CHE and UTH question

[futurebpowner]

Hi, I'm new to the site and as my username says I plan on getting a bp soon. Iv figured that I want a UTH with a heat controller and a CHE for ambient temperture since i can keep it on during the day and night to keep the tempertures the same. My question is will this make my warm side too hot if i use both a UTH and a CHE? Would a dimmer on the CHE help? Should I just get a day and night bulb?

[Snakesonly]

You are asking a valid question when looking at snakes in general.
But for BP's I suggest not to use the CHE, why? Because BP's are supposed to heat up their body using the heat from the substrate and not from the complete environment.
Also there is a risk of your snake getting burnt when the CHE is unprotected by some sort of cage construction. And your substrate will dry out quickly so humidity will be a pain in the a*** to keep it on the correct level. And (just guessing here) I think you are using a glass enclosure, so this will be a challenge on it's own to keep the humidity on target.

I don't know how large the enclosure will be, but if large enough (31.5in and more) I would recommend to divide it in to 4 sections. On each of the 3 sections put a UTH on a slightly different temperature (from high to low or the other way around lol) and leave the outer section which is closest to the UTH with the lowest temp without any UTH, this way your BP can find the temperature needed at that time.

If you do decide to use the CHE please have some form of protection around it so your BP will not get in direct contact with it.
And yes it can cause high temperatures when not adjusted properly, so use a dimmer so you can adjust it to the temperature provided by your UTH.

P.s. Day and night bulbs will give you heat on a spot, not the whole enclosure.
And as you are using a UTH for the hotspot, this will not provide you what you want.

[futurebpowner]

Thank you for the great advice! Yes I am doing a glass tank. I was planning on using Ecoearth because I heard it's really good at keep humidity in. Also instead of doing multiple UTH's could I either get a lamp stand for the CHE and pull it back away from the tank? or would a regular light bulb suffice?

[The Serpent Merchant]

The UTH will provide the basking temperature of 90 degrees, so all you need is an infrared heat bulb on a lamp dimmer to keep the air temperature around 80 degrees.

The UTH must be regulated by a thermostat. here are 2 good ones. (don't waste your money on the crap sold in pet stores)

The hydrofarm, these are cheap and will do the job but lack accuracy and safety features. these should be replaced with a better thermostat when possible.

http://www.amazon.com/Hydrofarm-MTPR..._bxgy_ol_img_b

The herpstat is a great permeant thermostat. they cost more but are extremely accurate and have multiple built in safety features.

http://spyderrobotics.com/

[futurebpowner]

I believe I'll do that. I'll get a regular bulb and put a dimmer on it for control. I like the Hydrofarm and it's a great price. I'll get this because I'm in college so I have a budget lol. Thank you for the great advice!

[snakesRkewl]

CHE's last much longer than bulbs and do the same thing, well worth the extra initial cost.

UTH one the warm end, CHE in the middle to keep the warm end temps and the middle temps up. This allows the one end to be cooler than the rest of the tank.
Covering up a good portion of the top will help keep in heat and humidity.

2 Hydrofarms would help you control both heat features a lot easier than rheostats

[RestlessRobie]

CHE's last much longer than bulbs and do the same thing, well worth the extra initial cost.

UTH one the warm end, CHE in the middle to keep the warm end temps and the middle temps up. This allows the one end to be cooler than the rest of the tank.
Covering up a good portion of the top will help keep in heat and humidity.

2 Hydrofarms would help you control both heat features a lot easier than rheostats

X2 this is exactly how I set up my tanks My CHE's are all on dimmers with out an issue so far