Dimmer or Thermostat?

So I've made the unfortunately common discovery that my ZooMed UTH has a habit of quickly climbing into the 90's (and possibly above, if I didn't unplug it immediately), which is of course unacceptable. I've determined that I have two choices in controlling it: a rheostat (taking the form of a light dimmer to cut cost) or a thermostat. Normally thermostats are quite expensive, but amazon currently has the ZooMed 500r ReptTemp on sale for almost 75% off. Does anyone have experience with these things? I have a couple questions on both.

Dimmer:
How do I install one and how easy is it to use?
I only currently have one snake. Would this be a good choice for just one?

T'stat:
How do I install one and how easy is it to use?
I only currently have one snake. Would this be a good choice for just one?
Does it maintain 70-85 degree temperatures easily, or does it quickly and unpredictably climb, like I've heard some t'stats (specifically on/offs) do?
Is it an on/off or proportional?

This is what I was trying to explain in your other thread- they all get too hot without something. I like my BAH1000 from big apple herps and my ranco- no experience with the other. The BAH is $40 from big apple herps website and the ranco $79. Both are easy to use just plug in, set temp wanted, and adhere probe to measure your temps

danielle said:

This is what I was trying to explain in your other thread- they all get too hot without something. I like my BAH1000 from big apple herps and my ranco- no experience with the other. The BAH is $40 from big apple herps website and the ranco $79. Both are easy to use just plug in, set temp wanted, and adhere probe to measure your temps

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Have you ever used a rheostat? I'm tentative to get the BAH because i've heard it's only "adequate". I'm not home 6 hours a day due to school, and possibly more if I'm tutoring or at work, and need something that will stay within the warm temp range without too much fussing (My parents are afraid to be near the snake).

Rheostats blow I threw mine out 2 weeks after getting it you have to adjust all rheostats because they work off the rooms temps as well. Even set to low they were always too hot for my home so I vote thermostat

Hahaha ok, thanks danielle. I'll definitely consider the BAH but I'd like to see what people's experiences with the ReptTemp are before I make a decision. Luckily in AZ temps won't drop to where I NEED to heat his tank until mid-late December Although I definitely want him to have a comfortable gradient and somewhere to get some belly heat after a meal.

I have two of the new BAH running as back-up thermostats on my racks. Actually one, the other failed within a couple months. I am going to replace them both with Alifes . My favorite thermostat is the Herpstat ND. I haven't had any problems with ReptiTemp 500s, except it takes a while to dial them in, but I just read that Chris (Tyflier) had one fail on and lost a bunch of snakes...I'd say it's pretty important to buy the most relaible stat you can afford, because if it fails, it's dangerous if not deadly.

Nanci said:

I have two of the new BAH running as back-up thermostats on my racks. Actually one, the other failed within a couple months. I am going to replace them both with Alifes . My favorite thermostat is the Herpstat ND. I haven't had any problems with ReptiTemp 500s, except it takes a while to dial them in, but I just read that Chris (Tyflier) had one fail on and lost a bunch of snakes...I'd say it's pretty important to buy the most relaible stat you can afford, because if it fails, it's dangerous if not deadly.

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I know it's morbid to ask but... did they burn or freeze? I'm more concerned with burning, being where I am... But I can easily see how a broken t'stat left unattended could end in tragedy. Still, it seems everyone has a a horror story about every reptile product out there... you've just gotta bet on the one with the least amount of bad blood behind it!

They overheated. It's pretty tough to kill a snake in your house by freezing...

Nanci said:

They overheated. It's pretty tough to kill a snake in your house by freezing...

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That's a shame. But which would you reccommend? Keeping in mind I have only the one snake (for now! ;D) and am fairly new to keeping snakes.

The Reptitemp is... Adequate if you're broke. I have way too many of them, and regret not going for something easier and more reliable (namely, Alifes, which are in the same price range) in the first place. I do have one Alife, and it seems to be a pretty decent thermostat. I don't have enough experience with it to tell you if it's truly reliable, but I certainly trust it more than the Reptitemp.

Ranco is a good one, too. It comes pretty well recommended, keeps temps where you want them (give or take 2 or 3 degrees +/-), and, IME, holds up pretty well to controlling several (identical, of course!) heat pads.

Definitely have to agree with Nanci, though: Herpstats are the BEST! I have one Herpstat II (basically two NDs in one unit), and it's by far my favorite. Herpstats are proportional, but can be set to on/off mode if you want it there. Mine rarely, if ever, vary more than 1 degree +/-, kept on proportional mode... Which, really, might be overkill for a corn snake, but it's still very comforting and very cool. =)

Just my $.02, of course... Good luck with whatever you choose!

I'd recommend the Alife for a cheap thermostat, and the Herpstat for a decent one.

If your room temp is pretty constant through out the year you would be fine with a dimmer. If you are a few degrees up and down every day then a thermostat is the way to go. If you do go with a dimmer make sure to check the temp once or twice a day. Also be sure to have it in a place where it won't be bumped and get turned up accidentally.

