Can I attatch my ZooMed Heat pad directly to tub?

[suzuki4life]

But why not just get a thermostat and keep the UTH at a safe temperature? they really aren't that expensive... say the average BP lives 20 years... Say you get a good thermostat... the herpstat 1 (retails for $139.00) that means that over the life of the snake, does $139 really matter? that is $6.95 a year.

And a proportional thermostat will increase the lifespan of a UTH. UTH's are basically giant resistors. The number 1 cause of premature failure of resistors is overheating... just like almost every other electrical component.

Nothing lasts forever. A pad will eventually wear out. No guarantee that regulating voltage will make the pad last longer.

And many people in the industry would have a big problem paying $140 to regulate a $20-30 pad. Personally I like heat regulated rooms, decent sized cages and hot spots created from above whenever possible. I'm looking at a new heating system for my room that will heat or cool as necessary. I'm spending a mere $900 on the setup which will create my ambient cage temps. People need to invest or take risks as they deem fit.

[Scubaf250]

This is pretty entertaining so I thought I would join in. Think about bet bills when your heater over heats. That $140 thermostat would pay for itself if that happened....

Anyway! Back on topic to the OP's question. Why not just leave the cover over the adhesive on the uth and then use foil tape to tape it to the tub. Then you can take it off without damaging it =)

[Hellacious]

This is pretty entertaining so I thought I would join in. Think about bet bills when your heater over heats. That $140 thermostat would pay for itself if that happened....

Anyway! Back on topic to the OP's question. Why not just leave the cover over the adhesive on the uth and then use foil tape to tape it to the tub. Then you can take it off without damaging it =)

I stuck it to the tub yesterday...Too late. All is well though.

[kitedemon]

I guess they should lay their cage out better then.

I bet if I take a heat pad, place it under a tank, plug it directly into the wall, place repti carpet and then a piece of slate over it(rock)...I'll bet the rock and area around it will be lucky to hit 100 degrees.

The OP is NOT speaking of a tank. A plastic tub has next to no insulative value. There is likely to be little loss of heat to the tub so you are relying on just the (MOVABLE) substrate to protect the OPs snake. That is irresponsible. I might concede that a UTH on a tank with carpet and rocks might not exceed 100ºs but that is NOT what was described. You do understand that Royals cannot digest food if their core temp is to high or too low right? The OP does not have regulated rooms or over head heat just a single snake and a plastic tub. Even if you don't need a t-stat (I disagree but...) he/she does.

Thermal burns are the NUMBER ONE injury for captive reptiles. Thermostats are the primary defence against this occurring. Cycling a resistive heater should do less harm that running it 100% 24/7.

[suzuki4life]

Cycling a resistive heater should do less harm that running it 100% 24/7.

if kept within proper voltage specs, a resistor should hold constant practically forever. Heating them up and cooling them down is what causes them to fail over time. However, a switch, manual or electronic, that holds a constant tend to fail.(from dirt build up, heat, corrosion etc).

Plastic holds a higher R value than glass.

[suzuki4life]

BTW since this is a tub, how does the OP intend to get proper airflow to the pad since most don't have a deep recess on the bottom to allow clearance?

[The Serpent Merchant]

Do you even know how proportional thermostats work? There are no "switches" envolved.

On/offstage thermostats do use relays, so yes over time they will wear out, but they are considerably cheaper.

The temperature of a resistor is greatly influenced by the ambiant temperature around it. So unless the room stays constant the temperature of a UTH will change. Zoo-Med themselfs admit that a thermostat is necessary in rooms over 80 degrees. That proves that the temperature is dependent on the ambiant temperature.

Look to be within the safe/ideal range you have to lower the temperature of a UTH by at least 30 degrees. No single pane of glass or sheet of plastic commonly used in the reptile industry is capable of that, heck my cages that are made of 1/2" thick PVC can't do that.

A proportional thermostat varies the temperature slightly, even the cheaper pulse proportional thermostats and high end on/off style thermostats do this. Large temperature swings aren't great, but the point of a good thermostat is to keep the temperature constant. So there isn't going to be more than a few degrees in temperature flux.

[The Serpent Merchant]

BTW since this is a tub, how does the OP intend to get proper airflow to the pad since most don't have a deep recess on the bottom to allow clearance?

If a UTH is on a good thermostat with the probe directly on the UTH there is no need for air flow over the UTH as any build up in temperature will be detected by the thermostat and power going to the UTH will be reduced maintaining the proper temperature.

[suzuki4life]

Do you even know how proportional thermostats work? There are no "switches" envolved.

On/offstage thermostats do use relays, so yes over time they will wear out, but they are considerably cheaper.

The temperature of a resistor is greatly influenced by the ambiant temperature around it. So unless the room stays constant the temperature of a UTH will change. Zoo-Med themselfs admit that a thermostat is necessary in rooms over 80 degrees. That proves that the temperature is dependent on the ambiant temperature.

Look to be within the safe/ideal range you have to lower the temperature of a UTH by at least 30 degrees. No single pane of glass or sheet of plastic commonly used in the reptile industry is capable of that, heck my cages that are made of 1/2" thick PVC can't do that.

A proportional thermostat varies the temperature slightly, even the cheaper pulse proportional thermostats and high end on/off style thermostats do this. Large temperature swings aren't great, but the point of a good thermostat is to keep the temperature constant. So there isn't going to be more than a few degrees in temperature flux.

is the OP using an on/off or a proportional?


if they aren't using a proportional, does it even matter to even discuss?

[suzuki4life]

If a UTH is on a good thermostat with the probe directly on the UTH there is no need for air flow over the UTH as any build up in temperature will be detected by the thermostat and power going to the UTH will be reduced maintaining the proper temperature.

we already discussed that you don't put the sensor on the heat dource directly on another post. Tired of beating the dead horse.