What thermostat do you use?

[Treefolk]

What thermostat do you use and any comments you have on it?

Maybe any thermostats you've used that you did not like and why?

Thanks

 

[Embrace Calamity]

I just purchased one of these: Amazon.com: Hydrofarm MTPRTC Digital Thermostat For Heat Mats: Patio, Lawn & Garden It's the thermostat everyone I know suggests, though I've not had it long enough to say much about it. So far it's worked well. I've heard some less than excellent things about the Zoo Med ones, but, again, I don't have enough personal experience with them to say much about them.

~Maggot

 

[Treefolk]

Ya, that's what I currently use. I really don't like it very much, as it swings a good 4 degrees up or down. I was considering just making my own out of a PID controller (Johnson Controls A419ABC-1C Electronic Temp Controller: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific) originally intended for sous vide cooking, but I wanted to know of any other experiences with controllers before I did that.

 

[DrCarrotTail]

I think, like you said, the major thing with thermostats is how consistent that keep the temperature or in other words, how much they fluctuate before they turn on and off. So for example a cheaper thermostat may fluctuate 6 degreesor so. This would mean that if its set for 90, it may turn up the juice at 87 degrees and turn off at 93 degrees (the $30 thermostat I have on the wall in my house is about this accurate). I would think this isn't ideal but shouldn't be an issue for a normal leopard gecko cage. However, it would be totally unacceptable for an incubator. The one I have is a Herpstat from Spyder Robotics. Its double the price of the one linked but they claim its accurate to .9 degrees and has an internal resolution of .1125 degrees. I believe this means that if I have it set to 90 it will turn up the juice before 89.8 and turn it off at 90.2 - and it's 90 will be no more than 1 degree away from the "real" 90, making it more reliable for an incubator or anything else that requires finer temperature control. I believe the thermostats by Helix are similar in their control.

 

[iCandiBallPythons]

I only use herpstats and have used them for years with no issues

 

[pandyana]

I actually made my own temperature control. I was told how to do it through a breeder friend of mine. Not sure how much more reliable it is than buying a temperature control device but it regulates the electricity going in to my UTH's. I first bought a rheostat from ZooMed but they stopped selling them.

Here are the instructions (or close to it) that I was given on how to make a rheostat to keep your tiles at the right temperature. I also use an infrared temp gun to make sure they stay at the right temps.

How to make your own Rheostat for less than $7! Detailed instructions. - CornSnakes.com Forums

How different is using a thermostat than a rheostat? Which is better is my question

 

[DrCarrotTail]

I believe a rheostat is basically a dimmer, it allows you to adjust the amount of electricity going to a device. A thermostat automatically adjusts the amount of electricity going to a device based on temperature. There is usually a probe somewhere on the thermostat that measures the temperature in a specific place. Basically, if you want to maintain a tank at 90 degrees and the room temperature is 90 degrees, the rheostat would stay on, upping the temperature in the tank even further, while a thermostat would shut off. You would have to manually adjust the rheostat to compensate for the room temperature.

 

[pandyana]

Oh, I guess that's not a problem for me. My son likes using that infrared temp gun and every night before he goes to bed he checks all the geckos temperatures lol. I get reports back. Maybe somewhere down the line I may have to invest in a thermostat.

Would I have to buy one for each tank? or can you use one that plugs in multiples if there even is one?

 

[DrCarrotTail]

The thermostat will regulate temperature based on where you put the probe. So if the heating elements are all the same you can use one thermostat on multiple units. If they are not the same, the amount of electricity needed to keep one cage at 90 degrees may cause the others to be too cool or too warm.

 

[pandyana]

Yeah I ran in to that problem so I had to add another rheostat and separated the tanks on to two of them instead of one. They all have the same UTH's on them and the same type of tile (slate).

I just ran in to a problem where my husband decided to put the air purifier right next to the gecko tanks of two of mine and it was blowing air up so it was not letting the UTH's on the closest two tanks keep temp. I made him move it. Now they are back in sync with each other.

 

[pandyana]

Yeah I ran in to that problem so I had to add another rheostat and separated the tanks on to two of them instead of one. They all have the same UTH's on them and the same type of tile (slate).

I just ran in to a problem where my husband decided to put the air purifier right next to the gecko tanks of two of mine and it was blowing air up so it was not letting the UTH's on the closest two tanks keep temp. I made him move it. Now they are back in sync with each other.

 

[kingkung]

Hydrofarm FTW!

Sent from my HTCONE