Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey,
This is a shot to illustrate the heat panel (Pro-product), in use in the adult blood and short-tail cages. Someone requested to see how these are mounted and used.
-Angel

-----
"Until we lose our self, there is no way of finding our self."
-Henry Miller.

Angel I havn't heard of those before (pro panel ) whats the scoop got a link?
-----
Kevin
I am lost w/o spell check
"Learn from the mistakes of others. You can't live long enough to make them all yourself."-unknown

Hey,
The Pro-Product heat panels, are one of the best ways to heat your cages without cooking your animals. The heat panels are controlled with the use of a thermostat. I use the Helix DBS1000, and it works great with this unit. The Helix basic is another one of the thermostats that I use and that one works great too and can be adjusted to work in increments of 1/10th of a degree, by adjusting the temp screw on the front of the unit. At any rate, check out the web site, and do a little reading on it and decide if this is for you. In my book, this is the best way to go.

-Angel
Link

-----
"Until we lose our self, there is no way of finding our self."
-Henry Miller.

I have been using these panels for several years with great success and highly recommend them as well.

First, thanks for your opinions on the products. I've been looking at those for a while and was wondering what other blood-keepers thought of them.

I've read quite a few debates (more like brawls at times!) on the belly heat vs. overhead heat. From what I understand, and have seen, bloods don't bask...so I would think that belly heat would benefit them moreso than overhead heating. But then, if they don't bask, does that mean they would in fact recieve greater benefits from the 'overall' heating that the heat panels seem to provide? I don't know if that makes any sense whatesoever...first day back in classes....my brain is unfortunately elsewhere!

Lastly, I've heard of people using heat mats (Kane I think?) instead of the actual heat panels. I believe they simply use the mats like the panels. Anyone know if this would work just as well? Seems to be a cheaper way to go about it, but in the long run maybe it isn't?

Thanks for indulging me Hope everyone had a great last couple of days!

Carole
-----
"Oh, I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the sky on laugher-silvered wings...
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds - and done a hundred things
Wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence"

Hey Carole,
I'll try to answer your question as best I could. For starters, under belly heat, IMO, does not give the herps much latitude should a system fail, and unfortunately, as we have seen many times, snakes will lie on hot surfaces with nary a budge when such systems fail or go haywire. Yes, it is true that heat panels can go bad, but the units, at least that I have used and have been using for several years, have all been nothing short of dependable and along with the Helix thermostats, have provided my bloods and short-tails with a comfortable and hospitable ambience. In other words, this S..., works better than anything out on the market. I use Flexwatt heat tape in the rack systems, for juvies and hatchlings, and mid sized adults too, and that also works if put on a thermostat and mounted from the sides, rear of the enclosure or bottom if used with a dado'd channel.

Heat panels differ much in their design and construction from Flex-watt, and other UH devices in various ways and can cost 4-6 times more money, but the quality of the heat and the safety factor involved with the use of this product far outways the cost in my book. Technically speaking, there are several factors that make this product a far better choice than Flexwatt or heat tape, or any other device, and for that you should contact ProProduct personally and speak to Bob. He has always been more than helpful and willing to get to the nitty-gritty of the component parts. I hope that this makes some kind of sense and helps in answering your question.

Also, in answer to someones point about humidity, there is no problem with humidity with this product as this product does not dry the air out, as does the ceramic heatesr. Most times, my cage glass has some mist or dew from the humidity that builds up during the day. I have several vents installed on my cages and with that, they still provide more than adequate humidity. I also, never have a problem with bad or stuck sheds or even, dimpling,

-Angel
-----
"Until we lose our self, there is no way of finding our self."
-Henry Miller.

Thanks for the info and the time you took to write that out. Just about all of my kids are ready for an upgrade in caging, and I've been looking at those heat panels. By the way, I love your blacks! Hercules is amazing

Carole
-----
"Oh, I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the sky on laugher-silvered wings...
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds - and done a hundred things
Wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence"

Hey Carole.
Anytime for you blood girl! Like I said, there is nothing better for the buck, and I wouldn't promote this product if I didn't think that it was worth it.

