Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i use a 60 watt day light and 40 watt night light i recently felt the substrate and it has been feeling a littel bit cold lately should i use a higher watt on both or what should i do? any thoughts or tips... Thanks

underdog125,
If you're using a 60 watt bulb, I would be worried about cooking the frog! I would recommend that you invest in a reptile thermometer (the round plastic kind, not the tape-like aquarium kind), and measure the air temp. It should be about 80-85 degrees F. 85F is pushing it, but that's OK. The air temp is what matters, the ground temp will likely be just fine if the air temp is. In the wild the ground isn't excessively warm or cold in normal circumstances, so don't worry. Aim for 80-85F and 50-70% humidity and you'll be golden. Good luck!

Evan

yea i have them in the tank i have used a 60 watt for about 8months now without any problems.the temp says 80 or so.. and the soil is cold from misting...what heating would you recommend then???

simple solution, and i use them on both my horned frog tanks, zoomed under tank heater pad. you dont need lights for frogs, if you want a light use a florecent so it doesnt dry anything out. the undertank heater will provite humidity as well if you keep your substrate moist like coco bedding. your frog will move to the heat pad if he wants it or away if he doesnt. just dont put your water dish under the heat pad.

The heating pads can be used, but there is a risk of accidental burns to the frog. They are burrowers by nature, and as such they will attempt to burrow down to cool off. There in lies the problem. Most people don't have problems with them, but there is a risk. As far as additional heating, I promise you that you don't need any. If you've got the temp at 80 degrees, or close to it, you're fine. Don't worry about the cooler substrate they'll be fine! And by the way, I hope that they're not housed together... Please post any other questions you might have.

Evan

Thanks to all. keep me posted on setups i love them all and as far as heat goes i will continue to use my 60 watt b/c it gives me the closes temps that i want. unless you recommend a lower wattage but then it would even hit anywhere and the temps would be lower this is very frusterating. well thanks to all

Stick to what you're using if it's working. If the temps are where they need to be, and you're using a 60 watt bulb, who's to say "don't use that." Do what works.

Evan

ya do what works, "for the moment" who cares about the long run or doing things correctly, use heat lamps for pacman frogs...lame. try this http://www.geocities.com/tozgood/home.html or try this...
http://www.geocities.com/rafarndell/husbandry.html

your simply getting wrong advise here....

krowleey,
Ha! We meet again! I'm not sure what, in the near or distant future, will change with a 60 watt bulb and it's temperature. Do you mean that someday we will all wake up, go to turn on our reptile lights, and be shocked to see that when we hit the switch lightning comes out? I have used heat lights for countless frogs (not just these when I did for them, but many others as well), again, I am uncomfortable using heating pads, that's just me, it doesn't have to be everyone, it's just me. I think your dedication to the proper husbandry of these frogs is unquestionable. Keep up the good work.

Evan

im no expert, but i do have a few horned frogs, and poison darts as well. i just state how i do things in fact quite a few use it as a standard. heat lamps are for desertr type animals, thats what they are designed for, not for keeping things "wet" anyways GL with your frogs

krowleey,
The best way to advise people is by telling them what works for you. I'm happy that horned frogs have as passionate a voice as yours to protect them. Without people like you, our frogs wouldn't be living very long.
Evan

ok ok ok!!!!!! just to let everyone know i was just debating on weather using light or heat mats.b/c i have an assort of opinions its not like i just went out one day and said i want to buy a pacman frog i have had my frog for several months now.. doesnt make me an expert or anything. i have had them in the past so i know alot about them im. ok thanks to all and please post pics of setups they are always nice to look at get some different ideas. Thanks to all

Holy crap! A 60 watt bulb for a frog? Are you kidding me? Thats insane! I am surprised the bell hasn't dung to say your frog is done! I use 10 watt bulbs with my Ceratophrys, and I occasionally wonder if those are too hot.

Correction: I use 15 watt bulbs. The Sun-Glo and Moon-Glo from Exo-Terra.

Whatever that is not strong enough to heat a 10 gallon tank sometime i think my 60 watt isnt enough so i add my 40 watt with it..yes my frog is very fine

Strange. My two 15 watt bulbs heat my 10 gallon just fine.

i can say a 15 watt bulb doesnt heat nothing. to get 80 plus temp from a 15 watt bulb is no likely at all you must be thinking of something else.

Umm no. I have been using these bulbs for years. They are 15 watt. When you touch them with you finger they burn. They are Exo Terra SunGlo and MoonGlo incandescent bulbs.

Lets compromise and say, someone's wrong. There you both go, problem solved. I would think that the 60w would certainly reach 80 degrees, I could also say that the smaller ones might not reach quite that high. Thermometers can build up heat when exposed to direct heat, (like any object), and may thus display slightly augmented temps. Just a thought. Not meant for one of you over the other, just something I've noticed.

Evan

HHAHAH i didnt even know they make a 15 watt light bulb what are you trying to heat a critter cage??

They make 1 Watt light bulbs...Why wouldn't they make 2, 3, 4, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 40, 60, 100, 110, 120, 130, 140, 150, 200 Watt lightbulbs?

Are you sick do you have a fever? there is no way on GOD's beauitful green earth that a 15watt bulb would make your tank temp. to 84.2 degrees Fahrenheit or should i say 29 degrees Celsius for canada people.

Umm yeah thats 29.5C, not 29C, seeing as how you like to get all specific with decimal points. Thats with 2 bulbs - the sunglo and the nightglo. When I turn off the sunglo at night then temp drops to 24C. Perfect!

And thanks for telling me how my bulbs work and what temperature my thermometers read. I really don't know what I would do without you.

I quit.

Evan

canada loser

29.5 c is 85.1 F buddy while 29c is 84.2F. so again your are 100% wrong!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I quit too. I think this underdog125 guy is about 10 years old. He is definately the underdog! Thats way too young for me to call a moron. Also I don't think these forums are moderated very well.

dont sweat it, those temps are perfect. i just dont agree with using heat lights due to the drying out part, so im partial to heating pads which my frogs love.

I have 6 horned frogs all in separate enclosures. I have 2 with daytime/nighttime lights, 2 with heat pads, and 2 with nothing - just kept at room temperature. The key to using heat pads is to get the absolute smallest one (Zoo Med MINI - MINI being the key word). These produce less heat and are recommended for PLASTIC terrariums. These are what I use - perfectly safe. Of course if you get a large heat mat and try it with a horned frog you will be supplying way too much heat, just use common sense. The thing I like about lights is that it sort of creates a more natural environment (ie. sun and moon), and it helps in watching them. Other than that whether you supply heat with a light or mat doesn't really matter. Heat is heat. Also my room temperature frogs seem fine, they eat readily and everything, its just that they aren't as active as the ones with lights and heat mats. They tend to burrow and just sit, whereas the ones with heat are "jumping around" more often. Just my experience. I do plan on getting some more heat mats for the other two, because I think that it is more healthy for a frog to be active than be non-active. And as said previously, heat aids in digestion, which can also only be a benefit.