very confused

[andrew_p]

ok im not to sure on where the temperature should be taken from i have a digital probe and when its on the reptile sand where the heat mat is it about 38deg and thats way to hot but when its about 10cm off the sand above the heat mat its about 27 deg and thats a tad to cold for my stimmy so yeah where should the temperature be taken from my tank is 80x50x50 if thats any help and the sand is about 4cm deep so if you could help me it would be very much appreciated thanks

 

[Orrinoco]

The basking point in your tank (hot spot) is where your mat is. This temp should not really go above 36deg and is measured on the sand itself not above it as this is then the air temp above you basking point. Adjust your mats thermostat accordingly to reach the required sand temp.

Hope this helps
Orri

 

[andrew_p]

thanks heaps for that yeah the guy at the pet shot was very confused and said i needed a ceramic heat lamp because the temperature inside the tank should be around 30-35 in the hot side and it was only 25-27 yeah well ill have to get a thermostat for the heat mat than as i was also told they should have a thermostat and should be ketp on at all times as the stimmy needs a warm tank

 

[Snakelove]

If your surface temp is 38degrees then turn it down to 32-33degrees. You don't need to get the air temp to 30-35. put your probe where your snake is most likely going to bask and you need to get that area 32-33degrees.

 

[andrew_p]

i have a magnetic hide it stays in almost all the time should i get that hide to the temp or just the sand around the hide?

 

[Bax155]

I remember the day I first got a temp gun and was amazed at what surface temperature some things were, it was a 32c day and dirt road surface temp was 40c +, I say if your getting that temp on your sand your stimmi wont need to bask long to get to his desired temp! Being a species found in arid terrain which can reach air temps of well over 40c I doubt a surface temp of 38c will bother him much, I checked a coastals cage temp today and it was a surface temp of 37c and he was coiled in his hide which is situated on this hot spot and remained there all day! I'm not a member of this 32c hot spot club, as long as you have a good gradient of 10c or more your reptiles will be fine, so if you have 38c hot end the cool end needs to be 28c or cooler!! Thats just my opinion though

 

[andrew_p]

yeah its good to get alot of opinions but yeah i had the heat mat packed up so it was touching the underside of the tank as its on a plastic frame an its about 1cm off the bench and it has lowered the surface temp to about 36 so im gonna stick to that for now but still she never comes out of her hide and i have no idea why i feed her lots she is eating hopper mice once every 2-3 days and has about 4 hides and a new backdrop that i made that also has a hide and a few vines but yeah she just sleeps all the time and never explores it might just be because she is a stimmy and she is a big softy i honestly think she doesn't like eating mice without a knife and fork haha

 

[Bax155]

Maybe the feeding her every 2-3 days is keeping her on the heat, as they like to curl up and stay warm after a feed!

 

[Jungletrans]

People get too caught up in the temp dial on a thermostat , that only tells you the temp at the probe . To set up a tank , get two cheap thermometers , one for the hot end , the other for the cool end . Now set your probe somewhere in the middle , away from the heat source which should be down one end . lgnore the dial on the thermostat , just turn it up till the hot end is around 34 , the cool end should be around 26-27 . You can move the heat to get a perfect reading but the snake will self regulate so dont worry too much .

 

[sammy_sparkles]

spoilt much? haha
you probs dont need to be feeding her that often, youll make her a FATTY!

 

[andrew_p]

yeah i tryed to feed her last night and she didnt take it so i chucked it out and its now been 4 days so maybe the temps were to high but yeah i saw her brother on the weekend and he is about 8 cm shorter and not as fat so yeah my snake is kinda on the jolly side haha i might have to take her for a walk to try shed those winter pounds. i think she is doing alright considering she was like the 3rd last to start feeding out of 12 and the brother i saw on the weekend that my mate owns was eating straight up

but yeah i have 2 thermometers one being a digital probe and the other just a normal old school one and thats at the cold end above the water dish and its currently reading 20 and the hot end (WHITH PROBE ON SAND) is reading 37. and the temp with the probe half way up the side of the hot end is reading 24 keep in mind its not a very warm house im guessing the room temp is about 18-20 . so yeah i can rase the temps easy i have a ceramic heat lamp and also a heat lamp with a red light and both are kept off unless its cold.

so yeah im confused again haha maybe i should ask this what surface temp is to hot for a snakes belly haha i dont want to burn her just to get her enclosure warm.