UTH question

csfiend18 · Member Joined: Sep 29, 2006 Posts: 69

what kind of UTH would you guys suggest for a 8x4x4 wooden cage? I'm looking at some online and they all seem to be for glass aquariums only. they say they come with spacers though so shouldnt that keep the heat down enough to not damage the wood?

also i saw something odd while looking for UVB lights. they said they give off 7% UVB. Whats that mean?

AmeivaBoy · Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2006 3:29 am Post subject:

Genrally when people use "heat pads" for large wooden cages for tegus and monitors they use the fiberglass "pig blankets" you can find em online for a decent price

csfiend18 · Member Joined: Sep 29, 2006 Posts: 69

ive been looking around and i cant find any of those. all i keep getting are fiberglass pigs and pigs in a blanket lol

John · Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2006 3:49 pm Post subject:

Why not use a normal heat lamp?
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John

csfiend18 · Member Joined: Sep 29, 2006 Posts: 69

maybe i misread things. i though that you should have a heat lamp and a heat pad?

worleygurl · Posted: Wed Oct 04, 2006 8:28 am Post subject:

Hi. Tegus require heat from above to provide proper digestion of their food. It won't hurt them to have belly heat as well, but they can not thrive on belly heat alone. I have a UTH for my tegu that I use at night, only. It keeps my substrate on 1/3 of the tank in the low to mid 80s. During the day, I turn it off. Remember, if you use a UTH, first of all, be sure to put your UTH on a dimmer switch. You can buy a dimmer switch for under ten bucks at Wal Mart, Home Depot, Lowes, etc. UTHs get extremely hot and without a dimmer switch, you run the risk of burning your tegu, cracking your glass, etc. Second of all, make sure your UTH only covers about 1/3 of the bottom of your tank/cage/enclosure. Your tegu has to be able to thermoregulate (cool down, heat up)
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csfiend18 · Member Joined: Sep 29, 2006 Posts: 69

ok good idea with the dimmer switch ill definetly grab one of them.

gunznrosez13 · Posted: Wed Oct 04, 2006 6:54 pm Post subject:

if im not mistaken the heat pad only needs to be used to keep temps up in cold areas at night

John · Posted: Thu Oct 05, 2006 4:26 pm Post subject:

tegu's can handle COLD temps so I wouldn't worry about it...you don't need a heat pad.
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John

nicolerussell · Posted: Thu Oct 05, 2006 8:36 pm Post subject:

depends on your house and if the animal is hibernating...if you wish the animal to stay awake the best shot is for you to keep the room or cage consistant. No fluctuations at all that might trigger their naturally response.
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