Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a 65 gal. tank equally divided so that I can house my 2 corns. Well - I am looking to get my smaller corn a new tank and let the 4 year old have the 65 gal. Problem is that I have a UTH on each side of the 65 gal. and now I need one of them for the other tank. Any ideas on how to get it off and still be able to use it? Thanks in adavance

Eric

>>I have a 65 gal. tank equally divided so that I can house my 2 corns. Well - I am looking to get my smaller corn a new tank and let the 4 year old have the 65 gal. Problem is that I have a UTH on each side of the 65 gal. and now I need one of them for the other tank. Any ideas on how to get it off and still be able to use it? Thanks in adavance
>>
>>Eric

This is why I never stick them on anymore....that and it curses the tank to being broken.
Try some nail polish remover on the adhesive. Best guess here.
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Sonya

Haven't we warned you about tampering with the structure of a chaotic system?
Mrs. Neutron

if you remove the UTH from the tank, you can damage some of the wiring in it, and possibly create a fire hazard.

What I do with the UTH is to buy an appropriately sized ceramic tile from Lowe's or Home Depot and stick the new UTH directly on that. Then you can move it around to wherever you want. Another advantage to doing this is that you can increase or decrease the space between the tank and the tile, thereby increasing or decreasing the temperature.
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phflame

Now you have me worried! I just removed my under tank heater from a cage and moved it to a larger cage. It's been a couple of weeks, should I throw it away and buy a new one? I know I don't want a cooked snake, and I also don't want a burnt down house!
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***** Brandon *****

0.0.1 White's Tree Frog
1.0 Creamsicle Cornsnake
corn_snake_dude@yahoo.com

I would throw it away. Get yourself a new one. LLL has them for $8-$30 or so depending on size, and to me its worth it. It's very possible to overheat one, and they arent made to be removed either (as its been stated). I would do the ceramic tile trick, personally.
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-Chris

The reason mainstream thought is thought of as a stream is because it's so shallow. -George Carlin

A fool doesn't learn. A smart man learns from his mistakes. A wise man learns from the mistakes of others. Which one are you?

My Website
N. American Rat/Corn snake care sheet I wrote

Current snakes:
0.1 Licorice Stick Black Rat (Lola)
1.0 Black Rat (Frankie)
1.1 Texas Bairds (Jose and Rosa)
0.1 Blue Beauty (Brunhilde)
1.0 Green Tree Python (Claudius)... coming soon

I would play it safe and get rid of it. You should just run to Wal-Mart and buy a heating pad for $9. Most of the UTH are too hot unless you have them hooked up to a dimmer or something like that. I have all 3 of mine on a heating pad and it keeps the temps perfect.
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0.0.1 Amel Motley Corn (Cosmo '03)
0.1 Baird's Ratsnake (Sugaree '04)
1.0 White Oaks Grey Rat (Tennesse Jed '04)
1.1 Shepherd mix (Dylan 5yrs, Porter 8 months)

>>I have done it a couple of times.If you do it right things will be fine.
As long as it is working I see absolutely no reason to throw it away.
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Corn snakes and rat snakes..No one can have just one.
"resistance is futile"
Jimmy (draybar)

Draybars Snakes

I have seen them get damaged, but it is almost always visible damage.
I have also removed them successfully and re-used them without problems.
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Jeremy J. Anderson
snakepimp.com
gemstatereptiles.com
Of course it's my opinion, I said it, didn't I?
Breeding season is always just around the corner....JOY!!!

Don't remove and reuse them. I managed to get one off once and used it on a different tank. It must of shorted out because it got REALLY hot. I was just lucky that I was monitoring the temps for a couple days before putting any critters in it. It would be a better, and safer, idea to just buy a new one.

Charlene
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0.0.1 Green Water Dragon
1.0.0 Tokay Gecko
1.1.1 Bearded Dragons
0.1.0 Columbian Red-tailed Boa
1.0.0 Yellow Ratsnake
0.0.1 California Kingsnake
0.0.1 Black and White Tegu
0.0.1 Chilean Rose Hair Tarantula
1.0.0 Evil Budgie

I use some construction-grade foil tape to stick them to the bottom, or floor of the cage, and you can put dissipative/electrically-insulative materials atop them, as mentioned in the post above, such as ceramic tiles.
When I put them inside the cage, I always insulate them, to reduce fire hazard, and always, always, always use some kind of thermostat/rheostat/temperature controller.
Ceramic tiles look cool in the right cage, too.

I personally don't use supplemental heat for my corns, as I have the luxury of a snake room, I keep them between 78-82 and they do fabulously. I have 2004's that weigh over 200 grams...
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Jeremy J. Anderson
snakepimp.com
gemstatereptiles.com
Of course it's my opinion, I said it, didn't I?
Breeding season is always just around the corner....JOY!!!

The companies say it can destroy the UTH's is you remove them once stuck, but I haven't had any problems yet. The thick plastic ZooMed ones are easier to remove than those clear thin ones that show the heating elements. I just slowly unpeel them and then restick them to the new surface using black electrical tape. To clean off the residue, 'goof off' works wonders. Good luck - you shouldn't have any problems!

