Thermostat temperature help!

[Joshyboy]

I just set up my bookshelf with heat cable and I placed the probe on the heat cable with heat tape and I'm wondering what temperature to set the cable at. I have 2 ball pythons on it a spotted python and a leopard gecko. I felt the inside of the sterilite tubs and i can't tell if I feel heat or not. I have aspen bedding but I removed and thinned it above the heat cables. I have 3 coils on each section. Right now I have it set to 101 but I'm not sure if it gets warm enough! I just set them up so it might be a little. My thermostat is a jump start one.

[PitOnTheProwl]

You have animals with different heat requirements so you need multiple thermostats and heat sources.
You cannot and will not e able to set the temperature by feel, that is why you need a thermometer.

Inside floor temperature for the ball pythons should bot be over 95 degrees.
IF I remember correctly a leo is about 85ish degrees.
I know nothing about spotted so you need to research that.

[Joshyboy]

You have animals with different heat requirements so you need multiple thermostats and heat sources.
You cannot and will not e able to set the temperature by feel, that is why you need a thermometer.

Inside floor temperature for the ball pythons should bot be over 95 degrees.
IF I remember correctly a leo is about 85ish degrees.
I know nothing about spotted so you need to research that.

Leo's like it around 85-90 so I have the tub raised off the ground more and the spotteds like the same as ball pythons. I'm just wondering what temp to set on my thermostat.

[PitOnTheProwl]

Leo's like it around 85-90 so I have the tub raised off the ground more and the spotteds like the same as ball pythons. I'm just wondering what temp to set on my thermostat.

Whats the temperature inside the tubs?

[chrid16371]

Leo's do great at 88-89 so do ball pythons. I have owned Leo's for many years with those temps and also currently breeding Leo's. 85 is ok for a night drop for Leo's but not for daytime. I run my Leo rack at 90.5 giving me temp of 88.2 in tubs 24/7 and have big healthy geckos. But since your using aspen for bp you won't have the right temp for the Leo's unless raising them helped. Leo's IMHO should not be kept on anything other than paper towels or tile since impaction is a very common problem in all life stages, they simply can't handle it most of the time. Like said above you need a thermometer with probe or temp gun to test temps and more than one to test against each other. If you go the thermometer route get an acurite probed model 00891 they are the most accurate thermometer I have come across. The reason you can't feel for heat is bc are body temp is higher than heat requirements. You also should be testing temps at the bottom of the tub do to burrowing.

[Stewart_Reptiles]

No one can answer that t-stat setup depends on the type of t-stat, eat source used, type of enclosure, substrate thickness, ambient temp.

In other words the temp you should have your t-stat setup at is whatever allows you to achieve optimal temperature in your enclosure.

[Joshyboy]

Leo's do great at 88-89 so do ball pythons. I have owned Leo's for many years with those temps and also currently breeding Leo's. 85 is ok for a night drop for Leo's but not for daytime. I run my Leo rack at 90.5 giving me temp of 88.2 in tubs 24/7 and have big healthy geckos. But since your using aspen for bp you won't have the right temp for the Leo's unless raising them helped. Leo's IMHO should not be kept on anything other than paper towels or tile since impaction is a very common problem in all life stages, they simply can't handle it most of the time. Like said above you need a thermometer with probe or temp gun to test temps and more than one to test against each other. If you go the thermometer route get an acurite probed model 00891 they are the most accurate thermometer I have come across. The reason you can't feel for heat is bc are body temp is higher than heat requirements. You also should be testing temps at the bottom of the tub do to burrowing.

What do you use for heating? Heat cable, heat tape, maybe heat panels? I'm using heat cable and I placed my probe exo terra thermometer on the hot spot and it's only reading 85.3.

[chrid16371]

What do you use for heating? Heat cable, heat tape, maybe heat panels? I'm using heat cable and I placed my probe exo terra thermometer on the hot spot and it's only reading 85.3.

I was using 2 rows of 3 inch flexwatt but recently changed to 6inch thg tape from reptile basics. I built a rack for my Leo's. It covers a quarter of the tub for my full sized leos and for the hatchlings and juvies Im able to move the tub back a little so they only get 3 inches of the heat tape. I've never used heat cable. The thing is with having only one thermometer is that you don't know if that particular thermometer is working right. I personally recommend having at least three temp guns or thermometers or a combination of both to test against each other. Acurite 00891 is only $12 on amazon and some Walmart carry them for the same price. But where are you taking the temp at? Bottom of tub or top of substrate? I would like to also recommend you get a proportional thermostat like a spyder robotics Herpstat or reptile basics ve-200 or at very least the ve-100. The first 2 thermostats will maintain the same temp and the ve-100 will only drop a degree before it starts heating again. The ve-100 is similar to the one you have, they are both on/off but yours will drop in temp more before it starts heating again where the ve-100 will only drop 1 degree if you set it to that. If you have the money though I highly recommend the ve-200 but if you have more than that I would get the Herpstat 1. Either way VE and spyder robotics are very good companies. I own both.