Uth thermostat?

So my two bp have under tank heaters (different enclosures, dont worry lol) and im a little worried because my yellow belly male likes to move the substrate and stay against the glass and im scared he might get burned or something, and im also worried about my lemonblast female because she doesnt move the substrate and i wonder if she is too cold (im getting a temperature gun next week) and ive searched thermostats but they say they are for basking lights, do they work for an uth as well? If so, what brand would you reccomend? Also, i dont have basking lights because bp need belly heat and they hide during the day, but i was thinkimg about buying red lights for the night time and placing the water bowls under them so that humidity goes up a little bit, is that a good idea? should i place the heat lamp in the center of the enclosure? Would it dry out the enclosure instead of raising humidity? (I was going to buy a small light) thanks in advance

You definitely need a thermostat for any heat source, including UTH, do not run a UTH without a thermostat ... it will cause burns

Right now I'm using a Jump Start thermostat on my UTH like this:

https://www.amazon.com/Hydrofarm-MTP.../dp/B000NZZG3S

Heat mat is plugged into the thermostat, and the probe for the thermostat is either securely taped in between the mat and the tank or (like in my case, because I stuck the UTH on before I could do this), you could securely tape it to the non-sticky side of the UTH with aluminum tape ....but you want the probe monitoring the mat itself, and NOT placed inside the tank. If the stat probe is inside the tank it could be urinated on or shifted by the snake and then that could throw off the thermostat and cause possible overheating as well.

Second, you need a thermometer probe on top of the hot spot on the INSIDE of the tank to monitor and make sure that UTH keeps the inside surface that your BP touches at around 90 degrees

For my lamp, I use a lamp dimmer and manually adjust them depending on the weather or day vs night..... you could use thermostat as well for this for a more automated process (it would turn the light on/off to keep temp in check), but right now I'm just using the cheap dimmer and keep my eye on it. I'm in SoCal so our weather stays pretty moderate year round.

On top of all this, having an infrared temp gun is great for double checking any spot in the tank

Many people here will also recommend the Herpstat ...but I am not familiar with it (I'm still a noob myself), but that's another option to look into

SpacegirlSpiff's reply is spot-on. as stated above: DO NOT run a UTH unregulated. PLEASE unplug it until you get a thermostat. if your ambient temps are within the correct range, going a few days without belly heat while you correct the issue will not harm the snake.
if you're having humidity issues: cover mesh-top enclosures with saran wrap or tinfoil, get a larger water dish and move the water dish to the hot side. you can also get sphagnum moss which is great for humidity and during sheds. bulbs are not great for humidity. i personally don't use them but others do with success; maybe they can chime in for that.
how are you currently measuring humidity/temps?

For humidity, I cover the majority of my top with foil and sometimes to up it I'll put a wet washcloth in between the foil and the screen top, or will mist a bit with a spray bottle inside

Again, being in SoCal it doesnt drop TOO much, but sometimes will drop into the 40's and I'll need to intervene

I just purchased a larger water dish that I'm going to try and see if that helps better than having to use a wet wash cloth

I am also using the jump start thermostat. You just plug the UTH right into the tstat. I set it to 90 it kicks in at 88 and turns off at 92 so it's always between 88-92. My guy is in a 27qrt with the tstat probe taped to the under side of the tub between the mat and bottom tub. I have an acurite thermometer that reads for humidity as well with the probe set inside the tub underneath his substrate on the hot side. I check the hotpsot about once a week with my temp gun. Hope that helps!. Cheers

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I think im going to add more substrate just to prevent any burns and im getting the thermostats asap, also, i have my babies in identical enclosures next to each other, with the same type of heating pad, do you people think that one thermostat will be ok for both of them? I see a thermostat made by zilla and you can plug two things in it but of course only has one probe, im thinking that it could work, because i want to maintain the same temperature on both heat pads, and both temperatures will be the same because its the same kind of heat pad, what do you think?

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Originally Posted by Gc99

I think im going to add more substrate just to prevent any burns and im getting the thermostats asap, also, i have my babies in identical enclosures next to each other, with the same type of heating pad, do you people think that one thermostat will be ok for both of them? I see a thermostat made by zilla and you can plug two things in it but of course only has one probe, im thinking that it could work, because i want to maintain the same temperature on both heat pads, and both temperatures will be the same because its the same kind of heat pad, what do you think?

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Yeah that could work. Since you sre getting a temp gun that will give you the precise reading. When i first got my bp i was checking woth the temp gun daily. But my breedrr said once a week is ok
What about a thermometer also? I didn't see that mentioned in your original post?

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I figured that with the thermostat and the temp gun i wouldnt need a thermometer, because i would be using the temp gun very often, but please correct me if im wrong

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Originally Posted by Gc99

do you people think that one thermostat will be ok for both of them? I see a thermostat made by zilla and you can plug two things in it but of course only has one probe

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get two thermostats, or a thermostat with two probes; do not try to cut corners at the risk of injuring or killing your snake. the JumpStart 'stats are great at ~$30, or you can get a $15 dimmer at Lowe's (https://m.lowes.com/pd/Lutron-Creden...Dimmer/4462387) which also works to control temps.
if buying two is entirely impossible, then your idea may work.

