There's been a sudden cold snap in my area and my bedroom, the only place I can keep my terrarium, gets very cold at night, sometimes as low as 50F. I'm having a lot of trouble keeping my terrarium warm enough, despite an UTH, a heat lamp, and a heavy blanket wrapped around the tank and covering most of the screen. Can anyone provide me with some tips on how to keep my tank warmer?
-
Hello!
Either you have not registered on this site yet, or you are registered but have not logged in. In either case, you will not be able to use the full functionality of this site until you have registered, and then logged in after your registration has been approved.
Registration is FREE, so please register so you can participate instead of remaining a lurker....
Please be certain that the location field is correctly filled out when you register. All registrations that appear to be bogus will be rejected. Which means that if your location field does NOT match the actual location of your registration IP address, then your registration will be rejected.
Sorry about the strictness of this requirement, but it is necessary to block spammers and scammers at the door as much as possible.
Having trouble keeping my tank warm enough, HELP!
- Thread starter Gojo
- Start date
patches152
New member
shouldn't be an issue. get a probe thermometer to put in the warm hide the snake uses the most. air temp isn't as important. also, keeping temp consistent is only an urgent issue right after they've eaten, since they need the heat to digest.
i personally use a UTH with one of those zilla reptile carpets over it, and stays warm in the hide very consistently.
again, don't measure air temp, measure the temp at the bottom of the tank where the snake is touching the floor.
btw, what substrate do you use? some are better as insulators than others.
i personally use a UTH with one of those zilla reptile carpets over it, and stays warm in the hide very consistently.
again, don't measure air temp, measure the temp at the bottom of the tank where the snake is touching the floor.
btw, what substrate do you use? some are better as insulators than others.
Lennycorn
Just see the truth
Does your thermometer have a probe on it.???
If not throw it out and get a good thermometer with one and then place the probe right above the uth to get a good reading of the temps.
No probe. Its just one of those sticker contraptions.
Lennycorn
Just see the truth
Then you are getting false reading.
Get one with a probe.
Here is an example....
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2752560
bitsy
Owned by Corns since 1991
They can be very inaccurate. I agree with Lenny - the temperature it shows is most likely wrong.
A UTH is designed to heat the floor surface, not the air above it. Unless the thermometer or thermometer probe is laid on the floor, then you're taking the air temperature. The Corn is actually on the floor not in the air, so make sure you take the temp in the right place. Heating the floor is just what they need and most people find an additional heat lamp isn't necessary as they're designed to heat the air (which you don't need to do) and cause overheating.
As a rough guide, does the floor feel warm or hot if you put you hand on it? Human core body temp is 98.6 degrees and a Corn's safe maximum is 90 (I usually aim for 85). If the floor feels warm to you, then it's too hot for the Corn. It should feel lukewarm to you. They need surprisingly low temps.
To summarise: It's more likely that you have a temperature measurement problem, than a low temperature problem. From other posters here who report the same issue, it's actually likely that the tank is too hot.
DarkRainbow
New member
Hey there, I have been having the same issue. I bought a probe thermometer yesterday and I got up in the middle of the night to check on our snakies and it read 52 F on the warm side (our house stays REALLY cold in winter). I do have a UTH on the side where the thermometer is, but I am not sure if perhaps I have not inserted the probe far enough in (it is under substrate, but against the side of the glass). I have been putting a light on the tank and when I do the thermometer reads about 72, but I want to make sure it is accurately reporting what the snakes are feeling - I do not want to make it too hot!!! How far in should the probe go? Also, I have one of those snake turf pad thingies in between substrate and terrarium glass. Thanks!!!!
Your probe should be right up against the glass where the UTH sits, that gives the best reading because you want to know the direct heat in case of burrowing. If the temp is good right against it you can gurantee the surface heat of the substrate right above it is just a tad bit cooler and still comfortable for your corn.