A heating dilemma...

[Toraelle]

Hello all! After having kept my BP in a glass tank for about 3 months and getting fed up with the endless chase for the proper humidity (damp rags and 1-2x daily misting) I've been able to get ahold of a 2x3 Reptile Basics cage with a radiant heat panel installed. The cage is wonderful and the RHP is very efficient at keeping up the ambient and humidity, but now I'm having some issues with the warm side.

I set the Herpstat to 92F with the probe under the plastic hide, and the area under the hide is just fine. But the Tempgun shows temps from 93-100F outside of the hide on the warm side, especially right on top of the hide spot. I was able to get those hotspots to 94-95F, at the cost of the temp under the hide dipping to 88 or so which I think I've read on this site is too low. I'm having a little trouble finding a safe acceptable range, does anyone have any tips?

P.S. All of this is made even MORE confusing because I have 3 different kinds of thermometers (Herpstat, ProExotics tempgun and Acu-Rite) and none of the brands seem to agree with each other on any given number!

[Argentra]

Ok, number one for future reference: To get stable humidity in a glass tank you have to foil or plexi treat the screen top.

As for the RBI cage, first off you have to place the Herpstat probe UNDER the cage in the slot provided. It has to measure against the heat source. Now, you say a Radiant Heat Panel is installed...but most RBIs I know of come with flexwatt belly heat. At any rate, the t-stat probe has to be placed against the heat source.

Two, do not use the t-stat as a thermometer. Often times the setting on the herpstat is going to be higher than the inside temps. Use the Acurite backed up by the temp gun to get the temps where you want them regardless of what the stat has to be set to. If the stat reads 102 but the warm side reads 92...so be it.

I found, when I had an RBI 4x2 cage, that the temps were not really even on the warm side. You just have to find a good range.

[PythonWallace]

The hottest spot inside the enclosure shouldn't be any higher than 94-95. 88 indide the hide is penty warm for the warm side hide, but 100 is too hot for any area to be. Make it so the hottest reading you get from your temp gun isn't any higher than 95, even if it's a few degrees cooler under the warm hide.

[Toraelle]

I did try using a sheet of plexiglass over the screen top but it didn't seem to help much (though that might've been due to CHE going full blast to keep ambients up or maybe the gap was too big?) So I had just kept the plexi there with a small towel under it that I misted daily.

Er, maybe I should've asked Rich about it but my RBI doesn't have a slot for me to put a probe anywhere. o_o The cage doesn't quite look like the one in the picture, either. It's solid black, and just smooth sides everywhere and a slot for the RHP cord to go through (The RHP is mounted to the inside ceiling with two screws). The door itself looks the same. This is the product I purchased.

And sorry if my sentences are confusing, but I don't normally use the thermostat as my sole thermometer! I do have Acu-Rites, and the temp gun. But as I've been fiddling with the set up I've gotten paranoid and started checking brands against each other, so I might just be confusing myself. xD

As of now I tried setting the probe on top of the hidespot and set the Herpstat to 94, and the Acu-Rite and Temp Gun are telling me the area under, around and on top of the hide is 90-95. I think that sounds safe?

Thanks for your reply!

[Toraelle]

PythonWallace: Thanks for your input! I was told anything >95F was bad, so trying to avoid those hotspots in the cage was my main problem. So far I've been able to get rid of them by setting the probe against the hottest area of the cage (top of the hide) and so far it's working and all the temps are in place but I'm going to let it sit longer and recheck it a few times before I let my BP in.

[hoax]

Does this product give you a heat gradient?

Did you order the RHP with the cage. I am looking at this exact same cage but I just dont know about the heat gradient. What do you have to do the set up the heat gradient?

[Toraelle]

Yep! I finally got a setup going that puts the cool side at 81 with a gradual rise up to around 90-93. And I ordered the RHP along with the cage, so it arrived already screwed into the ceiling with the cord going out through the little slot they put in.

You don't really need to do anything to get the gradient (at least I haven't had to), it's just a matter of tweaking the settings on the thermostat so that you could get a good basking temperature without overheating any of the surfaces.

[hoax]

Did you get the 40 or 80 watt RHP? I guess If I got the 80 I can turn it down with the thermostat if it is too much where if I got the 40 I could not.

[chetman7]

I am also looking at a RBI 3x2 cage with RHP. I talked to some guy there...he said depending on how cold ur place gets you can either get a 40 or 80...hold on..I'll just copy paste the email he sent back to me.

"I have had some customers in the NW USA with a similar problem. The 80 watt rhp is overkill for the summer months but will keep the enclosure nice and toasty in the winter. I would run the probe through one of the vent slots in the back of the cage. You will have to tinker with your thermostat settings but once you get it right you will be all set. By the temps you are giving me I am guessing you have a ball python? Your gradient should work out just about right but will ultimately depend on the room temps.
Rich"

[Toraelle]

I have an 80 watt for my 2x3, because the house gets pretty cold in the winter. I had emailed Rich about his opinion on which wattage I should get and he said that 80 is good for temps down to 62, while the 40 can handle temps down to the low 70's.