RCReptiles.com

[fersal]

My BP likes to burrow down to the glass on top of the heat pad, but I've read that he may get burned... so I cut and sanded a piece of wood and put it on top of the glass and heat pad as a sort of insulation. I'd like to hear how others have handled this problem?

[RonCrawford]

Thermostat.

[Jordan700]

I have used a themostat to keep the heat pad in check.

[deborahbroadus]

[Luke S. Tick]

Good point Deborah, I forgot about them (balls) reflecting the heat back on the UTH and overloading it. The heat has to radiate out somewhere, and if the snake is too big for the heater, it doesn't allow enough heat to dissapate. With my Sterilite tubs, I just add little rubber stick-on feet, so there is about an 1/8 - 1/4 inch of space for it to 'breathe'. Without them I would be dealing with the very same problem.

Another low cost alternative is a dimmer switch on a cord. This must be used with a thermometer, though. See Wal-Mart/Lowe's post for these.

So, a thermostat or dimmer, rubber feet thingies, bark or mulch (remember, absolutley no cedar!!!) and I'll suggest, if you don't have one already, a good 2-way(indoor/outdoor) thermometer/hygrometer. That way you can gage how well your thermostat or dimmer is controlling your temps, and measure humidity to boot. See the Wal-Mart/Lowe's or thermometer posts for details on this item.

Good luck, hello, and welcome,

Luke

[fersal]

I thought I had a brilliant idea to put a piece of wood on the section of glass on top of the UTH as insulation to protect "Fluffy". However, I didn't think of the UTH possibly being overloaded by reflective heat... does this happen?

As far as a thermostat goes, wouldn't the glass still get hot when the heat pad is ON? And wouldn't setting the thermostat low enough to avoid hurting the snake defeat the whole purpose of having a UTH?

I know I'm asking a lot of questions, but I'm a newbie as you can tell... I'll post pictures of my setup next week when my son bring our camera back from a weekend trip. THANKS!

[Luke S. Tick]

90-95 degrees F. will not break the glass nor hinder your snake from being warmed.

Yes, a UTH can overheat from reflected radiation.

The wood idea would be alright if the wood were very thin and the UTH still had a way to vent extra heat, say a corner of the tank was sitting on rubber feet. They are sometimes included with the UTH or any hardware store should be able to help.

And, a thermostat is specifically meant to control and set the heat to what you need it at without over-heating. If it gets too hot, it shuts off or reduces the electricity running in to the UTH to lower the temps.

The thermostat allows you to keep a happy medium, not too hot, not to cold - just right.

Luke

[fersal]

Thanks all for your advice. I have the tank on the rubber feet that came with the UTH, and the wood is doing a good job of insulating the snake from the hot glass... I just hope the heating pad doesn't break because of the reflected heat.

In any case, Fluffy is spending most if his shedding time in a humidity box that I made out of a tupperware container filled with damp coconut husk (Bed-a-Beast). I'll post after-shed pictures next week...

[nicks2112]

[fersal]

[deborahbroadus]

[Moshi]

My little brother wanted to name Takara "Fluffy".

[deborahbroadus]

[fersal]