Quote Originally Posted by KMG View Post
The only way you can plug more than one uth into the same outlet on a tstat is, they have to be identical and being used in identical ways in identical cages. They will produce the same temps if used in this fashion. If you use two different size uth or two different makes you will have inconstant temps and one pad will be to hot or to cold.

When plugging more than one unit in a tstat outlet make sure you are not approaching the max operating load.

If you have identical setups the way to plug them in is, plug your uths into a power strip and then plug the power strip into the tstat. Your probe then needs to be placed in one of the cages. If your cages your controlling is stacked on or next to other separate cages the heat from their heat elements can transfer heat. Just like the top and bottom tubs in a rack will have a temp difference.

In a situation where a cage can be heated by another cage or factor it is usually best to place the tstat probe in that cage to make sure it stays within the desired temps. The other controlled cage will usually be just a bit cooler but not anything drastic. Also like in a rack, when you have vertically stacked cages it is usually best to place the probe in a middle cage.

I would never try to control two different sizes, types, or makes of uth with one probe. Running more than one item per tstat outlet has its own risks but doing it with different heaters is asking for trouble. Even if you set it up and think they are responding the same do not use them for your animals.

It does sound like you need a Herpstat 4 for the setup you are trying to control.
Thanks for the help you two! I really appreciate it. Not to be annoying and press the matter...but because I will be using the same size and brand UTC, set at the same temp (one on ball's cool side, one on skink's cage), I technically could use a Herpstat 2 for these 2 UTCs? I say this because I would apply the probe to the ball's UTC, and set it to around 80, then apply the other UTC to the skink's enclosure, attach it to a power cord, and then to the t-stat...and because a skink's cool end can have high variability (low 70s to low 80s), the little temp fluctuation occurring from not having a probe wouldn't be a big deal. So with that in mind, is this something I could get away with?