Major issue with basking spot

[Nixiemaiden]

Ok so my house is usually kept at between 70 and 75 degrees and Pouncey's basking spot was always between 100-110 degrees. I usually check his temps a couple of times a week (he is in a 20 gallon long until Christmas when I get him a bigger tank so there isn't a spot to keep a probe thermometer in there.).

Anyway it got really cold here a few nights and the temp in my house dropped down to 65 so I turned the heat on so it wouldn't get below 70. Well the problem is that it gets really hot during the day so the temperature inside the house was up to 79 degrees.

Pouncey has been acting strange the past couple of days. He has been spending a lot of time in his hide and he had a lot of undigested worms in his poop. At first I figured it was because he is getting ready to shed his tail and two back legs but then yesterday he was acting the same way. I took his hide out and put another basking rock in there (the one he usually has doubles as a hide) and then he just hung out underneath his hammock. I measured the temp of his basking rock and directly under the bulb it was 127! Less than an inch away it is only 100.

I am just wondering if there is something wrong with my bulb (zoomed 50 watt about 8 inches above basking spot) or if the extra 4 degrees in temperature can seriously raise it 17 degrees over. I don't really have a lot to work with here since it is a pretty small tank and I don't have a way to put the light higher up. I also don't know if it is safe to use a dimmer because I have everything set on one of those strip timers.

I turned the AC back on and got it down to 75 again but won't be able to measure his temps until lunch time so his light will have been on for a few hours by then.

 

[MrWhite]

first, it's perfectly fine for the temps to drop into the mid 60s during the night. My house drops to 65 during the night without any issue.

for basking spot temperature regulation, you could get a lower wattage bulb or use a dimmer between the timer power strip and your basking light so that the dimmer only controls the basking light. I would say that the undigested worms is a result of not basking because the basking spot is too hot.

and, yes, an ambient temperature raise of 4 or 5 degrees will drastically change your basking spot temperature because a 20L is not a very large volume of space to heat up with a basking light, I bet the temperature on the cool side is pretty high also.

I'm always messing with my basking lights :roll:

 

[Nixiemaiden]

first, it's perfectly fine for the temps to drop into the mid 60s during the night. My house drops to 65 during the night without any issue.

for basking spot temperature regulation, you could get a lower wattage bulb or use a dimmer between the timer power strip and your basking light so that the dimmer only controls the basking light. I would say that the undigested worms is a result of not basking because the basking spot is too hot.

and, yes, an ambient temperature raise of 4 or 5 degrees will drastically change your basking spot temperature because a 20L is not a very large volume of space to heat up with a basking light, I bet the temperature on the cool side is pretty high also.

I'm always messing with my basking lights :roll:

65 might be ok for my beardie but it is not ok for me. I prefer it to be 70-80. In the summer it was never an issue because it was always hot so the AC remained on all the time. Now that it is starting to drop in temperature at night it is crazy to run the heat at night and the AC during the day (crazy for my electric bill). I did get the AC on and it is 75 inside now which did drop the temp down. Now the basking rock is ranging from 115 directly under the bulb to 100 on the edges.

What I don't get is me and my boyfriend always "fight" over the thermostat. He prefers it 72 and I prefer 75 during the summer and it never really had an impact. During the summer, 75 degrees only resulted in a 110 basking spot so I don't really get how any of it works.

The temp on the cool side was 86. Right now it is at 80. He is actually out now...not basking but on top of his hammock. I am going to see if I can get a lower watt bulb or a dimmer. Is it safe to use a dimmer between the power strip and light? That is what I wasn't sure of.

 

[MrWhite]

Is it safe to use a dimmer between the power strip and light? That is what I wasn't sure of.

yes it is

 

[Nixiemaiden]

Is it safe to use a dimmer between the power strip and light? That is what I wasn't sure of.

yes it is

Ok next question. What am I looking for? All I am seeing are light switch type dimmers.

 

[MrWhite]

Is it safe to use a dimmer between the power strip and light? That is what I wasn't sure of.

yes it is

Ok next question. What am I looking for? All I am seeing are light switch type dimmers.

something like this will work:
http://www.petmountain.com/product/...11442-512443/zoo-med-repti-temp-rheostat.html

or you could wire a standard light dimmer if you're electrically inclined :wink: