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UTH problems

K

kiki92

New member
Okay well I just got an UTH for my cornsnake and I got a thermostate to go along with it. Without the thermostate the glass bottom got up to 100 degrees (dont worry I tested it while the snake wasnt in there). So I connected the thermostate and turned the dial to medium temperture. After a few minutes the temp was 90, so I turned the dial a little lower. Than it changed to 86. I was like, "perfect!". But then within a few minutes the temp went back up to 90. Im kinda confused to why it wont stay at the temperture.

Also, the temperture I'm talking about is the temp right on the glass, above the UTH. I mean, on the aspen it was 85, but i dont want it to be too hot on the glass if my snake burrows and lays on the glass. On the box that the UTH came on it said that you could put repti carpet under the aspen, so the temps on the glass wouldnt get to hot. But my tow questions are: would the aspen get enough heat, and would the snake get under the carpet?

Gah! i'm jsut confused. Help would be nice ^__^
 
kiki92 said:
After a few minutes the temp was 90, so I turned the dial a little lower. Than it changed to 86. I was like, "perfect!". But then within a few minutes the temp went back up to 90. Im kinda confused to why it wont stay at the temperture.
On the box that the UTH came on it said that you could put repti carpet under the aspen, so the temps on the glass wouldnt get to hot. But my two questions are: would the aspen get enough heat, and would the snake get under the carpet?
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What kind of thermometer are you using? If it's the "stick on the glass" flat kind, you could be seeing nothing more than the limitations of the thermometer to give a more precise reading. In any case, neither 86 nor 90 at the glass are likely to hurt the snake, and the temp drops within a few inches away in any case.

Don't check it so often, or you'll make yourself crazy. If the temp is a bit high or low, adjust the thermostat and let it go for an hour before checking it again. I turn my thermostat down until the light goes off, then check the tank temperature. If it's above 75, I leave it alone until I see the light on the thermostat come back on. Then I check to see at what tank temp it responded. If it's lower than 80, I turn it slightly up and wait for the thermostat to go off again. I adjust the thermostat either up (if the temp is lower than 80) or down (if above 85). It takes about a day to get it to stay in the range I like.

It isn't an exact science. Any temp between 75 and 90 degrees will, in all likelihood, be just fine.
 
put both the thermostat probe and the thermometer probe at the same point right on the glass over the UTH. Once you get it adjusted, it should max at 86 and the min will probably be 80-81
 
heh i guess your right

I just kind of worry too much, since this is my frist snake and all. So as long as it doesnt go beloow seventy and above 90 it should be fine. But i'll adjust it every once in a while when the light goes on to make sure its eighty-ish?
 
kiki92 said:
if it gets to 90 on the glass, will that burn him if he lays ontop of it?
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No, 90 degrees isn't hot enough to burn anything. Think about it: the temperature inside your mouth is 98.6. Do you think the snake would burn in your mouth? 90 may be a bit on the warm side, but it won't hurt the snake.
 
Anything above 75 or below 90 might be just fine. But, if your margin of error is that high (a 15 degree swing), then what's to keep a 90 degree temperature from going even higher?
In the end, it's completely a personal preference thing, but I would never feel comfortable knowing my temperatures were all over the map. I've used several homemade, $7 rheostats that held temperatures within a much tighter range than 15 degrees, and I've lost plenty of sleep over much less than 15 degrees...but that's just me. :shrugs:
 
zwyatt said:
Anything above 75 or below 90 might be just fine. But, if your margin of error is that high (a 15 degree swing), then what's to keep a 90 degree temperature from going even higher?
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No one said the temperature was varying that much. What was said was that any temperature within that range would be safe for the snake.
 
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