? about heat and theromstats

[bigbuck270]

I am buying a leo for my son for christmas. I have been doing a ton of research. It seems that UTHs are the best form of heat.

What do you guys think is the best UTH? I will be using a 20 gal long with repticarpet.

Also for thermostats. What is the best? I am thinking of the Reptitemp 500.

If I use a thermostat, where do you mount the probe? In the tank, out or where?

Any advice on heating would be great. I am trying to buy everything except the leo asap so I can get it set up before we bring the leo home.

Thanks. Chuck

 

[Kotsay1414]

Chuck,

As far as a heat pad, when I had tanks, I used: http://www.petco.com/product/6353/Zoo-Med-Repti-Therm-UTH-Under-Tank-Heaters.aspx the 8 Watt UTH.

Thermostats, I am a BIG fan of http://www.beanfarm.com/store/agora...t=Temperature Control&user4=On/Off Thermostat

With the Probe, it goes inside the tank, on the tank floor of the warm side. I have my probes set up under the hide on the warm side since that will be the hottest part of the tank.

Hope this helps!

Kyle

 

[rhino43grr]

- i have a zoo med 10-20g uth for my 20 long and it seems to work ok.
- i'm using an alife 1000 thermostat and it works well too, don't have any experience with the reptitemp 500s though.
- the probe should go on top of the repticarpet above the uth.

 

[KHGeckos]

UTH will do fine and yes it's recommended to use a thermostat. The better thermostats are the Helix DBS1000 and Johnson Controls. The probe will have to be placed on the surface of the "hot spot" inside the enclosure because this is where you want to keep the temperature at about 90 degrees. Just make sure the probe is secure in place on the surface because the UTH gets very hot if not controlled. Any other questions, feel free to ask.

 

[Stitch]

I use ZooMed's UTH. But I use a rheostat to control it. It works the same as a thermostat but it only gives you Low-Medium-High read outs and has no probe for temp regulation. Where as a thermostat has the temps listed on the gauge and the probe measures the temps and regulates them. So if you use a rheostat you would need a good temp gun or thermometer to check the temps and adjust the rheostat accordingly. The Reptitemp 500 is the cheapest t-stat you can get. The better ones can start to run $60+.

Mount the probe inside of the tank over top the area where UTH will be. The probe will be sitting on top of the carpet. The probe SHOULD not be touching the glass directly. Most people tape down the probe so the leo doesn't move it too much.

Some times for the winter you may need to add supplemental heating like a heat lamp. This helps keep the ambient air temps up. I suggest using a standard house light at 60 watts. Just remember to turn it off at night and make sure it doesn't interfere with the t-stat or over heat the cage.

 

[bigbuck270]

Thanks for the great replies. Please keep em comming.

At first I thought I could go out a buy a lizzard and put it in a tank. I had no idea what was involved!!

I live up here in Maine and our house is about 65 degrees most of the year. Do you think I will need a light on top to keep the air warm or should the UTH do the job?

Also when you use a UTH you need to elevate your tank correct? How much? What do you guys put under your tank to keep it up?

 

[Stitch]

The ZooMed UTH come with little rubber "feet" to raise the tank for underneath tank applications, like yours will be. So that is what I use. I do have some sitting on the carpet and the little feet do no good. So I use old CD cases to raise the warm end up off the ground. It only has to be 1/4 inch off the surface to allow air underneath. If you don't raise it the air underneath heats up and can wind up cracking the glass bottom.

Since you are in Maine you probably will need the heat lamp. Most likely just for the winters. You can turn it off at night and allow the cage air to cool down. Remember this happens in the wild. I only suggest using the lamp during the day, in the winter, to keep air temps in the mid 70's, NO HIGHER.

Since you are setting the tank up before you buy the gecko (kudos to you :main_thumbsup: ). You can do some trial runs to see if you will need the supplemental heating.

Good luck!

 

[LeopardGeckoMom52688]

I had the thermostate you are talking about. I emailed the company because I was trying to heat my heat tape with it and I melted it. And I kno for a fact I wasn't over the limit. I moved up to a Zoo Med 500R thermostat with probe and love it. And I agree with everyone else abotu the thermostates. I would however reccomend some kind of heating if your house is that cold. www.lllreptile.com is another good place to buy stuff.

 

[Ccrashca069]

I would even consider using the Zoo Med UTH for the 40gallon tank. I bought one as an experment and set it up on one of my 20L tanks by my window. It keeps the carpet at 89. I know Maine is pretty cold with snow and frost right now. I have my friends Mel and Preston thinking about getting leopard geckos and they live in Maine

 

[bigbuck270]

I know Maine is pretty cold with snow and frost right now.

