeling off the adhesive? The heat pad is meant for 10 gallon and im using a small tub and i wouldnt like to peel it all off just yet, sorry if this is a dumb newbie question lol

I have used one with the backing still on it for a leopard gecko incubator and after awhile it started peeling off anyways so when that happened I took it off. Was it the smartest thing to do? Probably not. I wouldn't recommend it. Just bc it only started peeling off for me doesn't mean you would have the same happen. Could start melting and I don't think its worth the risk.

If you don't want to take it off yet bc you might want to use it on another enclosure at some point they can be moved even though people say they can't. I've moved several and what I did is while the were still hot I peeled them off bc the heat makes the adhesive gooy and then I moved them to another enclosure quickly then took electrical tape and taped around the edges bc the corners wouldn't stay. I have 2 in use I have moved with no problems. Just as long as everything remains flat against the enclosure surface. I check them everyday to make sure. They might not last me as long since I moved them but they seem to be holding up good. I've had them for a year and moved them about 9 months ago.

Or was there a different reason you wanted to keep the backing on it?

If you do take off the backing I recommend putting the uth on a thin piece of glass like from a picture frame then set the tub on top of glass so then you have less worry of melting the tub and if you ever want to move the uth its easier to peel of glass then plastic.

Well ill just get a smaller uth then, dont want to risk it, thanks for the help tho

A regulated UTH wouldnt melt a tub.
You can just take the wax paper off and put foil tape on sticky side to sticky side and then it is always reusable.

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Originally Posted by PitOnTheProwl

A regulated UTH wouldnt melt a tub.
You can just take the wax paper off and put foil tape on sticky side to sticky side and then it is always reusable.

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I was just going by what zoo med says that only the mini uth can be used with plastic tubs so I never took the chance of putting one directly on plastic without thin glass between. But good to know.
Do you just keep the foil tape on then tape the mat to the bottom?

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Originally Posted by chrid16371

Do you just keep the foil tape on then tape the mat to the bottom?

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Yes, then use oil tape along the edge to secure to whatever you want to heat.

Think about it..... A regulated heat source is between 95 and 100ish degrees depending on the heat loss through the plastic of the tub you are using.
If this was the case you would be able to sit on a tub and melt is with your body. ;)

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Originally Posted by PitOnTheProwl

Yes, then use oil tape along the edge to secure to whatever you want to heat.

Think about it..... A regulated heat source is between 95 and 100ish degrees depending on the heat loss through the plastic of the tub you are using.
If this was the case you would be able to sit on a tub and melt is with your body. ;)

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Lol good point. Most of the time I'm better safe then sorry. Always just thought heat + plastic = melt but the melting point of even a plastic water bottle is is a couple hundred degrees. Lol we all have are moments I guess. But thanks for the foil tape trick. I have rolls of it just laying around and I never thought to use it. Definitely make my life easier. The adhesive is a pain sometimes. Plus it will make the mat more solid. Now I'm going to go home after work and put it on all my heat mats.