Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I just got an under tank heater because I can't get the temperature in my leo's cage to stay warm enough. Do you think it's better to have it on the bottom or side of the cage? I have a hammock she uses quite a bit that will be on the side of the tank that the heater would be on, will that be a problem if I put it on the side? Thanks!

IMHO, i'd put it on the bottom. If you want to heat air temperature, i'd try getting a light.

Yeah, I have a basking light (mainly because the people at the reptile shop recommended one) to heat the air a bit more during the day. He doesn't go under it, he likes to hide in his log hide thingy . I'll take pics of his updated vivarium soon. looks cool!

Allie
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What does man love more than life,
Fear more than death or mortal strife,
What the poor have, the rich require,
And what contented men desire,
What misers spend, and spendthrifts save,
And all men carry to the grave?

Yea I have a basking light that works pretty well during the day but it gets the coldest at night. I have a black light at night too but it still gets cold so I figured if I got a UTH it would be something to consistently bring the temperature up. Should I just try to get stronger basking lights? Thanks!

Well, we are all technically violating the warranty of our UTH when we put them on the bottom. Make sure you completely read the directions that come with the one you bought and don't have, for instance, the water bowl any where near it. Also you want to monitor your temps very closely for the first few days. (Ideally before you put in the gecko, but this may not always be possible.) You don't want the temperature AT THE SURFACE of the "floor" over the UTH to be higher than 90F to minimize the risk of burns. You may need to add extra substrate or buy something like a dimmer control to reduce the power output of the UTH. Also realize that it is very dangerous to have the UTH and a basking light on over the same spot both ON at the same time. (Timers are the best invention.)

OK, now that I've said all that... belly heat is really important to the digestion and you can't get that from the side mount. When the heat went out we had to run the light and the UTH just to keep the warm side in the low 80s, however I was home all day to watch it. So, we all do bad things, but you have to be really careful about it is all. Good luck.
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0.1 Albino Leo Gecko
0.1 Crested Gecko
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