I use ceiling fan dimmer switches from Home Depot - the kind with a slider switch for infinite control. So far, I have never had one "go bad" on me (knock on wood!). But - they do take more "messing around with" than a good thermostat. You have to adjust them higher or lower as the temperature in your room changes. But I am happy with mine. There is enough room in even the shoeboxes for the snakes to escape to the cool end if it gets too hot. I have melted LOTS of air holes in the boxes for just that reason - I want lots of ventilation. Maybe people in a really cold or dry climate would want less ventilation, but it works well here in Florida.

I too use table top lamp dimmer(Rheostats) for all 5 of my corn snakes. Once I got them adjusted they have been pretty good at staying with in 2-3 degrees either way so I aim for about 84 degrees.

Like Kathy I also have some little babies in small enclosures(shoe box size) and they find lots of room to move to cool areas if they need to.

I have had one defective lamp dimmer, it did not cause enough of a problem to fry a snake. It just would fluctuate a lot more, sometimes it would not heat and occasionally the heat would get to the 90's. The snake that had the defective one, would not use the warm hide once the dimmer was defective.

I have an infrared temp gun that I use for accurate temp checks, and I just check once a day or two. By purchasing the temp gun I also saved money by not having to buy digital thermostats for each enclosure.

I myself will want to get Herpstat, once I have a snake room and all the snakes live in the same place and I can by the model that does multiple enclosures. But with snakes all over the house, it would be stupidly expensive to by Herpstats for each enclosure.

Really I think cost wise the lamp dimmer and temp gun combo are well worth the money and cheaper than a thermostat and a thermometer, esp because you don't know if you are going to get another snake...it is a possibility they are addicting.

Just my experience and opinion.

i am new and only have one - i am using a 10 dollar tabletop dimmer the room temp stays fairly steady - the warm side is holding fairly steady at around 83-85 - if i get another and i want to i will duplicate the setup - 18 bucks for uth, 6 bucks for digital t'mometer and 10 bucks for dimmer - if i went bigger, lets say 4 or 5 more i think i would go to a rack/tub system with heat tape?? but i'll probably quit with 2 as the consequence of having more being a non breeder is what is involved when they outgrow the cheap ten gallon tanks - i like seeing them, holding them, checking on them - just don't believe you can get the same effect with a bunch of tubs - just my opinion

How do you set a dimmer up? My dad says the only way to do it is to connect it to the one lightswitch in my snake's room... but of course he is far from the end-all be-all electrician or herp keeper.

Buy a table top lamp dimmer at the hardware store, approx $10-$15. They have a plug in on them that has prongs on one side to go into the wall and sockets on the other side(like on an extension cord) which you plug the UTH into. The cord that goes out from the plug has a little box attached to it with a slider. Generally when the slider is slide down to the bottom of the box(the end with the cord) the dimmer cuts all power and when you slide it all the way up, it allows full power(UTH gets to hot). For the ambient temps in my house, the slider needs to be set to about 1/4-1/3 of the way on. You could try that. When first setting your dimmer(Rheostat) check temps every hour until you can get them to stabilize around 84-85. Then check at least once daily, as they will fluctuate with house temp fluctuations, sometimes not enough to worry about, sometimes enough you have to readjust.

Here is a link to a picture of the exact one I use http://www.amazon.com/Lutron-TT-300NLH-WH-Credenza-Dimmer-White/dp/B0000DI241

I use both rheostats and thermostats and haven't had an issue with either.
The Therm is a set and go thing while the rheo takes a bit of
adjusting to get it right.
The only issue with overheating I've had is when the heat tape
shorted out and cooked 3 snakes on that level of the rack.

Rheostat/Dimmer are more work keeping temps constant
but are cheaper.
Thermostat is more consistent and less work, but more money.

just my experiences of course

Went ahead and ordered the ReptiTemp500r since it was on such a great sale. If it doesn't work or fails after a few months... honestly a couple months is all I need. Then next winter I'll try a wall dimmer! Thanks for everyone's help!

Pepper said:

How do you set a dimmer up? My dad says the only way to do it is to connect it to the one lightswitch in my snake's room... but of course he is far from the end-all be-all electrician or herp keeper.

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you don't connect the dimmer switch to a lightswitch at all, when using it on a uth. the dimmer switch merely reduces or increases the amount of power going to whatever it is hooked to...it just happens that they are most commonly used for lights.

Here is an example of an already wired tabletop lamp dimmer
http://www.amazon.com/Leviton-L32-TBI03-1LW-Tabletop-Control-300-Watt/dp/B000FK9X94

What you would do is plug the UTH into the socket on the cord...then plug the cord into the wall. Then you have to play around with adjusting the knob/slider until you find the correct output (slide up or down...wait a while...check temperature with thermometer...wash/rinse/repeat). You just have to make sure the dimmer you get is good for the amount of watts needed for the UTH

Or to wire up your own for cheaper see this page
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=19168&highlight=wire+dimmer+rheostat