Herpstat + Animal Plastics Thermostat + Low Room Temp?

[Miqote]

So we've had a big drop in temperature here in the past week or so.. going from the 60-70's to the 40's. It has been getting pretty cool in my apartment.. we like to leave the windows open to keep all the electronics cool, but the Thermostat seems be overcompensating for the low room temperature and is making the heat tape a bit too warm?? It's really only much too hot in the top bin, getting near to 90F, so I just took that snake and put him in an extra slot I had lower down.

I have the probe on the heat tape on the third shelf up from the bottom. Is this the wrong spot? It was originally on top of the tape but I thought the low air temperature was affecting it so I lifted up the tape and wedged it in the corner under the tape. The top bin is still too warm. (measuring with a digital probe inside the bin over the tape).

I would really appreciate any advice. Maybe I should move the thermostat probe to the top bin? Would this make the lower bins too cool?

 

[Nanci]

All the thermostat can do is bring the temp of the tape to the temp you have set. How well the tape of that temp heats the bins is for you to note, and adjust as necessary. I would monitor the uppermost bin that is occupied, and the bottom bin. You will have to adjust the set temp so you don't have the upper bin too hot, or the lower bin too cold. I would measure the warmest spot in the bin, _and_ a spot near the margin of the heat tape, but not on it. (I have cable, so unless the snake lays in a straight line along the back of the bin, it isn't getting the highest temp. I like to know what the temp is if they lay close to, but not _on_ the cable). I think I would go for no higher than 86-88 on the top, and no lower than 78-80 on the bottom. I wouldn't worry too much about a night drop of a couple degrees, but I wouldn't want the high temp of the lowest bin to fall below 76.

Is your rack enclosed? If it is an open Economy Plastics rack, you can cover the back and sides with a sheet or blanket to insulate it and stop the heat loss.

 

[Miqote]

It is an open rack. I did a lot of reading and found my foil tape and taped the probe directly to the flexwatt. I think this helped a lot, the top bin is now 85.6 (in the bin over the tape) and the bottom bin is is 80.5.

I think the probe was too exposed to the open air so it was heating up the flexwatt too much (thinking that the tape was cooler then it actually was). Now that it has the tape over it must be like insulated or something and is detecting the temperature of the tape better. I really like the blanket idea, I'm sure that will help keep the temperatures more stable also.

Thanks Nanci you always have the best answers!!!