I just got 2 Digitals !

[Mysticfly]

I just got 2 Dital thermometers from the company Coral Life. Anyone know what would be the best way to set these up in Cajun's encloser? I got one for his basking spot and one for his cool side. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you !!

 

[Pat B]

Put the one for the hot side as close as you can to his basking spot to get an accurate reading....105-110 degrees. You might have to tape it and wind the wires so your beardie doesn't get caught. The same for the cool side....about 82-85 degrees. Something else you might want to get is a timer....they are wonderful....on for 12 hours off for 12 hours and you never have to worry about lighting. No night lights of any kind. Petsmart told me I just 'had to have' a red light for night time....so I bought one and it wasn't cheap then I find out no lights at night!!

 

[Germ]

The Basking one should be placed directly on the Basking Spot at the point where it is closest to the heat bulb, which should be the hottest place in the enclosure that it has access too. Then you have to play with Bulbs, wattages & distances to achieve a temp in the vicinity of 110F for a Juvenile, 100-105 for an adult.

Depending on the type of basking surface you have will determine how it must be fastened. For branch type, zip ties or twist ties work. For larger surfaces a little ingenuity may be needed. Although it is a bit more of a permanent mount, on my large piece of drift wood, I used a drop or 2 of Hot Glue to fasten the sensor & wire in place. It is okay if your BD lays on the sensor when basking, this of course will change the temp & the reading will be inaccurate while it is on it, but check your readings when it hasn't been laying on it for a while.

 

[Mysticfly]

We have them set in place nicely. His basking spot is averaging 103f to 105f and his cool spot is averaging 76f to 79f. I am not sure what way I can get his cool side a bit warmer. Or is his cool spot ok? It is pretty cold out and the house we live in is not central air and heat. Window units for cooling and plug in heaters for winter. My grandfather built this house when he was in his mid 20's. Very old house but very well kept. My husband and I are remodeling it as the years go by. I hope his temps are good. I know he likes his basking spot because now and then he streches and has his mouth open to fluctuate his body temps. His light times are from 9:30 am to 9:30 pm.

 

[Germ]

Raise his basking spot approximately 1", if you have to, put something under it, the basking temp needs to be closer to the 110F mark for a Juvenile's proper food digestion.

To raise the cool side temp, move both the basking spot & lights a few inches towards the cool side, this will raise the temp there. You really want it between 80-85F.

 

[Mysticfly]

Ok will do first thing when we wake him. The basking probe is right next to his left foot where he always sits. He mainly stays there and doesn't move around much even after lights out he stays in that spot to sleep. We tried putting him in a large cricket cage tank with the cover off with some small crickets the width of his eyes but he was just trying to get out. We placed him back in his encloser near his veggie dish and he ate 3 small peices of mustard greens.

 

[Germ]

Trying to feed a new youngster in a separate enclosure, just really adds to the stress of acclimation. It is just trying to get used to it's new home & all of a sudden this giant that it isn't quite sure if it can trust or not yet, scoops it out of what is starting to be familiar with & tosses it into a smaller container , then back again .

As was mentioned before, it is much better to keep handling to a minimum, to maintenance, for the first week to 10 days. Let it get used to you as being it's food source & care giver slowly. Your patience will be rewarded 100 fold.

The Basking one should be placed directly on the Basking Spot at the point where it is closest to the heat bulb, which should be the hottest place in the enclosure that it has access too.

Where it sits, is irrelevant, once you get the temps right, it will find where it wants to be comfortable.

on it eating some greens

 

[Mysticfly]

Ok thank you, we will keep him in his inclosure until he gets used to his new home and feed his crickets inside with him. We will adjust the basking spot up 1 inch and see how the temps go. Also going to move his basking spot over a little to get the cool side up to 80-85f. We offer him fresh greens every day.

 

[Germ]

They know better than we do, at any given time, what they need, where they are comfy. It is our job to provide the right options for it to make it's own choices.

 

[Mysticfly]

Ok will adjust in the morning. Thank you and Pat B for the help. Sorry about the colored font before.

 

[bouncer36]

Raise his basking spot approximately 1", if you have to, put something under it, the basking temp needs to be closer to the 110F mark for a Juvenile's proper food digestion.

To raise the cool side temp, move both the basking spot & lights a few inches towards the cool side, this will raise the temp there. You really want it between 80-85F.

Hey Germ in my exerpince with the lights is if you lower it you get hotter temps and if you raise it you get lower temps

 

[Germ]

@ Bouncer36 - You are quite correct, but being that the light is mounted on the screen & cannot be lowered, if you would please read my post, it says "raise his Basking Spot", which will achieve the same end result to bump up the temps, nothing about raising the light .

 

[Mysticfly]

We moved his basking spot up 1 inch and it went to 114.4f. So we dropped it back down and made sure the prob was at its highest part of his basking wood. Its currently at 113.6f after 1 hr. We are watching it closely. I am not sure what we could do to get it to 110f and not any higher. The temps are being a pain, I don't want him to cook or be to cold. ( worried mommy here)

 

[bouncer36]

@ Bouncer36 - You are quite correct, but being that the light is mounted on the screen & cannot be lowered, if you would please read my post, it says "raise his Basking Spot", which will achieve the same end result to bump up the temps, nothing about raising the light .

Your quite right sorry

 

[Germ]

Using a hide as the basking spot is not a good plan, the inside will be like an oven with no ventilation. Find a rock the right height . Other possible options are a lower wattage bulb, different type of bulb, raise the heat fixture, move the heat bulb more to the side so it is not directly above the High point, with the UVB moreso over the basking spot.

105-115F is allowable, but you are striving for 110F, as it will vary during the day, as your ambient room temps do. If he gets too hot at the basking spot, he will move to a lower spot to where he is comfy. But there should not be anywhere in the enclosure that it has access to, that is above 115F.

 

[Mysticfly]

Yeah we swapped it back and got the heat light so its not directly above the high point and the prob is right at the highest spot. Now waiting to watch the temps. Cool side is at 84f. Before doing this I placed some fresh greens(misted) in his food bowl and placed him near it. He munched a few small pieces while I did the swap.

 

[Pat B]

You are getting there. Just takes time and patience!

 

[Mysticfly]

Cajuns basking spot is staying steady at 109.7f and his cool spot is at 81.5f. We will keep checking to see if it changes through out the rest of the night and tomorrow. Thank you guys. Just throwing this out there. A idea popped and I know my drawing sucks on the program paint. Is this picture understandable and you think people would actually buy this if it was on the shelf?

 

[Pat B]

I would buy it! It is easier to adjust the bulb than the basking spot.... In my humble opinion!

 

[Augie]

Wow looks like your temps are more perfect than mine, and I'm a total nerd when it comes to temps and diet! Nice work.