Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Has anyone figured out how to make one that works well yet? I remember a few people were useing ceramic tile and under tanks heaters. Then I droped out for a while after the whole horrid rack issue.
Thanks,
-Blue

>>Has anyone figured out how to make one that works well yet? I remember a few people were useing ceramic tile and under tanks heaters. Then I droped out for a while after the whole horrid rack issue.
>>Thanks,
>>-Blue

Truth be told to my knowledge no body has found a heat element as safe and efficient as the one used in a Pro Products RHP.

The old slogan "can't beat um', join un'" comes to mind...

I had some interesting rack designs that went un tested in regards to RHP, essentially every shelf was a RHP for the cage below. There were some unique problems with the solution. Those combined with a decreased amount of time to do the project, lead to my decision to forgo DIY stuff for the time being and I replaced all my caging with commercially available products.

Cheers
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Jeremy Payne
JB Reptile
Specializing in Boa Morph's

1.0 Snow "Kahl"
0.2 Triple Het Moonglow "Kahl"
0.1 Orange Tail Hypo Het Leopard
1.1 Double Het "Sharp" Snow
1.0 Ghost
0.1 Possible Super Hypo
0.1 DH Ghost
1.1 "Kahl" Albino
1.0 Hypomelenistic
1.3 Pastel Hypo
0.1 Suriname/Columbian cross
0.1 Anerthrystic

“my decision to forgo DIY stuff…”

Sacrilege!

I’m not too worried- we’re like the mafia. Just when you think you’re out, we drag you back in!

(Let’s see, a long weekend, a few scraps, hmm…)

Have a happy Thanksgiving.

>>
>>“my decision to forgo DIY stuff…”
>>
>>Sacrilege!
>>
>>I’m not too worried- we’re like the mafia. Just when you think you’re out, we drag you back in!
>>
>>
>>(Let’s see, a long weekend, a few scraps, hmm…)
>>
>>
>>Have a happy Thanksgiving.
>>

Oh I'm not out, the pen still hits the paper. I'm just busy with other to many other things ATM. If I could get a baby sitter it would be a different story.

Deployed Mom, two boys 2 and under, a remodel and a full time low pay job. Yeah it was good choice to buy this year rather than rebuild myself.

The garage is slated to finish a dog house next week, after that I have two cabinets followed by a ingenious Rat Shed that just hit the paper.

Ingenious because its designed to sit on a trailer and move with rather than stay behind if and when we move.

Cheers
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Jeremy Payne
JB Reptile
Specializing in Boa Morph's

1.0 Snow "Kahl"
0.2 Triple Het Moonglow "Kahl"
0.1 Orange Tail Hypo Het Leopard
1.1 Double Het "Sharp" Snow
1.0 Ghost
0.1 Possible Super Hypo
0.1 DH Ghost
1.1 "Kahl" Albino
1.0 Hypomelenistic
1.3 Pastel Hypo
0.1 Suriname/Columbian cross
0.1 Anerthrystic

I'd say a large handful of people have but I have yet to see the data showing how efficient they are. In particular I'd like to see comparisons of the surface temperatures, wattage used at a given size and of course how well they heat the same cage.

I still have a couple of ideas I'd like to try with DIY RHP's but it is very low on my list of priorities right now.
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Currently keeping:

6.10 Gonyosoma oxycephalum (Javan, mixed colors)

1.1 Philodryas baroni

1.1 Lampropeltis triangulum multistriata

1.0 Rhodesian Ridgeback

Radiant heat seems like a dumb idea to me. Heat rises, so it is far more efficient to have under belly heat. Radiant heat in nature is usually from the sun warming a rock ledge or the road, and the snake sits on top- belly heat. Or the snake just suns itself- heat lamp. I never really understood the radiant heat panel thing. What am I missing with these things?

Heat does not actually rise, that is a myth. Heat moves in three major ways and a multitude (some would say infinite) of ways within each of the three categories. At any rate, those three ways are 1) Radiation 2) Conduction and 3) Convection.

It is only the last way, convection, where one could possibly make the argument that heat rises. And even then it's not the heat rising, but that's not important since ultimately with the right set of circumstances there is a layering effect of heat, with upper layers being warmer than lower layers.

The heat produced by belly heat moves via conduction and radiation, not convection, so it is not more efficient. In fact overhead radiant heat properly executed could be more efficient since more of the thermal mass of the cage would be exposed to the heat.

There are studies showing that animals prefer the heat produced by specific wavelenghts of overhead radiation and many reptile keepers have anecdotally reported that their animals prefer overhead radiant heat.
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Currently keeping:

6.10 Gonyosoma oxycephalum (Javan, mixed colors)

1.1 Philodryas baroni

1.1 Lampropeltis triangulum multistriata

1.0 Rhodesian Ridgeback

I just moved again and now I have a 2 car detatched garage that my wife already "gave" me. It has a small room in the back that will be the hot room, a toilet (that will be the toilet...) a deep sink - it's my happy place.
I have to add some pink and fluffy, a bit of panneling (I/m renting so no dry wall..) and a good way to heat the place.
The RHP may come into play later when I start building cages again.
Big Hurt - try the Key Wives club for a sitter! They love that stuff...
-Blue

Good questions.

The ease of installation, the ability to heat a good portion of the cage with a single, touch-safe device (especially advantageous with large boids), the convenience of not having to raise cages up for heat pads, the wide gradient that can be achieved, and the effect of heating the substrate and animal below without heating the cage top - all go in favor of RHP's.

I tried one with a kingsnake. Put a nice thick layer of bedding. The king would hide under the substrate and come close to the surface to warm up. To cool off, the snake could go deeper or just move off to the side. The resolution for temp control is infinite for the snake. It was nice to see the snake more actively thermoregulating, even if it meant he was buried 99% of the time.

For small pythons that I have/had, I wouldn't choose anything else. So easy with RHP's, and the snakes do great.
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Mark