Cold side/ Warm side

[rocky115]

hey people i got my snake about two and a half days ago and he always stays on the cold side of the tank? Is the heating to hot for him?. I fed him yesterday and he ate i was happy that was a sign of being a healthy snake, but when i put him in his tank he still went to the cold side not the warm side so how can he digesting his food?. Another question i have is am i safe to take him out of his feeding cage after he had ate and put him back in his normal cage?, I do not have another tank for his feeding cage i just have a cardboard box. (Thanks for you help)

 

[Nanci]

Do you know what the temperature right on the UTH under the aspen is?

It's safe to move him gently back to his viv after feeding, but no more handling than necessary, and do not handle for 48-72 hours after feeding once he is back in his viv. A cardboard box is fine but I wouldn't leave him unattended in there for even a few seconds.

 

[rocky115]

Ok thanks, As for right now i have no aspen bedding i only have paper towel but i put extra paper towel on top of the UTH and when i put my hand down its just warm not hot. The UTH is under the tank not inside.

 

[rocky115]

I do not have anything to tell me the temp thats probley bad right.

 

[Nanci]

You can't accurately judge the temp with your hand. You have the UTH in the right place. You need a thermometer with a probe to measure it. You can get one in a gardening department at Walmart, Home Depot, or Lowes, or from Big Apple Herp. If you don't have a thermostat or rheostat on the UTH, it can and WILL get up to 120F. That will burn your snake. Putting layers of substrate doesn't help because he can burrow down to it. Snakes aren't quick to react to heat and can burn themselves before they know it. If you need to cool it down for now while you get all the stuff you can put a floor tile over the UTH in the viv.

 

[bkelm18]

I do not have anything to tell me the temp thats probley bad right.

Yes you really need to know the temp. A thermometer with a probe that you can put on the glass right above the UTH is what you need. Secondly, what are you controlling your UTH with? Is it just plugged in or do you have it on a dimmer or thermostat? Most UTHs will get wayyyyy too hot if left unregulated, leaving a potential for serious burns or even death for the snake. What may feel warm to you may be dangerous to a snake.

 

[ceduke]

Very true. A small thermometer with a probe isn't too expensive. When I was setting up for my new little guy I plugged the UTH in just to see how hot it would get and it was almost 100 even through a pile of ceramic tiles I had stacked on the glass. So I picked up a cheap dimmer to keep the temperature where it should be. Total cost for the thermometer and the dimmer was about $25. Well worth it!

 

[rocky115]

Ok My UTH is just plugged in It has nothing controling it, i dont have the right kind of thermometer or a thermostate can, i know now where to get a thermometer but where cani get the thermostate? and about how much will this cost me? thanks

 

[airenlow]

You can get the lamp dimmer from any big-box-store for about $8. That will keep the temps in check until you can get a real thermostat. I use this one on a couple of my vivs and love it...

http://www.reptilesupply.com/product.php?products_id=75

 

[ceduke]

You can get a lamp dimmer at a hardware store for around $10. Not *quite* as convenient as having a thermostat, but it works.

 

[rocky115]

what do i do with a lamp dimmer? conected it to my UTH?

 

[ceduke]

Yes, and turn down the amount of power going to the UTH, thus reducing the heat output.

 

[bkelm18]

what do i do with a lamp dimmer? conected it to my UTH?

This is the kind I use:

You plug that into the outlet, then plug the UTH into that and control it using the slider. It varies the voltage to the UTH thereby adjusting the heat output.

 

[bkelm18]

Wow.. my apologies for the gigantic picture...