Under Tank Heaters?????

[jaybird0399]

Looking at getting new thermostat. Looking at the helix dbs 100 but should i get grounded or standard also is everything prewired and ready to use out of the box, also how many heat sources will it control

[bsash]

For my monitors, I just use regular heat pads that we would use for our selves. They don't get too hot to burn like the under tank heat mats, and the regular heating pad had adjustable settings, so I can adjust the temperature easily.

[Sarin]

Currently use Zoo-Med UTH's and never had a problem. Building a rack and switching to flexwatt just because I plan on expanding and it'll be easier. If I was just keeping a few snakes the UTH's would be perfect.

[Breadbug500]

UTH is the way to go! I didnt use one with a thermostat first and it actually cracked my tank. Thank goodness there was no snake in there yet. But now i use them with thermostats and love them

[herpdaily]

UTH all the way!

[bpfreak124]

UTH's are awsome if you only have a few animals.. but flexwatt is easier if you have a larger collection!

[unhip_crayon]

Nature doesn't come with a UTH deal, so why should mine? The bulb should warm the base of the tank enough for proper digestion.

[dr del]

Heh,

Actually nature does one heck of a UTH - it's called planet earth.

If the sun heats a pile of rocks they hold the heat and release it slowly over a period of time even if the sun goes down.


dr del

[unhip_crayon]

Isnt that what the lamp does? Lamp=Sun

[Kaorte]

Isnt that what the lamp does? Lamp=Sun

A lamp is not nearly as powerful as the sun. Use lamps all you want but they do have downsides when using them with ball pythons.

Ball pythons are nocturnal and get zero benefits from the sun. In the wild, they don't lay out in the sun and are rarely seen "basking" at night. They normally stay in termite mounds and rodent burrows all day and all night unless they are hungry. The termite mounds and rodent burrows stay insulated and keep a constant temp through the day and night. Using both the heat from the earth and the the heat that comes from the ground heated by the sun.

Also, heat lamps in closed setups like we use to keep our snakes, kills the humidity and will often cause a bad shed.

Lamps are just an inefficient way to provide heat for a ball python. For other species, lamps work great, but not for ball pythons. Belly heat is much more efficient and practical than shining a bright light on a hide box. Ball pythons absorb most of their heat from their belly, not the top of their body.