Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Anyone have any experience with "tempguns"? Good? Bad? Thermometers that you like better? or any you would steer clear of?

Thanks

Temp guns are fun, and within the first week of having one you will know the temp of everything. Think Im kidding frozen rats, thawed mice, floor, cricket, foot with shoe, foot without shoe, they are definaly additive. Luckily the fun factor wears off in about a week and you can get back to work and your real life. Seriously I do like them, and seem to match up to a real themometer for accuacy, and because they are so much fun and an instant reading you will have a better idea of the temp ranges in your snake room/enclosures. If you do get one let me know what you think.

Thanks, Jay
-----
Find a job you love, and you will never work a day in your life -Confucious
3.20 ball pythons
1.1 dumeril boas
0.0.1 pixie frog
1.1 dogs
0.2 cats
more fish than I can list.

I've had my temp gun for a few months, and still play with it every time I enter my snake room! They are very fun and are VERY useful. A must-have
Jeremy
-----
Isn't it cooler that serpent's don't walk anymore?
(Genesis 3:14)

LOL, I laughed so hard at your post......

I just bought a temp-gun from proexotics, and your post is so true, we have checked the temperature on EVERYTHING so far, in fact these little gadgets are so much fun that it is hard to keep it out of my kids hands!!! Really, you can't go wrong with a temp-gun, perfect temps in all of my reptile enclosures...and they seriously provide hours of entertainment!!

Leyla x

-----
1.0 husband
1.3 kids
0.1 african sulcata tortoise
1.0 Argentine Black & white tegu
1.0 green iguana
1.0 egyptian Uromastyx
2.3 canine buddies
0.1 Ball Python

Temp guns rock!!! I love mine!

Indoor/outdoor thermometers (15 bucks at k-mart) with probes are my second favorite. Its nice to have something in the tank if you want to check the temps without disturbing a hungry critter. They're great because they monitor both sides of the tank at once, and have a nice digital readout. Several of them also read humidity, which is another plus. I don't use or recommend anything else.

The only reason I would not get a temp gun, and I dont know if this is accurate or not, but it seems that if you shoot it into a cage, you may get the temp pf the back wall, or the temp of the bedding but not an ambient temp. Is this true?

Thanks

You get a temp of whatever the laser points at, so if you shoot at the hide box you get a temp of the top of the box not the inside. I have laid a thermometer on the bottom of the cage let that get up to temp then shoot the end of the thermometer and got the same reading so I feel good about them. You cant take a reading of the air say 3 inches above the bottom but for everything other then air temps they work great. Does that answer your questions?
-----
Find a job you love, and you will never work a day in your life -Confucious
3.20 ball pythons
1.1 dumeril boas
0.0.1 pixie frog
1.1 dogs
0.2 cats
more fish than I can list.

It does thanks. I think I will probably get a probe type therometer and a gun. The gun sounds like a blast, even if in never makes it to the cage!

np

I'm using $2 aquarium thermometers from Wal-Mart. I have one digital thermometer, and I've placed the digital immediately beside the aquarium thermometer and found that they track perfectly. I don't know that either is all that accurate, but they match. The suction cups probably aren't good enough to hold them off the bedding, but most people tell me that the temperature that matters is the temperature at bedding level. I'm new to the game, so I don't know whether using these thermometers is best. I haven't yet found a reason not to use them.

I'm still experimenting with different ideas. I still have a bunch of the strip thermometers that I bought when I didn't know any better. I'm switching to the aquarium thermometers for some uses and have more digital thermometers on order.

I have two cages and two snakes. At this point, I have eight thermometers in one cage and five in the other. When I've been doing this longer, I'll probably be a little less obsessive about watching the temperature.

Bill
-----
It's not how many snakes you have. It's how happy and healthy you can keep them.

"At this point, I have eight thermometers in one cage and five in the other."

Heya Bill,for another dollar you could have bought a temp gun Seriously though,they are a must have for us obcessive temp checkers(or anyone that wishes to keep a happy herp for that matter).
-----
Charles Glaspie

Tanstaafl:
"There ain't no such thing as a free lunch".
An acronym created by my favorite author Robert A. Heinlein.

As you can see in the branch of this thread just below this one, Robyn is about to sell me on the idea of getting a gun. What kind do you have? How do you like it? If you were choosing between the PE-1 and the PE-2, which would you choose?

I'm a very frugal person, so the idea of getting the less expensive alternative is appealing. From what Robyn says, the PE-1 would do everything that I'd ever need. However, it's obvious from reading the specs that the PE-2 would do things just a little better. My ball python is less than a year old. If I assume an average lifespan of pet ball pythons of about 20 years, the difference in price between the PE-1 and the PE-2 is about a dollar a year. For that difference, I see no point in not getting the nicer gun.

The flip side of that argument is that electronic equipment isn't made to last more than a few years. Even equipment that does last will become obsolete. With those facts in mind, maybe the less expensive gun is the better choice.

Another point that I made in the other threads is that someday infrared cameras will come down in price and be designed for herpetoculture. The last time a vendor came by the plant to try to sell one to us, I think even the cheapest models were in the $4000 range. However, those cameras were designed to get temperatures of everything from chilled brine operating below freezing to furnaces operating in the thousand degree range. A reptile keeper just wouldn't need that much range, and an infrared camera designed for reptile keepers might be cheaper because it wouldn't need the same range.

The beauty of one of these cameras is that someone could open the top of a cage and take a picture just like taking a picture using a digital camera. There is some calibration involved, and that calibration takes a little skill and know-how. However, once one has that skill, each picture is easy to take. The resulting picture would look like any other digital picture except that the colors would represent radiant heat instead of reflected light. With a few pictures, I could know the temperature of every spot in the cage. The main reason that I'd need to take a few pictures is that I'd need to shoot from a few angles to get underneath the fake plants.

