There is a blue mark on all the Zoo Med heat cables about 6.5 feet from the outlet. There is NO heat between the plug and this mark. Check your cable again. Sometimes it helps to read the directions where it mentions the "cold lead" on the cable.
The heat begins immediatley after the blue mark. This would solve your dilemma. Zoo Med does this to allow you to plug the cable in and then get it into your cage or rack without the worry of having hot cable outside of your unit. It is a great idea. I have a rack with another brand of heat cable that does not have this feature, so I have a couple feet of heated cable outside my rack. The 50 watt or 100 watt Zoo Med cable would work great for your rack. As mentioned, be sure to hook it to a rheostat or quality thermostat. Zoo Med also makes a nice 500 watt rheostat that works great. Also, there is always a chance that anything electrical may be defective. There is a reason Zoo Med has been around so long. They were the first and they are the innovators in the reptile industry. If you have a faulty product from them, let them know. They have the best guarantee (and the best products) in the business. I've had Zoo Med under tank heaters running non-stop in a few of my cages for 7 years. No problems.

Phil Goss

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