Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Does anyone have any thoughts in regards to using rheostats with a helix? I am considering building a three row rack of 32 quart boxes 10 shelves high. Using one helix to control all 30 boxes, would I need to use rheostats at each box to ensure that the lower boxes are the same temperature as the higher boxes? (With the theory that heat rises) Where would be the best location of the probe? The rack would be open on all sides with 3" wide plywood legs and melamine shelves.

Thank you for all ideas,

Randy

A) what will you be housing?
B) what are room temps?
C) how will you heat the rack,belly or back heat?

We are housing boas and balls.
Room temperatures vary between 72 to 80 degrees.
They will have belly heat. 11" Flexwatt.

Thank you.

Randy

i've never worked with rheo's but 30 of them sounds like a bit of over kill and expensive.how about two stats,one for the bottom 5 shelfs and one for the top 5,surely the differance from top to bottom of 5 shelfs can't be that much.right now matt at mg reptiles has the herpstat II on sale for $200,it has two probes with 700 watts for each probe PLUS it's set up with night drop,no expensive cords and timers to purchase.i realize youe mentioned the helix unit but this came to mind.

this rack will be very large and heavy,making it hard to move around corners and tight spaces.if this is a concern i would think about making three seperate racks to your specs,not much more work or materials at all.

will the blanket boxes be showing (from the front) the end or side of the boxes,if they show the side you could put two sweater boxes in the same space giving you other options.i recently made three racks with sterilite 27qt. boxes sideways (10 level) or two 12qt. boxes in lengthways.i used 3" flexwatt belly heat.on the back wall i used retroflix insulation and it pushes the heat forward better than i thought it would.

how much 11" were you planning on using?

The ends will be showing on the boxes. Maybe I need to rethink the 11" flexwatt. My boxes are 21" x 16". Should I run two strips of 3" instead or would one strip be enough with the reflectix? How does the reflectix attach, would you use duct tape, foil tape, or staple gun? I see MG Reptiles has this also, we were thinking about getting the herpstat, thanks for the heads up on the sale.

first i think you need to consider room temps,espesically with an open type rack.i keep my snake room 75-78 year round with a oil filled electric heater and air conditioner and i have closed type racks,i keep colobrids and balls.with your boas and balls and an open type rack you may want to start with 78-82 degrees and tweek the last 5-15 dergees with the heat tape.i think it's a mistake to start with a "cool" room and try to make up too much with heat tape,it creates more problems than it solves.

if you stick with the three tub wide rack you'll need to keep a back on to prevent sideways sway,plus you'll need shelf supports with such a wide span.i really think you need to consider three seperate one tub racks.with a single design you can go backless with very little sideways sway and applying the insulation is much easies,i calk the back edge of the shelfs and staple,then foil tape the edges.of coarse you need to install a thin strip of plastic or metal on the back to stop the tubs from touching the insulation.

if you preheat the room one strip of 3" heat tape will work fine,i use 6 watt and it supplies all the heat i need.BTW the best way to install belly heat is to route a shallow channel near the back so the tubs don't touch the heat tape.also with this arrangement it's easier to control humidity as you can move the water dish back and forth over the heat tape to adjust the humidity.

I will go ahead and build individual stacks and screw them together to stop the swaying. Thanks for all the information, it is greatly apreciated.

Randy