UTH Problems

[akki_neko]

Hey all,

I feel silly to have to make another thread for this, but I couldn't find anything on the forum about a uth being too cold. My uth is probably about a year old, I got it attached to the tank that I got from a friend who was also keeping a corn.

So it's attached directly to the glass tank, but it's not putting out any heat. I do have it going through a lamp dimmer, but the lamp dimmer is all the way up. It feels hot under the tank, which has about an inch or so between the carpet and the tank underside.

So is that too much room underneath, and all the heat is escaping, or is my uth just dying? Thanks ahead of time.

 

[Cam5]

Not sure about too much heat escaping...
When you take the temp of the glass what is it reading?
Since we are warm blooded our hands registering at about 90*F will sense a UTh emitting 85*F of heat as 'cool'.

Also if you have it sitting on carpet (it sounds like you do) I think you are supposed to have it on a hard surface...piece of wood on the floor if it has to be on the floor...

Otherwise, yes a lot of folks have mentioned that a year or 2 seems to be the max for the standard UTH...pretty pricey item to go through once a year.
At least if yours is dying it is not spiking the temps...

 

[Nanci]

They do die, eventually.

 

[Cam5]

Nanci, what is the best/easiest way to get them off?
And for future reference can you stick them on with electrical tape but keep that paper liner in tact so you can move them around to different enclosures if needed?

 

[Susielea]

I've got Ultratherm heatmats that are 5 years old and still going strong

I agree with Cam5, we feel the heat from a heat mat as cool against our body temp, if it's set at about 85*F and it is better to have a hard surface under the tank as it will reflect the heat back into the tank, I imagine carpet would just absorb the heat

 

[alan]

Hey Sarah, do you have an extension cord on the set-up?

 

[akki_neko]

I'll try a piece of wood under his tank, because it worked just fine at home on top of my bookshelf. And once it does die, I would like to know how to get it off. I want to get an Ultratherm one next (I think that's the name) the ones that don't have the adhesive directly on them? The temp has been going up and down a lot unfortunately, because I have a heat lamp also on to keep him warm enough. Without the heat lamp, it's reading in the low 70s on his heated side.

 

[akki_neko]

And I do have an extension cord in the set up. Can that suck away some of the heat?

 

[alan]

Depending on the length it can lower the available amperage. I guess the best way to find out is to try it without the cord.

 

[Susielea]

Are you measuring the temp on the glass above the mat, under the substrate, or on the wall of the tank?

 

[akki_neko]

I measured above the mat, under the substrate. I'll try without the extension cord too. What kind of wood would you suggest to slip under the tank? Like a thin piece of wood?

 

[Susielea]

Any piece would probably help, I wouldn't suggest pine or cedar though.

Sorry for the questions, but are you using a digital thermometer to measure the temp? As I know the dial ones are really inaccurate. Just trying to figure out if your mat is dying or not

 

[akki_neko]

Yeah I'm using a digital thermometer with a probe I'm putting directly on the mat. How long does it usually take yours to get a decent reading?

 

[Susielea]

Hmm, when I'm setting up a new tank or after a good clean out, ie removal of substrate etc, it can take a couple of hours or so to settle, because it has to reheat the new/moved substrate, the tank bottom etc.

I'm not sure what else to suggest, maybe if you've already tried without the extension, you could try a different socket in the house. I remember reading a post a while back about the current being different at a different socket :shrugs: Maybe after that, if you can't get a decent heat output, then it might mean the mat is dying, sorry

Hope you work it out soon, best of luck

 

[akki_neko]

Thanks so much Nanci, I'll be sure to try everything everyone has suggested.

 

[akki_neko]

Nanci, Susie, and Alan I guess. I get confused on the red names. lol

 

[akki_neko]

I took the extension cord out of the setup, and it seems to be working fine now. Thanks for all the help!

 

[alan]

I took the extension cord out of the setup, and it seems to be working fine now. Thanks for all the help!

Sweeet! I'm glad it was an easy and inexpensive fix.
A rheostat limits current, I guess if current is already limited by the resistance of the long cord it doesn't allow enough (even on full) to heat the UTH properly.
If you get a thermostat it should not affect it as much. Most thermostats just turn a switch on and off with full current applied when it's on.

 

[Nanci]

Nanci, what is the best/easiest way to get them off?
And for future reference can you stick them on with electrical tape but keep that paper liner in tact so you can move them around to different enclosures if needed?

They usually just peel right off.

I wouldn't use electrical tape, I'd use aluminum tape, which is meant towithstand high heat. I don't know about the paper, though. Ultratherm matts don't have any glue on them. I have a couple of those in my cage stack.

 

[Cam5]

They usually just peel right off.

I wouldn't use electrical tape, I'd use aluminum tape, which is meant towithstand high heat. I don't know about the paper, though. Ultratherm matts don't have any glue on them. I have a couple of those in my cage stack.

Great, thank you...I will look into the Ultratherm mats...
The guy at the pet store said he leaves the paper backing on his mats and then he can move them around...but like all pet store advice I like to check it here first
Can you use the Ultratherms on critter keepers?

I have been using the ExoTerra Rainforest mats because they only put out only about 90*F versus the 145*F the ZooMed minis were putting out...even with a rheostat etc I would be worried if the temp control failed...I do not want any sizzling critters.