Reptile & Amphibian Forums

my helix going crazy and the temps go up to the max? now i know one way this could happen is by the probe being out of the rack and falling to the floor but has anyone ever had a problem like this and had animals die?? any precautions that can be taken? thanks to all!

I don't use a probe. I use a manual rheostat and a temp gun (for this exact reason)
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You might be a ball python fanatic if you subconsciously convert the price of virtually everything in to units of piebald ball pythons

When a rheostat or dimmer fail they quite often go wide open. If a t-stat can fail, so can a dimmer.

Well there is multiple things that can be done.

You can do as what most people do for their incubator.
Double the thermostat, one plugged in the other one. (Be sure the second one work in on/off mode and not proportional).

Other thing is to assure the probe doesn't get moved.
What I do is that I tape the cable all the way and I also put some silicone on the probe to be sure it's in place and doesn't move.
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love this world, don't hate it.

The first one has to be on/off the second can be proportional.

>>The first one has to be on/off the second can be proportional.

Depends witch one we call the first and second one !

The ones that is connected to the wall should be on/off (so always on, unless a problem occur), the one connected with the heat tape should be proportional.
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love this world, don't hate it.

One more thing that can be done and is way cheaper.

You can buy those temperature fuse.
If it's get over a certain degree (depending on wich one you buy), they burn and cut the signal.

like these :

I never tryed them yet, but thaught about it.
The problem is that it's another "device" that can always stop working for no reason and your snake doesn't have "heat" anymore.

I suggest you also connect a led to the end of the tape, that way you are sure your tape is still working.
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love this world, don't hate it.

I use a johnson control. It isn't proportional. It will carry much more load than a helix, 1500 watts versus 500 watts. I use them also for my room heaters. The timer goes to a relay inside the box that isn't visible. The relay controls the built in night drop feature of the johnson control. The 15 watt light bulb gives me a visual of when things are running and how high the dimmer is turned up. The dimmer is after the johnson and keeps the heat cable from going wide open until it reaches the desired temp and is then shut off by the johnson. During the day, the johnson might only shut off once in a while or almost never. The dimmer sets the temp, the johnson keeps an eye on the dimmer. At night during the night drop, the dimmer still keeps the cable from running wide open, but the johnson goes on/off much more than during the day. The dimmer tries to keep temps at 95, it does not know night from day. During the day the johnson is set for 96, if the dimmer lets the temp drift up to 96 the johnson will shut off. At night the dimmer still tries to reach 95, but the johnson shuts power off at 85. These temps are the heat cable, not inside the tub. Before I added the dimmer, the temps would climb very fast and the whole thing cycled very frequently. With all of the heat cable in all of the racks going on/off my lights in other rooms would dim when heat cable turned on. I hope it all makes sense, it works very well. This system controls many racks, but the probe is only connected to one rack. The only issue would be if the heat cable where the probe was connected failed, then the rest would run wide open. Many breeders have run their cable wide open, it will go to about 120. In a V70 tub a snake can still get away from the hot spot. Every rack has a small thermometer connected to the cable with aluminum foil, so I can tell if a cable fails.

Those centipedes with the long, thin legs. They look like a hairball racing across the floor.

Probably not the answer you were looking for.
But, I've had snakes for 20plus years. I've become accustomed and nothing really surprises me anymore.

But I'll never become accustomed to a hairball that seems to be attacking me.....

BB

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"Have you hugged your drummer today?" --- Me

Do you mean House Centipedes? The first time I found one of those was in my High School ROTC building. The First Sergeant was on a desk and ordered me to find it and kill it. Good times.

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Lincoln, NE
0.1 Pastel, 1.0 Pastel het Pied, 0.1 Pied, 0.1 Cinn, 1.0 Black Pewter, 1.0 Woma (hidden gene?), 0.1 Yellowbelly
2.1 Normals, 1.0 Thayeri, 0.1 Thayeri X Alterna, 0.1 Whitesided P. catenifer sayi, 0.1 crazy cat, 1.0 husband

OMG!!! The first time I saw one of those was 1997. I was 16 and I was watching TV in my basement in pitch black. The only light was from the TV. The light from the TV was glimmering off of the carpeting and in my peripheral vision I saw this HUGE thing running across the floor in the light from the TV! I almost S#!T myself..lol.

And if you wack one with a shoe half of its legs fall off and twitch like mad. *shudder*

BTW, great story. Good for a chuckle.

BB

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"Have you hugged your drummer today?" --- Me

Good googly moogly did that picture make my skin crawl!!

I had to get up and go turn on the dining room lights behind me.
Suddenly the area around my feet seemed to dark for comfort. LOLOL

Nevermind that it's December (chilly) and I have never seen a House Centipede where I live now. hahaha

Thanks for the scare and a moment to feel like a seven year old girl!

BB

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"Have you hugged your drummer today?" --- Me

They're called house centipedes...
look like a centipede got it on with a spider...

Hate em.
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"What is man without the beasts?
If all the beasts were gone,
men would die from great loneliness of spirit.
For what happens to the beasts,
soon happens to men.
All things are connected."

-Chief Seattle (Duwamish Tribe)

We gravitate toward creatures with no legs because we are afraid of creatures with far too many
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Lincoln, NE
0.1 Pastel, 1.0 Pastel het Pied, 0.1 Pied, 0.1 Cinn, 1.0 Black Pewter, 1.0 Woma (hidden gene?), 0.1 Yellowbelly
2.1 Normals, 1.0 Thayeri, 0.1 Thayeri X Alterna, 0.1 Whitesided P. catenifer sayi, 0.1 crazy cat, 1.0 husband

I've NEVER been a fan of bugs. They're small and always surprise you.

Centipedes are the worst of all the bugs to me.
Perhaps it is all those legs? hmmmm

BB
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"Have you hugged your drummer today?" --- Me