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Rheostat or Thermostat?
- Thread starter Nekoda
- Start date
wax32
ALL YOUR BASE
A thermostat will adjust the temp of your heat mat to keep it at the temp you want.. with a rheostat, you have to have a thermometer in the tank and manually adjust the dial on the rheostat until it is the correct temp... and you have to readjust it depending on how room temp changes. (You should use a thermometer with BOTH devices in case that wasn't clear.)
ratsncorns
Bird Nerd
What wax32 said. A lot of us would agree that rheostats are not very accurate and have the potential of making the heat mats too hot. If you are not home to constantly adjust it, the rheostat will not work properly due to daily fluctuations in temperature that occur in your home. I came home from work one day to find the heat mat temp to be 102 degrees. That was when I got a thermostat. For peace of mind, I would definitely suggest a thermostat instead, that way you can set it for a specific temperature that you want the heat pad to be at.
antsterr
Always mostly awesome
In my experience Rheostats work very well. I've have about a dozen tanks with home made rheostats controlling them haven't changed the settings on them in about a month. As long as you're house doesn't heat and cool more than 10 degrees on a regular basis you'll probably do well on a rheostat.
I'll note that I'm not too picky with my temps, as long as they usually stay between 80-85 I don't worry about the odd dip over or under that.
If you care to see how I set them up see my signature link to my rack.
I'll note that I'm not too picky with my temps, as long as they usually stay between 80-85 I don't worry about the odd dip over or under that.
If you care to see how I set them up see my signature link to my rack.
Thanks ansterr
Thats the kind of information I have been looking for...I made a rheostat from the post that I read earlier, and its working, but hard to get the right temp. Going to take some time I think. My house temps don't fluctuate that much, so should be ok to get it close eventually. At least my snake won't burn herself! When I first put the thermometer in, it was reading 115 degrees or more....not good at all....so at least I have that somewhat under control now.
Thanks for all the help! I love this forum!
Thats the kind of information I have been looking for...I made a rheostat from the post that I read earlier, and its working, but hard to get the right temp. Going to take some time I think. My house temps don't fluctuate that much, so should be ok to get it close eventually. At least my snake won't burn herself! When I first put the thermometer in, it was reading 115 degrees or more....not good at all....so at least I have that somewhat under control now.
Thanks for all the help! I love this forum!