For those of you with tanks, how do you heat?

I have a couple tanks and am having trouble keeping them warm enough on the "hot" side. I asked the same question to my local reptile store and they suggested a light bulb fixture sitting on the top of the tank but this is not keeping it nearly warm enough.

What is recommended to keep the temp in the low 90's?

Thanks!

Dave

I use a 75 watt incandescent nocturnal black light to heat up one side of my 30 gallon tall. The whole tank shouldn't be in the 90s though. Just one side should have a basking area between 90-95 degrees, and the rest of the tank can be in the mid to low 80s. There will be a natural temperature gradient within the tank if you keep the heatlamp on one side. I figure if we incubate eggs which are much more sensitive than adults at 82-88 degrees, an average cage temperature falling within this range is pretty good. That's my setup and I haven't had any problems whatsoever.

How big is your tank?

I do keep a few of mine in tanks, I have one group of 3 females and one male I a trying to breed and they are in a 20 long.
(I think it is like and 8 X 10?) ZooMed Reptitherm U.T.H.... it works very well..sticks right to the bottom of the tank.
Half the time the geckos spend on the cool side of the tank..

I agree with Vanessa, the tank doesn't have to be that warm..

For my 20 gallon tank, I have a UTH set on medium with a thermostat on the "hot" side with a 75w reptile light bulb for the day & a 50w red incandescent light bulb at night. Just in case it gets cold, I have an extra small ceramic heat emitter that I leave on to keep them temps within range.

I have two tanks:

1 - 29 gallon that has been set up for a few weeks. Per the advice of my local reptile store, I added a 75 watt nocturnal bulb. I added thermometers on each side of the tank and there isn't much of a distinguishable difference - both between 80-82. I then added a heater that sticks under the tank on the hot side and it brough the temp up a few degrees but not where I would like it.

2- I just set up a 30 gallon breeder tank with a 100 watt bulb on one side. I haven't added a thermo yet but I can tell that it isn't warm enough.

If you're guessing get a temp gun. Best to be sure and not make assumptions.

You can also try covering the lid with aluminum foil. It will hold in the heat some.

I use a piece of heat tape with a thermostat on my tank.

UTH's!!! Leopard Geckos and other nocturnal species are not usually 'baskers.' In their natural environments, they rely on the heat from the sun that has been absorbed in the rocks and hard-packed clay soils for belly heat. This keeps their immune and GI systems and their metabolisms functioning properly. Ambient heat does not provide the optimum temperatures, and the warm side of the tanks should be kept at 90-95 degrees on the surface where the leo's belly is. I use a temperature gun too, and they are a great thing to have around! They can be purchased inexpensively from Pro Exotics.

I use UTHs for smaller tanks, 5-20 and lights w/timers for my big vivs