Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ok i got an UTH and the damn thing only heats the bottom up to about 73, is this right? its a 40 gallon tank and i have the right sized heater. i was told to run an UTH and no heat lamps but the tank doesnt stay warm enough that way. i am really confused now. it was fine with just the heat lamps but i was having shedding issues. what should i do?

I had the same problem and was given the same wrong advice. Our uth didnt heat it well either. My adivce would be to use both the uth and heat lamps. Also get a hygrometer to check the humidity. Getting a larger water bowl, different substrate, and covering part of the top if the cage all helped keep my humidity up. It should be at about 60%. You'll have to tinker with the light watts to get the right temp

yeah i have a hygro, and my humidity hovers right around 55%. i had the top covered in aluminum foil but that didnt work to well. i want to put a glass top on it, but im worried about airflow. my thermostat keeps the temp right when i use the heat lamps. its just very frustrating sometimes when your trying to get everything set up right.

well it seems like you have everything set up real well, does that thermostat work with just regular heating lights, it doesnt seem like a glass top would be too good for air flow, maybe your snakes are just stressed, are they young

yeah they are fairly young my female is a yearling and my male is 7 months. he just shed about 3 weeks ago and it was decent. but when she sheds its terrible. yeah the thermostat works fine with the regular heat lamps, i didnt start having heating problems until i put in the UTH. i was told they were better for shedding and digestion

yeh I would agree they can definitly help with those things. Thats weird that the temps got messed up. My one boy she'd really well when I first got him and then I put my two boys together and his next shed was terrible stress definitly gets to them. Now they love eachother though, always with eachother. Give them time I guess

If the UTH is not heating to the proper temp then there are a couple of things that it can be , 1 it may not be the proper heat range UTH . They come on different watt ranges , 2 if it is not making contact with the bottom of the cage it will not be as effective . And as for as it being the wrong advise ,well it must be a miracle that all my snakes are alive and at the proper temps.

"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"