And thanks for the compliment on Hercules, he's a babe, so is his sister, Negrita.
Did you get in on any of the black blood babies from Jeff, this year?

-Angel
-----
"Until we lose our self, there is no way of finding our self."
-Henry Miller.

I believe I saw Jeff's table at the show (there were so many there, i had a hard time keeping track!). Unfortunately, I didn't make it to his table until about 4...so I think whatever bloods he did have were long gone by that point! (maybe we should ask kara about that, ha!) I wouldn't even know what to look for in a 'good' black. Do you simply go with the darkest? Least amount of pattern I'm assuming??

Carole
-----
"Oh, I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the sky on laugher-silvered wings...
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds - and done a hundred things
Wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence"

np

I was just curious as to the surface temp. of the heat panel as compared to the temp. of the substrate beneath them, ie: with a substrate temp. of 28 C for example, what would be the approx. surface temp. of the panel. Also, do any of you notice problems in keeping adequate cage humidity when using panels as opposed to using substrate heating. Thanks,

Kelly

how do these differ from helix radient heat panels? do any of you have a preference for one or the other?
thanks, jeff

I don't think they differ greatly--I use both. The advantage of the Pro Products for me is the ability to talk to the manufacturer, and the far wider range of sizes--if you have an odd shaped enclosure, they have the panel for you anyway. They try as hard as they can to tailor their product to your needs--in fact, they prefer you telephone when ordering--and that resonates with me.

I have no problem maintaining humidity with these--I locate about 1/3 of the water bowl beneath one edge of the panel and never mist. I spill a little water when they are in shed and my blood and STP both shed cleanly, consistently. They also do not ever have significant dimpling from excess water or dehydration. My panel runs consistenly at about 130oF as its surface temp---the floor temp beneath that is about 85o F, and the cool side stays in the 76-80 range, depending on what I do to the room the cage is in. This is in a slant front 4' Neo---in a lower cage, the panel would be even more effective.

I appreciate your comments about our Pro Heat panels, but have to take exception to the statement that our Pro Heat radiant panels don't differ greatly from other panels as there are significant differences if you conduct a detailed examination. Although they may not appear that different outwardly, the differences between panels will dramatically effect, performance, safety, longevity and operating costs.

Pro Heat radiant panels feature all of the benefits listed on our website, are UL listed, covered by a full 10 year warranty and have an expected service life of 50 years. Pro Heat panels also have the highest watt density of any brand sold, resulting in a smaller unit creating a better basking area and gradient across the cage. Our panels will cost less to operate as compared to other types of heaters, so they will actually pay for themselves and then put those savings back into your pocket every year thereafter. They are made of completely non-combustible materials, so pose no risk of a fire hazard or toxic fume release, nor can they damage or injure anything in the cage. We use an all aluminum construction with a free floating heating element and non-toxic materials, so our Pro Heat radiant panels pose no risk of potential toxic outgassing or developing cracks in the surface as other brands can (any plastic will significantly increase the rate of outgassing and how fast the plastic will break down when exposed to higher temperatures*). Pro Heat radiant panels are used worldwide by more zoos, professionals, hobbyists, theme parks, federal agencies, commercial & residential buildings than any other unit.

Pro Heat radiant panels have received many accolades, including Reptiles Magazine editor's choice award for the best heat source.

* Various Federal agencies are presently investigating plastics and their potential risk to outgas and migrate chemicals that can cause several health problems including cancer. Many plastics, when heated, will significantly increase the ability for these chemicals to migrate out. This is not only a concern with any heat source, but also with several types of plastics being used to make cages as well.

Bob @ Pro Products
Pro Products

Hey Bob,
Thank you so much for replying to this post as there is nothing better than hearing it straight from the horses mouth. No offense! I sent you an email tonight, I need another 11" x 18" approximately, soon. It's that time again (winter-soon).
-Angel
-----
"Until we lose our self, there is no way of finding our self."
-Henry Miller.