1. Do they need to be plugged into a Helix DBS1000?

Any "good" thermostat could be used. Never use any heating element without some sort of thermostat hooked up to it.

2. How do you determine the wattage or size you need?

A general rule of thumb is to use a heating element that covers 1/3 of the enclosure you are housing your animal in.

3. I have always heard thing about you ambient room temp playing a role, but in what way?

Heating elements of all sorts are influenced by the ambient room temperature. For example, if you have a thermostat set to 90 degrees hooked up to a heat pad that is in a room with an ambient temperature of 80 degrees that heating element will only have to increase the temperature by 10 degrees. However, in a 70 degree room it will have to increase the temp by 20 degrees, thus working that much harder.

Try not to house your animals in a room that is subject to extreme temperature fluctuations and is not overly "drafty" and you should be alright.

This also ties into your second question. If your room is well insulated and is already heated you may not need as big of a heating element.

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