Secondary UTH for Ball Python

[KoiNip]

The enclosure I'm using (15 gallon glass terrarium) has a 10+ year old heat pad on it from a previous pet. It can't reach the temps I want with my substrate, failing to raise above 85 degrees Fahrenheit on top of the substrate. I've gotten a new UTH which is able to reach 90 degrees and I will be using it for the warm side.

I've left the old UTH on the other side for now, and I'm wondering if I should put it to use. It's colder where I'm living at, reaching the low 70's to high 60's on the cold side of the enclosure during the day, and the mid 60's during the night. Should I consider using the other, older UTH to heat up the cooler side? This would help raise the cool side to the recommended 75-80 degrees, but it could cause problems with the water dish in the enclosure, which could increase humidity.

Should I use this old heat mat to heat up the cool side, or should I leave it alone?

Thanks for any assistance. Sorry if It's brief, I wanted to keep things simple. Let me know if you want anymore info.

[Zincubus]

Hi


A second UTH could work as long as it's also regulated by another stat ( thermostat) to stay under 75F to 80F or whatever .. I wouldn't be too worried about the humidity created by small heatmat tbh

Also , remember that the key temps are the surface temps of the viv / tank FLOOR not the top of the substrate .. the substrate may read 85F but the actual tank floor could be 100F and snakes will bury and do get burnt .

Any chance of a photo of your thermometer or a good description?

Is it one of those circular stick on ones ?




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[Craiga 01453]

Hello.

First off its important to understand that your UTH is there solely to provide a hot spot and not for ambient temps.

So if your room is that cool you'll need an additional heat source. You basically have 3 options.
1) RHP- radiant heat panels are the most efficient, but most expensive
2) heat lamp with bulb - the most inexpensive way to go. But the least economical. Bulbs also drain humidity.
3) CHE- ceramic heat emitters run just like bulbs, but provide heat without light. They're more expensive, but last a lot longer than bulbs. CHEs also drain humidity.

Also, it's very important to measure the ACTUAL SURFACE of the enclosure rather than the substrate. Your BP can and will push substrate around and burrow, reaching the actual glass surface.

Lastly, and MOST IMPORTANTLY....ALL HEAT SOURCES SHOULD BE REGULATED BY A THERMOSTAT.

[PitOnTheProwl]

First off you are temping the wrong surface.
Second off, what is the ambient temperature of the room?
A properly regulated UTH does little to nothing for ambient temperatures.

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[KoiNip]

Thanks for the reply, I didn't know that I should focus on temps below the substrate. I'll definitely keep that in mind.

I use a temp gun I got off of amazon to monitor temps. If it matters, the brand appears to be Etekcity.

[KoiNip]

Thanks for giving me the options. I was considering a CHE for a while, but I was concerned about the humidity as I'm likely going to have trouble keeping it up as it is. I looked into RHP, I definitely don't have the budget for that. Standard heat bulbs can't be kept on all the time if I'm not mistaken, which is a problem given I need this secondary heat source most at night.

I do have a thermostat for all the UTH's i intend to use. Thanks for your help!

[KoiNip]

Thanks for the reply, the other posts say what you said here as well. I'll be on the lookout for other sources of heat. The ambient temps in the room are about 65+ during the night.

[KoiNip]

Hi


A second UTH could work as long as it's also regulated by another stat ( thermostat) to stay under 75F to 80F or whatever .. I wouldn't be too worried about the humidity created by small heatmat tbh

Also , remember that the key temps are the surface temps of the viv / tank FLOOR not the top of the substrate .. the substrate may read 85F but the actual tank floor could be 100F and snakes will bury and do get burnt .

Any chance of a photo of your thermometer or a good description?

Is it one of those circular stick on ones ?




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

I forgot to ask in my last reply: Given the the temperature of the tank floor is what matters, should I set my thermostat to the temperature I want it to be so that the tank floor is 90 degrees, or should I set my thermostat above that temperature so the substrate surface reaches the temps I want? The latter seems dangerous for the reason you stated, they could bury and get burned, but the former seems to not keep them warm enough. Which would you recommend?

[Zincubus]

I forgot to ask in my last reply: Given the the temperature of the tank floor is what matters, should I set my thermostat to the temperature I want it to be so that the tank floor is 90 degrees, or should I set my thermostat above that temperature so the substrate surface reaches the temps I want? The latter seems dangerous for the reason you stated, they could bury and get burned, but the former seems to not keep them warm enough. Which would you recommend?

Well .. Imho

The highest temp .. 92F is the commonly quoted figure, should be the floor.. as the snake will get down there if it wants ..

So what kind of thermometer are you using ??

A stick on , as I described previously , or something else ??

I'm kinda getting the impression that you don't have a thermometer...

You cannot trust the temp readings on your stat incidentally.. that's just a very rough guide .

You set the temp you want eg. 92F with a digital thermometer , ideally a 10 dollar digital temp gun .



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[KoiNip]

Well .. Imho

The highest temp .. 92F is the commonly quoted figure, should be the floor.. as the snake will get down there if it wants ..

So what kind of thermometer are you using ??

A stick on , as I described previously , or something else ??

I'm kinda getting the impression that you don't have a thermometer...

You cannot trust the temp readings on your stat incidentally.. that's just a very rough guide .

You set the temp you want eg. 92F with a digital thermometer , ideally a 10 dollar digital temp gun .



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

Thanks for the help. I mentioned in my first reply that I do have a temp gun, or digital thermometer, and that's what I've been using to check temps. I forgot to quote you on that reply so you may have missed it.