Thermostat Probe Placement
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In this forum all are welcome to ask blue tongue skink-related questions, share information, ideas, tips, experiences, and pictures with fellow BTS enthusiasts.
If you are wondering if your BTS is acting normally or might be sick, this is where you can get help with that.
This is also where you can have some FUN while sharing the enjoyment you get from your blueys!
- BlueBella
- Bluey Beginner
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- Joined: Sat Mar 03, 2018 6:27 am
- Country: US
- Location: OH
Thermostat Probe Placement
Hey guys, I was just curious about where you put your thermostat probes (if you use one) as I don't know if I like where mine is right now. I had the probe on the edge of the basking spot, and the temps were fine, but sometimes Deckard lays on it, and I'm a bit concerned he will burn himself. I moved it to the wall and set it at the ambient air temp which was about 83* and got good temps for the majority of the day, but sometimes the basking area sometimes gets a little too hot to like 102*-105*. I don't really know what to do with it at this point, because if I lower it a few degrees it takes a long time to warm up. Should I just leave it on the wall even if it gets a little warm? I always thought measuring air temp wasn't a good idea, as the basking temps can fluctuate without changing the air temp, but I can't put the probe on the basking spot without tape, and without the risk of Deckard laying on it. What are your guys thoughts on it? Overall the temps are fine for most of the day, but sometimes they jump up a little too high and don't come back down.
1.0 Northern Blue Tongue Skink—Deckard
0.2 Mutts—Penny and Roxy
0.2 Guinea Pigs—Pumpkin and Potato
0.2 Mutts—Penny and Roxy
0.2 Guinea Pigs—Pumpkin and Potato
- Yeshika
- Bluey Beginner
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- Joined: Sun Jan 28, 2018 9:40 pm
- Country: New_Zealand
- Contact:
Re: Thermostat Probe Placement
Is there any way you could place the probe under the surface of the basking spot? That way it'd still get a pretty accurate read of the area but wouldn't come into contact with you bluey.
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- Bluey Devotee
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- Country: australia
- Location: NSW
Re: Thermostat Probe Placement
Personally, I'd be aiming to control the cool zone temperature via the thermostat & probe placement would be dangling somewhere in the cool zone.
Get the cool zone temperature controlled, the warm zone temperature will follow because of natural thermal air circulation and being closer to the radiant heat source (the basking globe).
For those with a physics or engineering bent :
https://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/radi ... d_431.html
deals with the basic principles of radiant heat transfer from a heat source to a surface at a given distance and orientation .
Distance law
http://bsche.blogspot.com.au/2009/09/in ... -unit.html
https://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/conv ... d_430.html
and
https://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/conv ... _1007.html
deals with basic principles of heat transfer via a fluid (air) .
Get the cool zone temperature controlled, the warm zone temperature will follow because of natural thermal air circulation and being closer to the radiant heat source (the basking globe).
For those with a physics or engineering bent :
https://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/radi ... d_431.html
deals with the basic principles of radiant heat transfer from a heat source to a surface at a given distance and orientation .
Distance law
http://bsche.blogspot.com.au/2009/09/in ... -unit.html
https://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/conv ... d_430.html
and
https://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/conv ... _1007.html
deals with basic principles of heat transfer via a fluid (air) .
- BlueBella
- Bluey Beginner
- Posts: 41
- Joined: Sat Mar 03, 2018 6:27 am
- Country: US
- Location: OH
Re: Thermostat Probe Placement
Yeshika wrote:Is there any way you could place the probe under the surface of the basking spot? That way it'd still get a pretty accurate read of the area but wouldn't come into contact with you bluey.
Well I did think about this, the basking spot is on top of a hide, with two pieces of slate over it. I couldn't put the probe under the slate, because the slate would wobble and move around, but I can put the probe under the hide attached to the ceiling of the hide. Would that work? If it ends up not being accurate enough I could get rid of the slate too.
1.0 Northern Blue Tongue Skink—Deckard
0.2 Mutts—Penny and Roxy
0.2 Guinea Pigs—Pumpkin and Potato
0.2 Mutts—Penny and Roxy
0.2 Guinea Pigs—Pumpkin and Potato
- splashy07
- ADMIN
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- Joined: Wed Aug 27, 2014 11:24 am
- Country: USA
- Location: Farmingdale,LI,NY
Re: Thermostat Probe Placement
Get yourself a temp gun. Best 20 bucks you'll ever spend. No guessing. You can test every part of the enclosure.
- Yeshika
- Bluey Beginner
- Posts: 132
- Joined: Sun Jan 28, 2018 9:40 pm
- Country: New_Zealand
- Contact:
Re: Thermostat Probe Placement
BlueBella wrote:Yeshika wrote:Is there any way you could place the probe under the surface of the basking spot? That way it'd still get a pretty accurate read of the area but wouldn't come into contact with you bluey.
Well I did think about this, the basking spot is on top of a hide, with two pieces of slate over it. I couldn't put the probe under the slate, because the slate would wobble and move around, but I can put the probe under the hide attached to the ceiling of the hide. Would that work? If it ends up not being accurate enough I could get rid of the slate too.
I'd be worried about accuracy if it were too far away from the basking spot. Without actually seeing the set up, I can't tell if it would be close enough or not. I'm assuming the burn risk is in the fact that the probe is metal? Maybe sew a little pocket of fabric to go over the probe, so that it is still in the correct location but cannot come in contact with your little guy.