Let see this morning when I got up we were having a heat spell..it was 2.9 above 0. This was a warm up since yesterday it was -.5. As for snow we have about 15" with 1-3 expected tonight and possibly a foot Sunday!

Please keep the great Gecko comments comming!!

 

[Stitch]

I would even consider using the Zoo Med UTH for the 40gallon tank. I bought one as an experment and set it up on one of my 20L tanks by my window. It keeps the carpet at 89. I know Maine is pretty cold with snow and frost right now. I have my friends Mel and Preston thinking about getting leopard geckos and they live in Maine

That's not a good idea. You need a warm end and a cool end. The 40 gallon UTH would be taking up about half of the floor space. Once that heats up you won't have much room for thermoregulation. Only use the UTH that is recommended for the specific tank size. Sitting a tank in front of a window is a big no-no. I know it's cold up there now but when it warms up it can be disastrous.

 

[Ccrashca069]

Well I took readings with an ESU Reptile Digital Monitor with a 39 inch probe and the warm end is 89 and the cool end is 78. I never said not to get a thermostate. I am going to buy one of the tank I set-up as an experment. No geckos are in it now. I am going to try one of those Zoo Meds thermostates or rheostat and give it a try. I live about 1000 feet up a mountain and we been getting alot of frost and temps around 28 f at night. During the sumar it does get hot here. and I always monitor my temps then.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

Only use the UTH that is recommended for the specific tank size.

Agreed, but in some cases the UTH's will say they are for a 10-20 gal tank, but they don't get hot enough with the 20-gal. I use the larger size UTH and plug it in with a rheostat set where the floor surface temps. are around 90-94, then plug the rheostat through the controller. That way, it will never overheat to the point it would be dangerous.

 

[Stitch]

Agreed, but in some cases the UTH's will say they are for a 10-20 gal tank, but they don't get hot enough with the 20-gal. I use the larger size UTH and plug it in with a rheostat set where the floor surface temps. are around 90-94, then plug the rheostat through the controller. That way, it will never overheat to the point it would be dangerous.

I agree that there are some cases where this may be needed. But the person posting the question is new to reptiles. I feel that he should get the answers that is asking for. Suggesting something that is not necessarily needed, may stray him down the wrong path. I have (5) 20 gallon long and (3) 10 gallon tanks. All with the appropriate sized UTH attached and no heating issues.

 

[bigbuck270]

Last night I purchased a 20 L tank and a Zoo Med 10-20 heater. Hopefully this was correct.?. I also got repticarpet and 2 digital thermometers (1 for the ground and 1 for the ambient air. Now I just need a thermostat because I think that will be better than a reostat but I cant find one. I guess I can order 1 but I want to set the tank up this weekend so it will be ready for little leo.

 

[Stitch]

Last night I purchased a 20 L tank and a Zoo Med 10-20 heater. Hopefully this was correct.?. I also got repticarpet and 2 digital thermometers (1 for the ground and 1 for the ambient air. Now I just need a thermostat because I think that will be better than a reostat but I cant find one. I guess I can order 1 but I want to set the tank up this weekend so it will be ready for little leo.

I'm suprised that the pet shop didn't carry a thermostat. Perhaps Home Depot or another pet store may carry one that would work. I believe LLLReptile.com ships pretty quickly.

 

[bigbuck270]

I'm suprised that the pet shop didn't carry a thermostat. Perhaps Home Depot or another pet store may carry one that would work. I believe LLLReptile.com ships pretty quickly.

I called every pet store I can find in Maine and not one of them has the thermostat! I will have to order 1 I guess, I was just hoping to set the tank up Sat or Sunday since we are predicted to get 18-20" of snow!

 

[rhino43grr]

i got mine (alife 1000) from blvdreptiles.com for a really great price - i think it was like $17 - but they've apparently run out or stopped carrying them...
ebay sometimes has thermostats and rheostats or you can find them by googling whichever one you're interested in buying...
20 longs are easy to get tile for. if you ever decide to go that route you'll just need two 12"x12" tiles and either a 6"x12" tile or two 6"x6" tiles...

did you ever decide what you're doing about the gecko itself yet, by the way?

 

[bigbuck270]

did you ever decide what you're doing about the gecko itself yet, by the way?

I cannot find a small breeder in the state. 1 person pm'd me from MA and said he could meet me 1/2 way. I went to petco and petsmart last night and they have about 20 in stock. I may have to go that way and rescue a couple of those.

I just ordered a thermostat that should be here Wednesday so I'll have to make my decision by Friday.

PS how'd you like the game last week? I'm sitting here typing with my Pats hat on!

 

[rhino43grr]

i've never wished bodily harm upon an nfl player until tom brady came along...