Also, what is the best place to put the probe, and with what should i attach it?

No, i was just wondering if it was possible, if i have to buy two then im more than happy to do it, but if one would be ok then i would go with one

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Originally Posted by Gc99

No, i was just wondering if it was possible, if i have to buy two then im more than happy to do it, but if one would be ok then i would go with one

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i understand, but if i had that setup i'd be anxiously checking the non-probed UTH every minute i could. 😛 the risk there far outweighs the benefits imo.

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Originally Posted by Gc99

Also, what is the best place to put the probe, and with what should i attach it?

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https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...582b53876a.jpg
diagram by user PitontheProwl.

use aluminum tape.

Thanks for the diagram, and i will be using two thermostats, i think im gonna go for the zilla thermostat, because i like how it looks and ive seen plenty of good reviews, so just tape the probe to the non-sticky side of the heat pad? I didnt think that part got hot but thank you, also, a question totally unrelated to temperatures, what kind of water do you give to your reptiles? I use bottled water that i get at walmart, not tap water, but ive seen a product called reptisafe and it says it makes the water safe and better for reptiles

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Gc99

Thanks for the diagram, and i will be using two thermostats, i think im gonna go for the zilla thermostat, because i like how it looks and ive seen plenty of good reviews, so just tape the probe to the non-sticky side of the heat pad? I didnt think that part got hot but thank you,

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probe goes between the UTH and the underside of the enclosure. look over the diagram again.

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Originally Posted by Gc99

also, a question totally unrelated to temperatures, what kind of water do you give to your reptiles? I use bottled water that i get at walmart, not tap water, but ive seen a product called reptisafe and it says it makes the water safe and better for reptiles

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if you drink it, it is safe for your snake; i use tap water. i don't think water conditioners are necessary if you drink from the tap.

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Originally Posted by Gc99

Thanks for the diagram, and i will be using two thermostats, i think im gonna go for the zilla thermostat, because i like how it looks and ive seen plenty of good reviews, so just tape the probe to the non-sticky side of the heat pad? I didnt think that part got hot but thank you, also, a question totally unrelated to temperatures, what kind of water do you give to your reptiles? I use bottled water that i get at walmart, not tap water, but ive seen a product called reptisafe and it says it makes the water safe and better for reptiles

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If your heat mats are already adhered to the enclosure, it would be OK to securely attach the probe with aluminum tape to the non-sticky side ...that's what I ended up doing because I didn't realize it usually goes in between and it was already stuck on. I put the tape right up to where the probe part starts, not covering the actual probe FYI...just taping it so that the probe lays against the mat

OR if you're careful you could try to lift it up just enough to get the probe in there, but there's the risk of damaging the mat I think, so I didn't wanna risk it personally

But just want to say, mine works being taped to the underside. Just gotta play with it some to get the right temp it should be set to so that your inside surface temp is right. in my case, I have a reptile carpet and then a thin layer of eco earth on top of that (I may switch to just a layer of paper towel or something rather than the carpet, I'm not sure, I'm still a noob figuring things out), but that's what I have at the moment and because of those layers my t-stat is set at ~96, which makes the surface the snake sits on ~89-90ish. So it will depend on your set up but, just gotta play with it and check it often with the temp gun until you find the right setting

I was thinking (and really, please tell me if its a bad idea) to put the probe on the non sticky side (bc its already on the tank) and then cover it totally with aluminum tape so that it measures the heat pad's temp accurately and it wont move, or should i just use one strip of tape? Im sorry for all the questions, but i just wasnt aware until today that an uth without a thermostat could be dangerous, they dont tell you that when they sell you a "ball python kit" and i feel really bad because my snakes could have been hurt bc of that

Temperature is also taken UNDER the substrate. Your snakes will burrow.

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Originally Posted by Gc99

I was thinking (and really, please tell me if its a bad idea) to put the probe on the non sticky side (bc its already on the tank) and then cover it totally with aluminum tape so that it measures the heat pad's temp accurately and it wont move, or should i just use one strip of tape? Im sorry for all the questions, but i just wasnt aware until today that an uth without a thermostat could be dangerous, they dont tell you that when they sell you a "ball python kit" and i feel really bad because my snakes could have been hurt bc of that

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pry up a corner of that UTH and get the probe between it and the tank, then just use aluminum tape and tape the corner you pulled off back to the tank. Done lol.

those kits are a joke and a quick buck for the store. You are on the right track now though, it'll get easier lol.

I decided to buy two zoo med digital thermometers for that

Once i get to see the size of the probe i will either attach it like you said or just against the non sticky side. And yes, they are a rip off, i got two hygrometers that didnt even work and the store said that they were fine when i took them

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Originally Posted by Gc99

Once i get to see the size of the probe i will either attach it like you said or just against the non sticky side. And yes, they are a rip off, i got two hygrometers that didnt even work and the store said that they were fine when i took them

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that sounds about right for a pet store lol.