Uth

i am about to go get mine
before then i want to know do i put it under the cage or can i put it in the cage under my repti carpet

Under, do NOT put it in the cage.

Oh, and welcome! :-)

Under the cage.

yea thats what i thought
i was thinking that the heat wouldnt get through the carpet well

A main function of that repti-carpet is to put additional space between your snake and their UTH.

ok ty
im thinking about using aspen too can i just lay that over

Yep. Also, get a rheostat or thermostat to control the temp of the UTH. They can, and do, get hot enough to burn you or your animals quite easily.

i was going to try and find one with a thermostat

I'd like to stress the rheostat/thermostat as well! I was using a UTH alone and thought my temps were fine, but when I got decent thermometers (Accurite brand from Wal-Mart) and put the probes under his hides the temps on the hot side were up to 101 degrees!!!

I was just using a Flukers thermometer/hygrometer combo in the middle of the cage, and it was reading in the mid-80s during that time!

where can i buy one BC i dont see it in the pet store or can i buy a dimmer

Hi and welcome!

First off, you can find rheostats in reptile stores and Petsmarts. Yes you can use a dimmer, but I think it's a little harder to use.
Second, the best place to get a t-stat is at ReptileBasics.com. Rich is the greatest and has really decent prices. A word of advice tho: try not to get the cheap stats like repti-temp 500R and Alife (sp?), get at least a Ranco or Johnson if not a herpstat or Helix. :)

you can get a lamp dimmer at Home Depot for about $12. I would only go that route if the temperature outside the cage is stable.

If you decide to go that route, you can PM me and I'll tell you more detail since this is what I do.

what size should i get
something to heat one-fourth of tank or one-third

Quote:

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Originally Posted by shawn2881

what size should i get
something to heat one-fourth of tank or one-third

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I'd go with 1/3. This way you won't have to get it as warm in order to heat the rest of the cage to an appropriate level.

i just got it and i seeing temps at max of 96 is that too high
its been on for about an hour

Hi,


What control method did you go with and where are you taking those temperatures? on the surface of the substrate or under the substrate?


dr del

i dont have a control method(i really need it)
i measured on top of my repti carpet

i just put another layer of repti carpet on top of where the uth is at see what that does

ok i got my rheostat
it was about 15 bucks
all i had left after i bought my BP
well temps on glass got around 96-97
and on top on repti carpet is about 91-93
is that ok
ima check it later see if its stays

i have the thing all the way on low and the temps still get up past 100+

I just had this problem too. I got a reostat and I wasted my money on it. I had gotten away with not using a any type of controling device by putting more or less air space between the tub and the uth. But I had to change this every few hours and it was really a pain to keep the temeratures right. I finally said screw this and ordered a ranco and flexwatt from rich at reptile basics. It is on its way now and will really make keeping my snakes much easier and safer. I could recommend getting a ranco. They don't cost as much as some of the proportional thermostats and if your room temeratures fluctuate at all you are going to have a ton of trouble keeping the temps right with a dimmer or reostat.

You've got it all the way on high then. I made the same mistake.

yea ima take it back and get
http://www.reptilesupply.com/popup_i...cbjvt15kp85mq4
or
http://www.reptiledirect.com/browsep...eluxe-500.HTML

ok i got a zoo med repti temp 500r
where do i put the probe thing.. directly on the glass inside and tape it down

Hi,


We really don't recomend tape inside the enclosure at all as it's just asking for problems.

the best place for the thermostat probe seems to be between the UTH and the bottom of the tank - this stops the snake tiher moving it or p'ing on it and throwing the heating off.


dr del

hmmm... ever notice they are called UNDER tank heaters, but are recommended for side mounting??