Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Right now I have an undertank heater. On the side with the heater the temperature reads 70 degrees.
Would the undertank heater be enough heat? And the temperature guage is not reading it? Or would I need to add another heat source?

If your thermometer is on the wall of the tank then move it to the bottom surface for accurate determination. Wall maybe works OK if heat source is above, not so good if from below. If it already is on the bottom surface I would say you need to go a little higher in temperature. I usually try to keep mine 76 to 84 degrees. I also have a large stone tile for her on that side for good heat conduction to her body. With my undertank heater (one of those Exoterra/Hagen heaters) I actually have to regulate it down with a dimmer switch otherwise it would get too hot on that side.
If with adjustments you don't get into that temperature range I'd say you need to add another heat source for proper temp regulation.
Good luck

If I were to add a heat light, along with my undertank heater, would that be too hot?(on the same side of the tank)

Need to know because I am getting my snake soon. Thanx

I'd say you'd have to try it out before you get your snake. Is your thermometer currently on the wall of the tank or on the bottom surface? It should be on the bottom surface for accurate temperature determination with an undertank heater. I have one of these ones: http://www.hagen.com/canada/english/reptiles/product.cfm?CAT=31&SUBCAT=3106&PROD_ID=03024650010101
If after having your thermometer on the bottom and the temperature stays low I'd say get a low (40 watt?) wattage bulb - wattage with depend upon size of your tank - and try it out. I don't have that much experience with heating with bulbs because I never needed to use one. Maybe someone else who has more experience can help you out in that respect. They may need to know the size of your tank (ie. 20 gallon long?).

>>I'd say you'd have to try it out before you get your snake. Is your thermometer currently on the wall of the tank or on the bottom surface? It should be on the bottom surface for accurate temperature determination with an undertank heater.

I use one of the $15 Wal-Mart thermometers meant for indoor/outdoor use--it has a temp probe intended for running out a window/door for the "outdoor" reading, but I just put the thermometer in one spot so its sensor takes the reading where the thermometer is, and then run the probe to another spot (for example, under the heat source) to get another, different reading so I get an idea of the temperature gradient.

>>If after having your thermometer on the bottom and the temperature stays low I'd say get a low (40 watt?) wattage bulb - wattage with depend upon size of your tank - and try it out. I don't have that much experience with heating with bulbs because I never needed to use one.

I'm the opposite--I only use an incandescent bulb, and don't have any experience with heating pads because I've never needed to use one! I have a 20 long tank, with a 60 watt bulb in a metal reflector dome which keeps the basking area in the 80s.
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Chris McMartin
www.mcmartinville.com
I'm Not a Herpetologist, but I Play One on the Internet

I guess I use an undertank heater because in the end its cheaper - 44 watts less (16 watts vs 60 watts). Should be about $25 savings per year at 6.5 cents per kilowatt hour. I know it's not that much but for me it does the trick and I'll take the savings.

>>I guess I use an undertank heater because in the end its cheaper - 44 watts less (16 watts vs 60 watts). Should be about $25 savings per year at 6.5 cents per kilowatt hour. I know it's not that much but for me it does the trick and I'll take the savings.

Here's how I calculate it:

Using dollars per day:

.065 dollars per kWh, running my 60W bulb 12 hours per day (estimate; I adjust photoperiod seasonally from 0 to 14 hours), my bulb uses .72 kWh per day. This means it costs $.0468 per day. Multiply that by 365 days in a year (conservative figure; I don't use a bulb for 2-3 months of brumation) and I pay $17.08 per year TOTAL for my garter's heat/light with a 60W bulb.

Basically it costs a less than $1.50 per month for my snake--I had to crunch these numbers many years ago when I was splitting utility costs with an anal-retentive roommate.
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Chris McMartin
www.mcmartinville.com
I'm Not a Herpetologist, but I Play One on the Internet

Ok, so I was little high. Maybe you could get away with ~$4.50 (maximum seeing as it is on a dimmer - less than 16 watts, maybe 10-12 watts?, so maybe ~$3.50 is closer) instead of $17 by using an undertank heater. I guess ~$13 would be closer to the savings.

thank you everybody for all of your help. I appreciate it.