Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have been working on this coke fridge for the last couples of weeks. Its got heat tape and a computer fan (radioshack) installed. The temp on the middle shelf is set at 89, but the top shelf is at 85-86. I was thinking about cutting the bottom section of heat tape, because that my be where my problem is. I have the incubator tubs set up with all glass tops, not just the middle shelf (so thats not the problem). Just wanted a second opinion, I would appreciate any suggestions.

Thanks,
Kyle

Usually the higher temps are at the top, how are you measuring the temp. Check to see if your thermemeters agree with each other. Put the probes in a glass of wwater to get a accurate measurement. I have set many thermometers together on a counter and they read very differently. Put them in a glass of water at 90F and they will come together much closer. It looks like you have too much heat tape. You do not want to have too much heat, the incubator can over heat quickly. Also you want the heat to run longer and not go on and off quickly. Your heat should be on the bottom. Mine is on the bottom under a false floor. Your fan should blow the hot air down along one side to create a circular flow.
Good luck, Mike

I am in the process of making my incubator as well. In the past i was able to make do with the aquarium style or using maternal incubation. What I am doing is using a medium sized refigerator that I took the freezer partition out. As a heat source I will be making a false floor with a fan that will force warm air from two 60 watt light bulbs that are under the false floor. On the opposite side on the top will be another fan forcing the warm air down creating a circular pattern of the air. This should give me constant temps all over the incubator. I should have it finished by tues next week and will post pics of it when complete. Also what thermostat are you using. You want to use a proportional not an on/off thermostat.
Josh Hutto
JKReptiles
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2.3 het pied (RDR, alan bosch x 2, BHB x 2)
1.1 het albino (ben siegel, gulf coast)
1.2 het citrus ghost(gulf coast line)
1.0 citrus ghost (gulf coast line)
0.1 graz pastel female
1.6 05 normal bp's
0.6 04 normal bp's
2.5 adult normal bp's (some need breeding to see if norm)
4 various corns
0.1 brazilian rainbow boa (alan bosch)
1.0 american pit bull terrior
1.1 taco dogs (ankle biters)
1.0 grey cat
1.1 bearded dragons

a BAD dog is MADE not bred, support the American Pit Bull Terrior as the greatest breed of dogs on Earth!!!!!

Proportional T-stats work fine, I'm not knocking them, even though I'm not sure what they do if they fail. But on off T-stats work fine also. Before proportionals existed everyone used the wafer T-stats from Hovabator incubators, I still do. Each incubator has two wired in series, just to be safe. I have used these successfully for over 15 years with NO problems or failures.
Mike

I don't know what kind of failsafe they have if they quit. To fix this I will be placing a BAH 1000 set at 92 just incase the Helix quits on me. This should give me the added protection I need.
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2.3 het pied (RDR, alan bosch x 2, BHB x 2)
1.1 het albino (ben siegel, gulf coast)
1.2 het citrus ghost(gulf coast line)
1.0 citrus ghost (gulf coast line)
0.1 graz pastel female
1.6 05 normal bp's
0.6 04 normal bp's
2.5 adult normal bp's (some need breeding to see if norm)
4 various corns
0.1 brazilian rainbow boa (alan bosch)
1.0 american pit bull terrior
1.1 taco dogs (ankle biters)
1.0 grey cat
1.1 bearded dragons

a BAD dog is MADE not bred, support the American Pit Bull Terrior as the greatest breed of dogs on Earth!!!!!

Hey Kyle,
I have just set-up a very similar incu. like the coke frig. that you are using. First off man, you don't need that much heat tape unless you are planning on cooking some eggs in it. Where is your fan at? Is it the 20 watt one from Radio shack? That's the one I'm using as well. What I did was if you open the door and look in the frig. and look up, you'll see the fan box that is installed in it, with a grille cover over it. I ripped out that fan and installed the one from radio shack up in that box so it is blowing air down and out the grille. I took the heating element from a hovabator and mounted it right to the bottom of the box (roof of frig.) so it is right below the grille cover. I'm using a helix basic for the thermo. I have the heating element plugged into the helix and the fan plugged into the wall and is always on. The helix probe is at the lower 3rd of the frig. and set on 89.6 degrees. By doing this I only have a gradient range of .4 degrees, the top is a constant 89.8 and the bottom is 89.4 constant. Give that a shot and let me know how it goes. If you need pics or anything, just e-mail me and I'll send them to you along with answers to any questions you may have. Good luck bro!!
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www.bustyballpythons.com