Reptile & Amphibian Forums

curious how many people get the temp gradient desired from just an under tank heater and how many also use an overhead heat source.

also, do you allow the temp to drop lower at night or maintain it at the steady desired temps on hot/cool sides of the tank?

One of my rooms has unwanted temperature fluctuations, so this is my compensation for this tricky room:

Overhead heat lamp UTH in each tank...set on timers depending on season and weather...attached to thermostats to regulate/guard temperatures. I use the UTH alone, the Overhead alone, Both, or none -- depending on the room temps.

Example: (California, no A/C, cool room in the evening) Overhead UTH at night, UTH only mid-morning to afternoon, no heat sources in later afternoon, UTH only early evening, Overhead UTH at night...all regulated by timers so when I'm at work/out, I don't have to worry.

Don't measure heat sources or bulb/heat tape wattage -- measure substrate level temps on your warm & cool sides and then use an appropriate combination of heat mechanisms to adjust.

PS: I highly recommend thermostats for all cages -- if something goes wrong, this prevents disaster/death!

PPS: Night Drops...Well, some of my other reptiles enjoy a 10 degree temperature drop at night. My leos DON'T like this -- They'd rather bask in the overhead light and use the UTH heat to digest their evening meal(s). If I'm going to allow a temperature drop and not worry, I do this mid-morning when they've just gone to bed/very early evening (before they "wake up" -- mine start getting up about 7pm in the summer. The late risers get up around 11pm)
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Too many Leos
1.0 feline "Spot"
0.1 canine "Tika"

thanks for the good info. would a night (dark) bulb be ok to use for overhead heat or better to just go with ceramic heat bulb with no light? i like the night bulb just so i can see her being active at night so as long as it doesn't bother her...i'd like to continue with that. if i can get the temps right is it fine to continue with the uth and night bulb?

i'll have to get thermostats. i currently have the uth on all the time and the night bulb on for about 12 hours a day. i check temps a couple of times a week with a digital thermometer to be sure things are stable and still right - but it seems like i need to learn about and get thermostats going.

red bulbs/infrared are great. Just make sure its not a painted bulb. I use a UTH and a 75 watt infrared with a zoo med 500r thermostat. It's pretty good. I had heard bad things about it so i checked the temps religiously and it keeps a constant upper 80's when set correctly. The key is to monitor with your digital therm and make adjustments accordingly.

I just got an urban offspring female today! I'm beyond excited.

I agree with the red bulbs. My faves. And I have to say that automatic timers make life SO much simpler...

But dude!!..Sorry for hijacking the thread but Geckonate: Can you start a new thread and post a pic of the Urban you landed? They all sold FAST!! Whatja grab?? I'm oh sooo curious!
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Too many Leos
1.0 feline "Spot"
0.1 canine "Tika"

Fast is a total understatement. It seemed to me as if they were gone as soon as they were posted as available. And Geckonate I agree...post the pics lol
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2.0 Leos
2.3.4 Fattails
0.0.1 redfoot tortoise
0.0.1 sulcatta tortoise
1.1 Dogs
0.1 cat

For my girls I use a UTH only which they seem very happy with, my male on the other hand is much more spoiled he gets an over head light and a UTH. When I first got my male I didn't know anything about having a UTH so all I had was an over head light after I got him the UTH and took away his light his sleep pattern went weird where he was up all day and slept all night. I also guess that it wasn't warm enough for him either since he was throwing up his mealworms when I took the lamp away but since I gave him his light back he's back to normal so I guess it really depends on your leo. When I turn the light off at night he gets up and when I turn it on in the morning he goes to sleep so I'd assume that I have a very spoiled and strange little boy lol.

Ok, how do people heat cages/set-ups with only UTHs?? Maybe I'm crazy but I live in California, land of eternal sunshine, and I don't get this.

For my leos, I need flexwatt tape, rope, OR a combo of UTH and a heat lamp...how can a UTH alone heat a leopard gecko habitat to the proper temps? I've used all kinds of UTHs in my lifetime and while heat tape and heat rope can EASILY suffice on their own, how can a UTH keep a tank warm enough?
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Too many Leos
1.0 feline "Spot"
0.1 canine "Tika"

i just have mine covering 1/2 of my tank floor with a mat stat.

i have it moved over twards teh cool end about 2 inches from being right againesed the warm end because otherwise the cool end drops realy low but it works fine temp stabel. i have tile substrate btw

Since I have padded shelf liner as the subtrate the girls seem just fine with the UTH only and I have it placed in the middle of the tank to keep them warm. When they get to warm they hang out in their humid hide which is cooler and I see them in there a good part of the day usually since I live in California too for the next couple of years at least. I'll pick them up at night when they're out roaming around they're quite warm to the touch. If my male wasn't so spoiled to an overhead lamp then he'd only have a UTH as well but thats not possible so I let him have his light.

I too, use only UTH's... With many of my animals.. all my leos and my boas as well.. I don't know if I've just got a good brand or what (Not any of the big name brands and it looks just like Flexwatt only already wired up) but it keeps the temps right where I need them...I keep a slightly hotter basking area at night for my leos for them to digest.. they then have a warm side and a cool side as well... Their UTH covers about 1/3 of the bottom of their sterlite enclosures and I keep them on paper towel for ease of cleaning.... I have too many to try to use slate tiles all the time.. I have a few who have them...
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Lucien

1.1 Columbian Redtail Boa (BCI)(Sutekh and Isis)
3.5.3 Leopard geckos (2.0 Blizzards (Caine and Goliath), 0.1 Tangerine Albino (Tequila Sunrise ...Tiki for short), 1.0 Rainwater Albino (Mycah), 0.4 Poss. Het. Albino (Annika, Lace, Rain and Aris) and 2.1 dbl. het blizzard x tang albino (Malice, Malfeas, and Mystic))
0.1 Savannah Monitor (Kiros)
13 rats
2 Dogs (Loki and Storm)
3 cats (Ashe, Sahara and Hercules)
6 Fish (4 Red Danios, 1 Cardinal Fish, and 1 Tiger Barb)
8 Ramshorn snails
"And a Partridge in a Pear Tree!"

at the moment i have only uth and i want to get a night bulb for her...but maybe it will make it too hot?

i have a 20 gallon long tank and the uth covers about 1/3 of the tank. temps (checked with a probe) are 87 degrees at substrate level on the warm side and 74 on the cool. seems like the cool side could be a little warmer - but i'm not sure if the bulb will make the warm side too hot. (i'm going to experiment w/ a few wattages to see)

UTH's don't provide much of an ambient temperature change. Use an overhead lamp as well with a thermostat. I just set up a new corn snake enclosure and am using a thermostat now with thermometers. Check out the reptiledepot.com They have a 1000 watt three plug thermostat for 20 bucks! It works great!

I like to use heat tape on a dimmer and thermostat with no overhead and with no night-time drop.
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2.2 Corns (2 striped and 1 okeetee and 1 blizzard)
1.1 Graybanded
2.1 Banana Cal Kings
1.1 Leopard Geckos (High yellow and Jungle)

Since I just got mine, I don't have any digital thermo's yet but i do have a strip stuck to the heated side of my tank and during the day its between 84 & 90 degrees.

I use a taped UTH and a heat lamp. I will change the bulbs before i go to sleep at night and in the morning for the suitable temps. At night it gets to about 80 to 82. ANd that's with a red heat bulb in and the uth goign too.
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Ekeve
ekeve2004@gmail.com
There is magic everywhere you look. All you have to do is beleive.