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More Heat Questions

F

Flatfish1

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When a care guide suggests a hot side temperature of, say 90 degrees, with an under tank heater, Am I correct in assuming they are referring to the surface temperature of the enclosure floor and not the temperature of the air?

If so, Should I measure the temp (with a temp gun) on the surface of the substrate? Or, should I dig down and measure the temp on the surface of the actual floor of the enclosure? In other words, If a loose substrate like sanichips is used, the snake could burrow through the substrate and contact the actual floor. Don't want anybody getting burned! For example, when I measure the temp on the top of my substrate (over the heat pad), It reads about 80 to 82 degrees. When I move the substrate to the side and read the actual glass surface of the enclosure floor, It reads between 92 to 95 degrees. Quite a difference. By the way, the substrate is about 1" thick.

So, if I'm aiming for 90 degrees, Am I close enough with the above example?

And one last question: when I read a temp of about 95 degrees on the surface of the enclosure bottom (no substrate in the way) and the bottom is clear glass (Exo-Terra terrarium), Is that an accurate reading? When I feel the surface of the glass with my hand, it just doesn't feel like 95 degrees to me. So is my temp gun laser shooting through the clear glass and reading the actual top surface of the under tank heater? Meaning the actual glass floor surface is a bit cooler than the actual temp reading I'm getting.

I know I ask a lot of verbose questions! Sorry. I like to get to the bottom of things!

Wayne
 
Yes typically when a care sheet specifies a 90*F hot spot or basking spot, that is the surface temperature of the glass over top off the under-tank heater. To achieve this you want to sandwich the thermostat probe between the heat pad and the underside of the enclosure. Typically if you set the thermostat to 91-92*F you'll get a surface temp of 90*F. Using the temperature gun or IR thermometer to take the reading is fine.
 
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