Hi Shadows, welcome!Originally Posted by Shadows Valkyrie
Your set up sounds like what I am trying to achieve. I've been trying to make the call between a CHE and an infared bulb. As of right now I don't have a rheostat to control my UTH as it doesn't really seem to put off a whole lot of heat. It makes the substrate feel luke warm underneath Sorcha's fave hide...
I have two hides in the tank, one is a fake log that Sorcha loves and it's a nice snug fit for her. The other is a clay pot that I busted in half and stuck down in the substrate, also a snug fit for her.
I haven't had much of a problem with humidity as the coconut fiber holds a TON of moisture. Its the air temp in the tank that I'm having a hard time getting up to par.
There are some who think a CHE would make a tank my size too hot. You say you use one. What wattage is yours?
I like all of your readings for heat and humidity. Let's hope I can get there too!
On the bolded statement above... if you put your palm under your armpit - that's about 96 degrees. That's just a tad bit too hot for the substrate. If you feel the floor under the substrate that will be hot if your substrate is luke warm. It is probably over 100 down there. A ball python can burrow under the substrate or move the substrate around, so that he has a chance of sitting directly on the floor of your tank. Therefore, we usually advice to keep the floor of the tank no more than 95 degrees by using a thermostat or rheostat to adjust the UTH output.
Your set-up sounds good. The only thing I would suggest in addition to what is mentioned above is corkboard or thick dark paper wrapped around 3 sides of the tank - this adds to the feeling of security in the environment and also acts as insulation to keep the ambient heat in the tank more stable. Also, it would be great if you can "clutter up" your tank a lot - especially since you have a tall tank. You might think about putting some plastic/silk leaves hanging off the sides of the tank to drape over the open areas to add to the feeling of security.
Hope this helps.
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