Floor temps too high

[VooDooDoc]

To take the temp inside the hide I have a temporal thermometer (the kind hospitals use, very accurate), and as for surface temps I have a little digital infrared thermometer.

[VooDooDoc]

I would consider the belly heat more far important. You will also need a thermostat for that as well. If anything, ditch the bulb. It will dry out your cage and unless your house is really cold, probably not needed at all. As mattchibi said, read that care sheet.

As far as belly heat goes. Wouldn't the lamp(s) be more realistic? In nature the ground does not emit heat. It is heated from above by the sun. I would think a heat lamp shining on a rock which makes the rock warm would be closer to what they would see in the wild.

[kitedemon]

As for temps I use hot spot temps of 90 and cool end on 80 and ambient air temps between 79-85. 94 is the highest recommended by most care sheets and few possess accurate thermometers the average thermometer used in the hobby is +/- 2ºF so 94 could actually be 96 easily. 90-92 provides a safe working temp accounting for errors.

How you obtain the correct temps is not important that you have them is.

[AK907]

As far as belly heat goes. Wouldn't the lamp(s) be more realistic? In nature the ground does not emit heat. It is heated from above by the sun. I would think a heat lamp shining on a rock which makes the rock warm would be closer to what they would see in the wild.

Technically either would work, but an UTH is going to be a bit more accurate and far cheaper to run (UTH = 15w or less vs. Bulbs = 50-150w or more). Belly heat is usually viewed as a better alternative for a basking site vs a bulb. These aren't animals living in the wild. We have the technology to offer them the best possible conditions, so why not? If it were me I would rely on the UTH for a basking site and the infrared for keeping ambient temps up if necessary, which should be low to mid 80's.

But for now you really need to get those temps down by whatever means you see fit. Nowhere in his tank should be 104 degrees. I know first hand what happens when a snake gets overheated and doesn't die from it. It is very scary.

How you obtain the correct temps is not important that you have them is.

Yup. Find what works for you.

[VooDooDoc]

The only spot in the tank that it was hot was directly on top of the UTH, its not like the entire tank was like that. Just an 8x6 inch rectangle (estimating the size). No danger of him overheating. I've removed the UTH for now. When I can find one with a thermostat maybe I'll try again.

For now I'm sticking with the lamp(s) and will deal with humidity issues if they arise.

As far as being cheaper, I have far bigger wastes of electricity in my house, 2 kids that apparently don't realize things can be turned off not just on. Its a novel concept I know.

[AK907]

The only spot in the tank that it was hot was directly on top of the UTH, its not like the entire tank was like that. Just an 8x6 inch rectangle (estimating the size). No danger of him overheating.

There is most certainly a danger of overheating. Snakes aren't like a human or a dog in that they will always move away from things such as heat. Ever seen a snake burned by a heat rock? Yup, a snake will just lay there and soak up the heat until they burn themselves. Not saying your snake WILL seek that spot out, but it may and if it decides to stay in that spot and enjoy the 100+ degree heat, it can kill your snake and/or cause neurological problems, etc.

I have personally experienced overheating from a faulty thermostat. The temps were no more than yours and only lasted a couple hours. Although the cool side was still a safe temperature, the hot spot was not and our snake sought that spot out. This caused severe neurological damage to her and we ended up having to put her down.

So my statement stands. You need to lower your hot spot otherwise your snake is at a very real risk. Is it really worth the risk?

[VooDooDoc]

Like I said:

I've removed the UTH for now. When I can find one with a thermostat maybe I'll try again.

This was the sole cause of the hot spot. FYI: this thing was 139 degrees. The carpet brought it down to 104-107 but its no wonder why it was so darn high.

[AK907]

Like I said:

Edit: Ok, so that was the problem. I didn't see any mention of a result in your previous post.

[Inknsteel]

I'm shocked that nobody mentioned or addressed the glaringly obvious problem here... ANY heat source you are running NEEDS to be regulated. Period. I can't think of a single heat source that you can run flat out, 100% and achieve the correct temps. Everyone has been telling you the correct temperature range to shoot for. 90-92 on the hot side, 80-82 on the cool side. You can NOT run a UTH without being hooked to a thermostat. Those things will absolutely get hot enough to burn and even kill your snake. Same thing for the overhead bulbs you're running. Those wattages are high and without being controlled by a dimmer at the very least, will get too hot for a bp.

As you have apparently found, 140ish on an unregulated UTH. Then add in the heat lamp you have blaring on him too, you're probably cooking the poor snake. Definitely read the caresheet on this site. Invest in a thermostat to regulate the temperatures and you'll have a much happier and healthier bp.

[VooDooDoc]

I'm shocked that nobody mentioned or addressed the glaringly obvious problem here... ANY heat source you are running NEEDS to be regulated. Period.

That's hitting the nail on the head. Unfortunately neither the reptile "expert" at the pet store, nor the packaging/instructions mentioned that. It just says that its safe for your snake as long as you put some sort of substrate down, which is just flat out wrong.

The lamps have rheostats (dimmers) built in. The UTH does not. Well I scoured the city and managed to find a rheostat for the UTH. A medium setting shoots up to to over 100! I've got it adjusted down to 92 now (temp on the glass under the substrate). I also found at another pet store, a thermostat that controls 2 devices so I'm using that for the lamps to come on and off.