opinions on uth.

[geckonewbie213]

is an under tank heater really worth it? im just curious if a heating lamp is actually enough.:main_robin:

 

[Pinky81]

Leopard gecko's get their USE ABLE heat from absorbing it from their bellies. So an UTH is a nessesary!!! Infared lamp is only needed to suppliment 1 or 2 degrees. You gecko won't be able to digest properly with out tummy heat. And do not do heat rocks..they can burn your leo

 

[Fencer04]

In my opinion if you aren't using an under tank heater you aren't giving your geckos what they need.

 

[geckonewbie213]

im going to get one, i was just told that they canburn their stomachs sometimes with the uth's. guess whoever said that was wrong, thanks petco...

 

[Dog Shrink]

If you properly monitor your heat mat with a probe thermometer, and a rheostat or thermostat if needed to keep the temps in an acceptable range of 88-95*F than burning is unusual. Considering most uth don't go over 100 degrees which is like you having a feaver, unless a mat seriously malfunctions, not likely. You will have a substrait in your tank which will lessen the surface temperatures or provide a "buffer" as well. You're also providing a temperature gradient with a cooler end in the room temperature range so if it's too hot on one side your leo can move to another hide in a cooler zone.

Like Melissa said you need the uth for proper digestion and heat bulbs should only be used to suppliment a heat shortage you may not be getting with the uth alone. A properly sized uth should take up approx. 1/3rd of your tank;s floor surface to provide that gradient. There are lots of threads on which uth is better and why it's preferred. I would suggest reading some of those before purchasing your uth. They're very informative.

 

[ILoveGreen]

The other day for alittle cheaper then a medium under tank heater I got heat wire at petsmart. I was able to heat 3 ten gallons instead of just the one

 

[Taquiq]

Get a UTH! They provide belly heat and use much less electricity than a lamp. UTH's usually use 4-8 watts, lamps 75-200 watts.

 

[Pinky81]

If you properly monitor your heat mat with a probe thermometer, and a rheostat or thermostat if needed to keep the temps in an acceptable range of 88-95*F than burning is unusual. Considering most uth don't go over 100 degrees which is like you having a feaver, unless a mat seriously malfunctions, not likely. You will have a substrait in your tank which will lessen the surface temperatures or provide a "buffer" as well. You're also providing a temperature gradient with a cooler end in the room temperature range so if it's too hot on one side your leo can move to another hide in a cooler zone.

Like Melissa said you need the uth for proper digestion and heat bulbs should only be used to suppliment a heat shortage you may not be getting with the uth alone. A properly sized uth should take up approx. 1/3rd of your tank;s floor surface to provide that gradient. There are lots of threads on which uth is better and why it's preferred. I would suggest reading some of those before purchasing your uth. They're very informative.

+1:main_thumbsup:

 

[geckonewbie213]

so i got the uth, my setup is on top of a dresser however, will i need a new stand, or will the heater not ruin my dresser? if anyone knows.

 

[Pinky81]

it could if the tank in directly on the dresser surface. You should use something at all 4 corners to lift the tank off the dresser by atleast and inch. Also if your dresser is wood (mine has thick glass on top) then that could be a fire hazard. I got a tank stand for my tanks so I didn't have to deal with the UTH spacing issues.
i attached a pic...the stand wasn't too pricey either

 

[Dog Shrink]

I have my tank on a wooden table, just slipped some 1x1 slats of wood under the outside edges to lift it a little and it's fine. You can also put a piece of that insulating fiber board that they wrap houses in before doign vinyl siding under the uth between the dresser and the tank to buffer the dresser but lifting it at the same time would permit the uth to breathe properly. Remember a uth only gets around 100*F,like you holding your feaverish hand in one place for a LONG time. Eventually (like long term eventually) it will dry out and damage the wood if there is no buffer in between them. I have my son's 100 gallon slate bottom ball python's tank directly on the dresser with 2 pieces of 2x4 holding it up and the uth has a piece of foam insulation behind it and it hasn't damaged his dresser and it's been like that for 4 years.