I'd have to look at the literature again to know whether these cameras can shoot through glass. I tend to believe that they can't, so the door of a front-opening cage would have to be opened before the shot was taken. Likewise, each drawer of a rack would need to be opened before shooting, but the temperature of the bedding wouldn't change in the few seconds needed to take the picture.

For those of us who are obsessive, an infrared camera would be a dream.

In the meantime, I'm having some problems getting my ball python's cage to regulate properly. I came home from work yesterday to find the hot side at 95°F and the cool side in mid-80's. I turned off the light and misted everything. The temperature dropped to about 80°, and I haven't been able to get it back above the low 80's.

Bill
-----
It's not how many snakes you have. It's how happy and healthy you can keep them.

Mine is like the PE1,(except i purchased mine from Reptile Basics)and it really is all you need.However,having used the raytek laser point guns in the past(for kayak roto-molds),i know how much easier it can be with the pointer built in.

As far as mapping the thermal ranges goes...once you start using any temp gun.You will get a very good mental image of what is going on in there.

Oh and...light bulbs are a complete hassle,and ultimately a waste of time(even if you do manage to get it stable,the humidity level will be to low.)Just look into spending a good chunk on a decent thermostat(Johnson controls,or Ranco,or the Herpstat.)and some heat tape(or reptile heat pad).
Much easier to regulate...(safer too)

good luck with everything.
-----
Charles Glaspie

Tanstaafl:
"There ain't no such thing as a free lunch".
An acronym created by my favorite author Robert A. Heinlein.

keep in mind that temp guns and digital thermos do DIFFERENT things, and work complimentary together. digital thermos (or analog/dial/stick on thermos) take air temps, temp guns shoot surface temps. both have tremendous applications for reptiles.

temp guns can help you temperature map your cage. how hot the hot spot is, but also how big it is, how fast it drops off, etc. and you can do that within just a few seconds.

you can also verify incubating egg temps instantly and accurately.

digital thermos are good for a permanent/semi-permanent placement that can help you monitor ambient temps, or overnight highs and lows. but they don't offer the immediate feedback of a temp gun, so they are not as immediately useful.

as for the folks that use a temp gun for a week, and then never again, i couldn't imagine that. i can't have peace of mind without checking temps at least once a week. cool spots, hot spots, basking spots, especially during breeding cycling, it is important to know that each cage is running and temping as it should, and with a temp gun, you can go cage to cage, 5 seconds for each cage, and double check temps. you can't do that with a digital thermo, and i couldn't NOT do it.

each PE employee has a temp gun that they use each day. at the same time, we have dozens of digital thermos in use as well. they compliment each other to give us an accurate, complete picture.

get both : )
-----
robyn@proexotics.com

Pro Exotics Reptiles

You're tempting me into spending more money for gadgets for my snakes. I just received a package today of plants that I'll work into my snake cages soon. As long as you're tempting, what kind of gun do you suggest? What would be the budget model? What would be the ideal?

Have you ever considered digital thermography? Admittedly, the good cameras are still very expensive, but with one click of the shutter, you'd get a picture showing the temperature of every part of your cage. These cameras require a little skill to use, but people who are good with them can gather all kinds of fascinating data. I have a colleague at a refinery who has done great troubleshooting with one. The right model should be perfect for showing every thermal gradient in the cage.

If we ever get one where I work, I may try to check it out some night and map the temperatures in my cages.

Bill
-----
It's not how many snakes you have. It's how happy and healthy you can keep them.

the PE-1 is our most popular unit, and for $25, you won't find a better tool or investment. you can find them at our site, or here on the classifieds : )
-----
robyn@proexotics.com

Pro Exotics Reptiles

I saw the pictures on your website, but I couldn't tell how one would know exactly what spot was being measured. Is the spot obvious or is the uncertainty the selling point for the PE-2? What's a belt retractor? If I'm going to buy a new gadget, I might as well buy the aluminum case.

Bill

PS. I don't suppose that you'll be at the reptile show this Saturday in Baton Rouge?
-----
It's not how many snakes you have. It's how happy and healthy you can keep them.

when in use, it is pretty obvious : )

our most popular unit is the PE-1, also the most affordable.

the belt retractor is a little zip line you can clip to your belt or pocket and have the temp gun in handy reach. kinda like the school janitor and his keys : )
-----
robyn@proexotics.com

Pro Exotics Reptiles

I totally agree with you, your post may have been more to the point then mine. I hope you didnt misunderstand me about the week thing, I still use mine almost on a daily basis I just meant that for the first week you may use it a little excessively and take lots of temps of things that didnt really matter lol. But seriously it is a tool that I everyone and the snakes will benefit from by becoming more aware of temps because it is fun and easy to use, who wants to wait for an old fashioned themometer to get up to temp only to move it somewhere else, not to mention that you would want to sterlize it before going to the next cage. I would love to find out where PE gets theres to sell in my store.
Thanks, Jay
-----
Find a job you love, and you will never work a day in your life -Confucious
3.20 ball pythons
1.1 dumeril boas
0.0.1 pixie frog
1.1 dogs
0.2 cats
more fish than I can list.

we manufacture our units and sell them wholesale to all kinds of stores. just contact me directly and i can help you set up an account : )
-----
robyn@proexotics.com

Pro Exotics Reptiles

Thanks I will try to call you tommorow
Jay
-----
Find a job you love, and you will never work a day in your life -Confucious
3.20 ball pythons
1.1 dumeril boas
0.0.1 pixie frog
1.1 dogs
0.2 cats
more fish than I can list.