- BlueBella
- Bluey Beginner
- Posts: 41
- Joined: Sat Mar 03, 2018 6:27 am
- Country: US
- Location: OH
Re: Thermostat Probe Placement
Well its not that I think the probe will burn him, its just when he lays on it, it reads a lower temperature and the light works overpower because the thermostat thinks its colder than it really is. As of today, air temp on hot side is just not working. I lowered a few degrees to get it out of the 100s and it was too low. So maybe I will try out what kingofnobbys said and try the probe on the cool end, although I have heard that the basking spot gets REALLY hot before the cool end temps change.
I do have a temp gun and a digital thermometer with probe, and I have figured out how to use the temp gun correctly, I know what the temps are, its just they aren't consistent unless the probe is directly ON the basking spot, but that comes with its own risk.splashy07 wrote:Get yourself a temp gun. Best 20 bucks you'll ever spend. No guessing. You can test every part of the enclosure.
1.0 Northern Blue Tongue Skink—Deckard
0.2 Mutts—Penny and Roxy
0.2 Guinea Pigs—Pumpkin and Potato
0.2 Mutts—Penny and Roxy
0.2 Guinea Pigs—Pumpkin and Potato
- lifesagame
- Bluey Beginner
- Posts: 94
- Joined: Sat Jan 13, 2018 6:54 am
- Country: UK
Re: Thermostat Probe Placement
With my beardie I used to have the probe for the dimmer thermostat about half way along the back of the vivarium about an inch of the fooor attached to the wall and set it to mis way between the hot and cool temps. That way it was safe from attack (most of the time) as it couldn’t be pulled off, he couldn’t lie on it and it gave the ambient temps at his body height. I was planning on doing the same again as I found it worked with keeping the basking spot, hot end and cool end consistent, I used to have two digital thermometers with one permanently at each end and checked the basking temp every so often just to be sure. When I’ve got my vivarium set up for my BTS I was planning on trying this again as it worked so well before. Having never had a BTS though I’m not sure how well it would work for them, has anyone else used the same sort of layout for a BTS?
I do also have a temp gun, got one recently and probably been having too much fun pointing it at things and seeing the temps it gives! wish I’d got one before, I just thought they were more expensive than they are so definitely worth it.
I do also have a temp gun, got one recently and probably been having too much fun pointing it at things and seeing the temps it gives! wish I’d got one before, I just thought they were more expensive than they are so definitely worth it.
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- Bluey Devotee
- Posts: 1229
- Joined: Tue Apr 04, 2017 2:17 am
- Country: australia
- Location: NSW
Re: Thermostat Probe Placement
BlueBella wrote:Well its not that I think the probe will burn him, its just when he lays on it, it reads a lower temperature and the light works overpower because the thermostat thinks its colder than it really is. As of today, air temp on hot side is just not working. I lowered a few degrees to get it out of the 100s and it was too low. So maybe I will try out what kingofnobbys said and try the probe on the cool end, although I have heard that the basking spot gets REALLY hot before the cool end temps change.I do have a temp gun and a digital thermometer with probe, and I have figured out how to use the temp gun correctly, I know what the temps are, its just they aren't consistent unless the probe is directly ON the basking spot, but that comes with its own risk.splashy07 wrote:Get yourself a temp gun. Best 20 bucks you'll ever spend. No guessing. You can test every part of the enclosure.
I have 3 digital thermometers per tub or tank , Ebay ones (have checked them for accuracy and they are good +/- 1 degC which is plenty accurate enough for use in vivs).
I also have a good laser thermometer with a spot 18:1 that I use to check surface temperatures (occasionally). Worth paying a bit extra to get a good non-contact thermometer (if you can adjust the emissivity , even better).
I essentially set the temperature by trial and error for the season and basking globe wattage and just occasionally glance at the little digital readouts for the viv thermometers and act accordingly. My home is airconditioned 24/7 over summer and in winter , stays at 24 degC to 26 degC year round, so never gets hot or too cool inside the house (even if it's nasty outside = heatwave with very high humidity in summer , or chilly wet and miserable outside in winter) ==> I don't adjust my basking globe to basking spot distance often and have no need for a dimming thermostat.
I do have a 7W heatpad in each tank (for each skink or dragon) and these on simple Ebay switching thermostats to hold the heatpads at 34 degC for the skinks and 36 degC for the beardie (my aim is to provide a bed temperature close the POTR for each pet lizard to be able enjoy 24/7 and they do like them)..
- BlueBella
- Bluey Beginner
- Posts: 41
- Joined: Sat Mar 03, 2018 6:27 am
- Country: US
- Location: OH
Re: Thermostat Probe Placement
Thanks for the replies guys, I ended up just moving it back to the edge of the basking rock, temps have been perfect. Even when he lays on it, it hasn't gotten too hot so I think I will stick to this. Maybe one day I will find a better solution, but this works for now.
1.0 Northern Blue Tongue Skink—Deckard
0.2 Mutts—Penny and Roxy
0.2 Guinea Pigs—Pumpkin and Potato
0.2 Mutts—Penny and Roxy
0.2 Guinea Pigs—Pumpkin and Potato
- BlueBella
- Bluey Beginner
- Posts: 41
- Joined: Sat Mar 03, 2018 6:27 am
- Country: US
- Location: OH
Re: Thermostat Probe Placement
Ok so I had things figured out but I'm still occasionally having issues with him laying on it. So I put it back on the wall for air temps, I will probably have to get a lower wattage bulb though, because of the issues I had before with it not being consistent or hot enough.
1.0 Northern Blue Tongue Skink—Deckard
0.2 Mutts—Penny and Roxy
0.2 Guinea Pigs—Pumpkin and Potato
0.2 Mutts—Penny and Roxy
0.2 Guinea Pigs—Pumpkin and Potato
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