 

[IslaReina]

Usually, the uth comes with little sticky knobs to put on all four corners of the tank, that's what I use

 

[Dog Shrink]

I didn't like how unstable my tank felt on those lil sticky feet things. I would have needed at least 8 to feel good using those but glad it worked for you.

 

[geckonewbie213]

how hot ill it get?

 

[Dog Shrink]

How hot will what get? The uth? A lot of that will depend on brand... generally between 85-99*F.

 

[Blacksupra94]

I used to use an UTH but now I just use a 75 watt ceramic heat emitter as my primary heat source due to the way my tank is set up now. It gives the ground temps in the 20 gallon a range from 103 to 70 so she can pick where she likes.

 

[geckonewbie213]

well the uth works wonderfully, thanks for all the help guys!

 

[Dog Shrink]

:main_thumbsup:

 

[TokayKeeper]

to add to the little rubber feet idea, I like them, they serve their purpose of elevating the tank to avoid poor air circulation, but the ones that come with the heat pads are a little inadequate at best. If you still want to go the route, check out Lowes or Home Depot for these:

They come in various shapes and sizes. At the Lowes here around Albuquerque they are typically located on an end cap with other furniture footing items. I'm spacing on where Home Depot hides them, but they do carry them also.

To add a little fuel to the fire here though...

From an environmental stand point, heating with a bulb or ceramic heat emitter is actually more natural and safer. Climactically, the sun heats surfaces in the wild. Some surfaces will retain more heat than others. If leopard geckos occupy a niche similar to that of the desert southwests' banded gecko species (fellow eublephlarids themselves) then they are typically hiding within rodent burrows (SAND!! LOL) or among semi-thin flat rocks within rock outcroppings. Guess what, those rocks are most likely nestled within a sand-based, nutrient devoid soil.

They will most likely be surface active (found under said rocks) during the day where said rocks have the ability to provide a moisture lock so that the geckos may remain hydrated. As the days grow longer and warmer they'll become crepuscular and later nocturnal in activity. All this translates into very little belly heat, though the rocks will still retain some absorbed energy from the sun. A bulb or ceramic heat emitter does this very same thing; a heat pad doesn't really do that. The desert will also maintain a certain temperature of air heat, aka air temperature. This will also aid in retaining some surface temps. When I'm out field herping for these (note the substrate, brevis are from a limestone based sandy soil in NM, bogerti are from a granite based sandy soil within NM)...

...I often night hike them within arroyos (dry, sandy-gravelly stream beds) or will flip them under natural and artificial debris. The conditions I describe, plus recent moisture/precipitation, aid me greatly in locating North America's "leopard geckos".

That all in mind, all flexwatt, heat cable, heat pads/UTH function as are heat rocks. Same exact concept. Hot rocks have a built in heating coil/element with a rheostat set to not exceed a certain temp. Flexwatt needs a thermostat or rheostat placed in-line with it to monitor its temp, heat cable and heat pads/UTHs have similar built-in heating components to that of a hot rock. All are capable of failing and over heating. A bulb fails, the cage cools to room temp which in my house is 70-72°; I've flipped banded geckos at cooler temps. A thermostat with flexwatt, etc plugged in fails and I have cooked geckos and snakes. Same with a heat pad or UTH.

Even then I have 3 racks heated with flexwatt that's controlled by 1 Helix DBS-1000 and 1 Herpstat ND. I also have cages heated with both a UTH and a bulb, but I also have cages heated only by incandescent bulbs. Providing a surface heat is definitely beneficial, but so is providing a good air temp. You provide both and you should not have any digestive issues. You only provide a UTH and you start to ask for the same problem a hot rock addresses - a cold cage with a pinpoint heated area, which equates to an animal cooking on its heated area.

 

[RawrItsAlexander]

Ahesieve tiles are okay with undertank heaters right?