Heat mat temps? Is this dangerous?

[reptilemart]

I’ve got a carpet hatchling setup inside a click-clack which is inside an enclosure. The enclosure holds four click-clacks, however only 2 of them will have herps in them (for now) :wink:

With this setup, overhead heating is not really ideal to establish an acceptable temperature gradient. In light of this I have chosen heat-mats/tape to do the job. It’s my first experience with heat mats and it appears that I’m going to have some troubles getting the correct temps. After doing some research on the net, I assumed that the 7-9watt heat mats would not require a thermostat… I think I have made an error in this assumption. The hot end of the click-clack is hitting 40degrees (on the floor), whilst the cool end is around the 27 mark. My question is will 40 degrees on the hot end harm the hatchy? I assume that prosperpine gets mighty hot in summer, and would probably experience such temps, however I’m not sure of the effect it will have on the hatchling considering it is 100% belly heat. I have ordered two probe thermostats, but I think they will take another week for delivery. In the meantime should I try to raise the click clacks off the tape, or just leave them as they are?

Cheers.

[soulweaver]

its not ideal temp for them, i would buy myself a probe stat from the herpshop to control the temp better.

[reptilemart]

I've got two on the way Just worried about the week in between.

[MrBredli]

Try putting something underneath the tubs (like a pencil on either end?), so that it is not in direct contact with the floor, this should reduce the temp some.

[reptilemart]

thanks. I will try that tonight. At the moment I have placed two stacks of 5cent coins under each corner of the tub to lift it a bit, but after about 30mins the temp increased to 40 again. I'll try and lift it a little higher so that more of a draft can pass through the gap.

Hey, on a different note, MrBredli are you anywhere near parra/blacktown? I'm thinking of getting either some woma's or bredli's as a bit of a breeding venture.. I'm assuming from your name that you're into bredli. If you ever have any hatchies available, or want to move your adults, let me know and i'll come and have a peek.

Cheers,
Peter.

I use heatmats combined with microclimate B2ME thermostats for hatchling and yearling tubs.
I place about a third to half of the container (depending on its size) on the mat so as to create a thermal gradient in the container. Usually I have several tubs of equal size sitting on a row of mats and the thermostat probe goes into one of the tubs. This usually keeps most of the tubs within a degree of each other. I also have a few acurate thermometers with probes going into some tubs just to double check the thermostat is running at the desired temperature and all tubs are the same temperature.

Ive found that heat mats get very hot if not controlled by a good thermostat. I prefer the microclimate brand, either the B2ME with magic eye for day/night temp drops or the DL2M or B2 model. But make sure they are the pulsing types for non light emitting heat sources.

microclimate B2ME .................................... microclimate DL2M

microclimate B2


For the moment until you get a thermostat, try the suggestions given about raising the tub off the mat or just have a corner of the tub sit on the mat... whatever works, but verify the temperature with a good thermometer and move or raise the tub until this desired temperature is reached. If it keeps heating up too hot I suggest you need more air holes in the top of the container on the heat source side to allow some of the excess heat to rise and escape.

[MrBredli]

Hi Peter,

Yeah i live in that area, i don't have any bredli available though. I should have 1 clutch available next season. TrueBlue has hatchies available now if you're keen, i've purchased from him previously and he's great to deal with.

Brendon