Newbie questions! Please help

[MissterDog]

I have another question lol if I get the T8 from AP, and get the divider to split it in half, would that be ok for a yearling to chill in until they get bigger, in which case the divider would be removed? TIA y’all. You’ve all been so helpful!!!


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This is how I started my hatchling out and he's still only using half his cage with plenty of wiggle room. Been working great for me but it's worth pointing out some potential hiccups you may run into and how to address it, mainly with heat gradients. Also make sure you provide plenty of clutter and shelter.

Hopefully you don't mind if I c/p some of my previous posts on other threads going into more detail about it. Hope it helps! <3

Looks like you went with a similar path I did at first. I'm also using a divider with a rhp, and like you, the rhp pretty much takes most of the entire ceiling space, making a horizontal thermal gradient somewhat difficult.


I later decided to add a UTH for belly heat so I could dial down the rhp for the ambient only instead of trying to make a hot spot. Prior to that my rhp was making the ambient temp too warm for my liking just to get the surface temps I wanted. The rock furnishings would sometimes be as high as 94 which made me uneasy. Generally you don't want any surface your bp can touch hotter than 92. For warm ambient under the rhp I think it's better to have it reduced to 84-86. Cool ambient is totally fine.


If it helps, this is how I started off. Mine is a T12 with a divider.



I had my rhp set to a higher heat to try and get the inside of the hide to at least 88 (surface was 92), but at the cost of the ambient being somewhere between 88-90 which honestly I thought was TOO hot, especially for a hatching who prefer slightly cooler warm temps.


Here is Tapioca's current set up now with a UTH.




3 hides now, primary matching hot and cold ones are on the bottom this time with his 'spare' on the top of the ledge.


The thermostat probe I placed higher, about 6 inches below the rhp to better control my warm ambient and keep it away from where it could be climbed or peed on, which I was worried about causing temp spikes. My bp HAS tried to climb towards the probe before so better to keep it out of reach as possible.

My warm ambient is now 84-85 with the top of the hide on the ledge being at a nice 88-89. His rock furnishes are no hotter than 89-90, which I feel much safer about. You can also adjust the power % output on your herpstat if you are concerned about temps spiking a bit when the rhp swings at full power. Hope this helps

Personally I've always been a fan of the UTH + RHP combo. Been working fantastic for me and many others who have gone a similar route. I just like being able to control the hotspot without compromising ambient temps.

When I used only a RHP I found my warm ambient temps were getting way too warm for my liking just to get the hot spot I wanted. Especially since I was starting with a 24 x 24 cage (a divided T12) which really didn't give me much room for a good horizontal heat gradient with just the RHP. The RHP itself was practically as big the top cage half so you can get an idea how things get a bit complicated.

Adding a UTH gave me more flexibility keep everything better balanced, and as pointed out earlier it's good to have a back up on hand. Plus you cant go wrong with a Herpstat 2 :p

As for Herpstats I find the Herpstat 2 is the best universal choice since you never know when you may need to regulate more than one heat source.

Also do yourself a favor and get a T10! The extra few inches of height make a huge difference for access and cleaning ease. Also keep in mind interior height is a bit shorter than the measurements listed by roughly 2 inches.