I have found in the past that hot water on the other side of the glass will help loosen the glue enough to peel off with out problems. Like most others have said you can damage the element, but I have never had a problem. I have also used humane heating pads a lot in the old days set to low with no problems at all they are cheap ($10.00 or less) and don’t need to be stuck anywhere. PhFlame’s idea of using the piece of tile is also very useful as you can move them around as you wish with having to worry. Nowadays I use fancy and expensive equipment but I do remember the days of Herping on a Budget and there is always non-specialized items that do the job and cost a lot less then the Herp Specialized equipment. Corded Lamp dimmers work as an inexpensive thermostat, Indoor/outdoor digital thermometers work as a nice way to be able to check cage temps and hot spot temps all at once. Rubbermaid containers work to cheap baby houses for corns etc…….
It is easy to do as long as you know what you as looking for.
Good Luck

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Jim Hopkins "Hoppy"
Hopkins Holesale Herps
Hopfam1@aol.com

I think you should just buy a new one. I've heard that lots of people use human heating pads, but I also heard that they shut off automatically after two hours, or something like that. I suppose it depends on which brand you buy, but either way, the new UTH isn't going to cost you that much. Even though I'm dead poor, I wouldn't risk a fire, but that's just me.

>>I have a 65 gal. tank equally divided so that I can house my 2 corns. Well - I am looking to get my smaller corn a new tank and let the 4 year old have the 65 gal. Problem is that I have a UTH on each side of the 65 gal. and now I need one of them for the other tank. Any ideas on how to get it off and still be able to use it? Thanks in adavance
>>
>>Eric

There are warning on the packaging for a reason. When you remove the pad from the tank it breaks the element inside. Once that happens then small eletrical arcs will happen inside the pad. Arcing is a form of fire! It can and will catch fire. Do not take a chance with your animals and your home and person(s). Human heating pads are not the answer either, they are not made for 24/7 use and are dangerous if used that way. The 2 hour shut off on these is to provent overheatong of the elements inside. Do yourself a favor pitch it and buy a new one.. Use Flexwatt, if not that then exo-terra pads are goof stuff! Hope this helps,
-Matt
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www.mgreptiles.com
CBB Herps and Heating Supplies

>>There are warning on the packaging for a reason. When you remove the pad from the tank it breaks the element inside. Once that happens then small eletrical arcs will happen inside the pad. Arcing is a form of fire! It can and will catch fire. Do not take a chance with your animals and your home and person(s). Human heating pads are not the answer either, they are not made for 24/7 use and are dangerous if used that way. The 2 hour shut off on these is to provent overheatong of the elements inside. Do yourself a favor pitch it and buy a new one.. Use Flexwatt, if not that then exo-terra pads are goof stuff! Hope this helps,
>>-Matt
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If you are carefull you can easily peel it and use it again.
If you do not break the elemements then the pad is just as good as it was...however good that was. It isn't rocket science.
I have two that have been removed and reused..lets see these were moved when I got my first bearded dragon...June of '02 I believe.
I have several human heat pads that have been on for around three years now and a couple more that have been on for at least two years. hmmm
If you are carefull and have a little bit of an idea what you are doing you do not have to panic and throw the UTH away. After all, it is still working isn't it?
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Corn snakes and rat snakes..No one can have just one.
"resistance is futile"
Jimmy (draybar)

Draybars Snakes

There has been severl post already on this topic that are saying they have had problems after removing the heat pads. I dont see where it is necessary to keep pushing a point that can be dangerous. You can do whatever you feel is safe for you and your animals at your home. Thats your right! But when a person is worried about a heating device, and when the manufacture clearly sdtates it is not reccommend to do a specific thing than clearly it is better to not do it. Let me ask you this, do yo blow dry your hair in the bathtub? Same type of warning! It is betetr for our animals and our homes and families to play it safe...
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www.mgreptiles.com
CBB Herps and Heating Supplies

i think you would be safer buying a new one. when you put the new one on the tank bottom, don't remove the paper that covers the adhesive side. turn the pad over and duct tape the pad to the tank. when you need to remove it, it is easy to do so. just place the tape around the periphery of the pad. good luck. Rin

I removed mine very slowly with nail polish remover and carefully. It NEVER WORKED RIGHT again. The temp was insanely HIGH or didnt work for days. Do yourself a favor and your snake throw it away get another one.
Dont risk a fire,burning your snake or it not working at all. Throw it away.
I use now cobra heat pad which I put a sheet of tinfoil behind and use reg scotch tape and stick it on(I got this method in cage forum)
I prefer the cobra heatpads temps anyway but even if you buy same type heat pad dont risk using same one once removed .
Ritas

What you said before is very true. I removed a glued heat pad very slowly and carefully. It was a mistake even though it looked like it wasnt tampered with at all.
It never worked right again infact was dangerous. Nothing happened because my Boyfriend paid attention to it. We soon threw it away.
Its expensive to be cheap thats very true. Better to get a new good one and good type than risk a fire or animal damage.

Ritas