Thermostat controlling 2 pads?

[Alkaurkharim]

Ok so in anticipation for my new BP, sometime this week I hope, I'm getting her permanant home ready when she gets out of quarentine. Now my only problem is getting the temps right in the second tank. I currently have a Zoo-Med Thermostat which has worked pretty well keeping Elysia's tank at the correct temps, but since this thermostat only comes with 1 probe its becoming a problem to get both tanks heated on the same one, even though it has 2 plugs.

I keep Elysia at 88-93 degrees on the hotside, and BP's should have a basking spot of 90* or so correct? Well anyway I do this the temps don't seem to come close. This is how I have tried it so far:

Elysia's Tank
Heat-Pad on MED
88-93

BP's Tank
Heat-Pad on LOW, and tank is lowered just enough to have space between the bottom and the heatpad.
83-100

I don't know why it went so high, my only thoughts on this is it stays hotter in this tank, and when the heat starts to go on again for the top, its too hot for the bottom but heats up anyway, thereby overheating eventually.

BP's Tank
Heat-Pad on MED, tank raised slightly more then above.
84-89

Now this one I thought was going to be ok, but because there is so much space between the heatpad and the tank, it drops within 10min from 89 to 84.

BP's Tank
Heat-Pad on HIGH, tank at same level for MED.
86-92

Im still testing this one at the moment, but already I'm seeing the same temp drop as above in the MED test. It gets up to around 90-92, then just plummets as soon as the heat goes off. Not exactly sure how to go about this at the moment, any ideas?

[hhw]

If you keep the two in identical housing and in all else identical conditions, you should be able to get away with just using 1 thermostat for both. A lot of breeders keep entire racks on the same thermostat, since conditions will be identical for each tub.

[Alkaurkharim]

Well I can't keep them in identical housing o_O I have Elysia in a glass aquarium with a screen top, which I received as a gift. And the BP will be going in Elysia's old Sterilite 90QT. I did not think it would have such a huge difference in keeping the temps the same. But I just can't get the sterilite to stay at in high 80's without overheating it o_O

[Marla]

Your second heat pad may be wired backwards. Several of our members here have bought pads that were. See what temp it gets to on Hi, but definitely monitor it!

[Alkaurkharim]

I checked already for reverse wiring and it definately got hotter on high last night.

What temps o you keep your BPs at Marla?

[Marla]

They're all in range of what the targets are. One enclosure tends to get warmer, so I created a bigger gap for it and it doesn't get above 94 at the hottest now. The coldest is the big aquarium which is typically 77.8F on the cool end, but is also the longest so it still has a good heat gradient.

The most important things to keep in mind for temp are 1) make sure it doesn't get any higher than 94-95f at the absolute highest so you don't risk burning your snake, 2) make sure it is warm enough to aid in digestion, which means a reasonable minimum of about 86F in the warmest area, and 3) make sure you have a heat gradient with a minimum of about 8 degrees difference between the two ends and not more than 15 degrees or so.

[Alkaurkharim]

Oh ok then I won't worry about it as much ^_^ I'll see if I can manage to keep the bottom one in low 90's like Elysia's. My main problem i think was trying to "force" it to be a few degrees lower, which whacked it out so much o_O Its usually around 79-80* on the cold side in both enclosures though.

[Marla]

That sounds like a good plan to me. 90F is the goal temp, but that doesn't mean your hot spot has to be 90 on the nose. If you are measuring it accurately (and I know you are, but others reading this may not be), there's no reason to really sweat if it's 88 or 92 or similar.

[DragonSun02]

Hi,

I use Ranco themostats but I have a larger collection of snakes. I've read so much on the zoo med and other products which claim to be safe up to a thousand watts; so many horror stories about those products. How are you heating your animals again? If i were to have one or two balls, I would probably heat them with a human heat pad since it has a swtich for low, medium, high. You can temp it and make sure it's not going to go over. I do commend you for getting a thermostat to regulate the heat. It's such a great idea. Just be sure to test how hot it gets without the themostat.

You never know when you'll get a heat wave that might wipe out your snakes!

i hear your dilemna but you just might have to get two thermostats since you don't have identical conditions.

Do you know a temp gun? They run for 25 dollars and can temp anything except animals. They won't accurately temp the core temp of an animal, just the "skin" temp.

What i do is zap the heated area to determine the temp and the cool side. It takes only seconds and you'll feel at ease knowing your animals are living in great conditions!

PM me if you'd like some more info or just want to chat. Take care and good luck

DragonSun02

[Marla]

Welcome to the forum, Dragon! Glad to have you join us.