Cool side probe placement

[Manda]

Hey all,

I use a heat lamp to keep my ambient temps up, and I keep it hooked up to a proportional thermostat. I've never been able to find a good place to put the cool side probe- if I put it on the inside wall of snakey's hide, the readings are too low. But if I keep it out, it gives a reading that's too high because it's getting hit directly by the heat lamp. Ideas?

Thanks!

[PitOnTheProwl]

Problem with a probe being inside an enclosure is that your animal is going to move it.
You can always run a lower wattage bulb to get the ambient around 80ish

[chrid16371]

I would use a lamp dimmer to dim it around 78 so if your room temp changes a little it will still be in the safe range depending on how much of a change there is. If you wanna use a thermostat I would put the probe a few inches above the bottom of cage so your snake can slither under it without moving it but also so if it does get bumped it will move back to the place it was, I would set it for 80 and let it be, the hide will be a few degree cooler but it will be ok but if it is a problem move lamp so it is over top the hide and have thermostat probe a few inches above hide. Pretty much put the probe like you would when using a rhp. Also what hides do you use? Hides like reptile basics are good bc they are thin but durable plastic and heat transfers through them very well. You can put heat shrink tube on the probe wire (not the actual probe) to stiffen it up so it will help keep it in place if the probe is ever bumped.

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[Yzmasmom]

We use ambient heat lights on the hot and cold side. Her probe on the hot side is inside her hut to measure the glass.

On the cold side, we have it sitting on the bedding just behind her hut in the corner. We adjust the light to keep it around do 80. If she moves the probe over closer to the center of the back wall, he temp hits 82/83, so basically, she's got a good gradient going on.

I've often wondered about cold side probe placement too, but we've come to realize that, if she's healthy, hiding and eating, she's good to go. So, we keep the probe in the back corner and keep it at 80.

[Yzmasmom]

Forgot to mention we keep one ambient light right above each hut, so the huts are being warmed, since that's where she spends all her time unless she's exercising in her tree.