Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have one strip of 11" flex watt and it stays at 89-90, then it jumps up to 94 in about 3 or 4 hours. It seems like I have the right amount of tape for the size of the freezer. I usually would have the fan blowing on the heat tape against the backside of the fridge, but the heat tape wouldn't fit by about 2 inches. So, the heat tape is on the bottom and the fan is right above it (blowing upward). Should I go ahead and buy 4" heat tape and line it up against the wall? Any suggestions would be great.

Thanks,
Kyle

Have you tried switching out the thermostat? The temps aren't going to fluctuate unless the t-stat allows them to. Also, try placing some water bottles on the lower shelf to act as a heat sink. I don't think you need the 4" heat tape but I would really consider swapping out the t-stat.

Bart

I thought it might be the t-stat also, I will swap it out with another helix. See if that helps.

Kyle

Definately add the water bottles like the other poster said. Or tiles, bricks, etc. Anything for thermal mass.

Also, it is best to have the incubator in a room at least 10* F cooler than the desired incubation temp. In other words, your room should be 79* or cooler.
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Current snakes:

0.0.1 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Java locale (green)

0.2 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Malaysian locale (green)

1.2 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Java local (green)

2.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Seleyar locale (all black)

1.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Celebes locale (Black & Tan)

I'll be the third person to say that alot of open airspace in an incubator makes it more likely to have the system not hold temperature. Water bottles are a good idea.

Also, where is the temp sensor? Is it in the airflow stream or away from the fan? If right in the blowing air, then changes in humidity may cause changes in sensed temperature which causes the controller to heat more or less. I would have the sensor in the egg box or somewhere not getting blasted with forced air (if not that way already.)
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Mark

sounds like your thermostat is malfunctioning, or the sensor isn't in a place to get accurate readings. The heat from the bottom should work fine, heat rises so that should actually help you maintain an even temp in a taller incubator. Having that fan on 24/7 might be a little much though. In my experience, unless the incubator is huge, or the fan is tiny, they dry things out too much and do more harm then good.