ChristinaJ
New Member
- Messages
- 162
- Location
- Pennsylvania
Let me start by saying I have been keeping and breeding leos for years and this is the the first time that I have had an issue but I have heard about others that have had similar issues as the one I had.
A few days ago, I woke up to a devastating find. The HEAT TAPE on my rack had malfunction, it was not the thermostat and to be sure I tested it on a rack that was not in use, and made sure it was in the basement in case there was an issue. Mind you this is a herpstat that is a little over a yr old, not some cheap thermostat. Anyway Thermostat checks out fine.
The "malfunction" was confined to my hatchling rack, and I lost ALL but one of my hatchlings, originally three survived but two only made it a day before I lost them as well. The tape had gotten so hot it had melted the tubs to the rack and the ones that were not I am assuming toxic gases killed the hatchlings or extreme heat. I had to cut apart the rack to get to the tubs, and with each self my heart sank. All of my holdbacks and hatchlings were in that rack, essentially I am starting over next year because of this.
Thankfully, I caught it in time that a fire was avoided or I would have lost my entire geckos and reptile collection. I was able to salvage the heat tape to see what the malfunction was, and about a 1 1/2 foot section had stopped working due to a short of some sort, and the probe to my thermostat happened to be in this area. This was not a homemade rack, it was purchased from one of the leading rack companies and was only 2 years old. I am not going to mention any names although they told me they would do nothing about it since I was using a herpstat and not one of their thermostats.
I have since begun to change my racks over to heat cable which I feel is a safer choice. This is just a warning to everyone. Even if you use a high quality thermostat, it may not prevent issues such as the one I had.
A few days ago, I woke up to a devastating find. The HEAT TAPE on my rack had malfunction, it was not the thermostat and to be sure I tested it on a rack that was not in use, and made sure it was in the basement in case there was an issue. Mind you this is a herpstat that is a little over a yr old, not some cheap thermostat. Anyway Thermostat checks out fine.
The "malfunction" was confined to my hatchling rack, and I lost ALL but one of my hatchlings, originally three survived but two only made it a day before I lost them as well. The tape had gotten so hot it had melted the tubs to the rack and the ones that were not I am assuming toxic gases killed the hatchlings or extreme heat. I had to cut apart the rack to get to the tubs, and with each self my heart sank. All of my holdbacks and hatchlings were in that rack, essentially I am starting over next year because of this.
Thankfully, I caught it in time that a fire was avoided or I would have lost my entire geckos and reptile collection. I was able to salvage the heat tape to see what the malfunction was, and about a 1 1/2 foot section had stopped working due to a short of some sort, and the probe to my thermostat happened to be in this area. This was not a homemade rack, it was purchased from one of the leading rack companies and was only 2 years old. I am not going to mention any names although they told me they would do nothing about it since I was using a herpstat and not one of their thermostats.
I have since begun to change my racks over to heat cable which I feel is a safer choice. This is just a warning to everyone. Even if you use a high quality thermostat, it may not prevent issues such as the one I had.
