calling all electricians. need some help with thermostat

[snake lab]

Ok so heres my dilema. I have a walk in incubator with a space heater as my heat source. Ive been using a johnsons control non prop stat for a few years and its works fine and ive never had any issues with eggs with the temp flucuations. The temps flucuate from 91 to 86 but usually sticks around 89. Now i know these are fine for incubating and like i said ive never had issues with eggs and have incubated hundreds of eggs in this setup. But im a perfectionist and try to do whatever i can to have things perfect. And im a little ocd about this. So my question is why is there not a prop stat on the market that can handle the wattage from a space heater? Is there a way i can open up the stat and upgrade something, or bigger fuse, or what? Why can a non prop stat handle the wattage but a prop stat cant? Is there any way i can tweak one into doing what i want it to do? I have helixs on my freedom breeders and like the way they work but im bummed i cant get it to work with my incubator. If im stuck with a non prop stat then so be it, it works fine but id like to fine tune my incubation temps because ocd is getting the better of me.

[The Serpent Merchant]

If there are any proportional thermostats that can handle that much power they will cost you an arm and a leg. There are other options but nothing ready made. There are AC motor controllers with the accuracy and power requirements needed but you will have to have a microcontroller and a temperature probe as well. It won't be cheap and will require a good understanding of computer programming as well.

[AGoldReptiles]

Helix used to make a T-Stat that could handle 1500 watts. I don't know if they no longer make them or if they are a special order thing. You may want to shoot them an e-mail.

I use Johnson's on everything including my incubator. I don't plan on changing anything anytime soon. As you said it works just fine

[snake lab]

Yea i know but my ocd took over a little bit. Yea i have helix and jobnsons on all my racks and they work great.

[kitedemon]

I have a thought, I get what is going on and might have a thought to solve it. The swing is the issue with the t-stat and a high power heater. What would happen if you used two 800s rather than one 1200 or 1600. Two t-stats set alike two probes the on off swing would not likely to be the same time and the heat at a lower power and two sources may work to even out a bit more. Not sure if it would work but I think the principal is good.

[snake lab]

In principal its a good idea. Only problem is that at 800 watts thats about max for herpstat, a little nore for helix and viv. Im afraid by pushing the max i will pop fuses then that would be alot worse then the swing im having now. I mean theres nothing wrong with a swing from 91 to 86. Ive never lost an egg from this swing before. Im just trying to fine tune as i try and do with everything. Im wondering what it is that causes a prop stat to be able to handle a certain wattage and if theres a way to upgrade that. I did add 3 more 5 gallon buckets with tops filled with water into the walk in and it has helped stabilize the swing a little but like i said my ocd about it is kickin in to try and tweak it a little.

[twistedtails]

Helix still has a 1500 watt system I believe. Call Jeff at Helix and ask him. Even if they aren't still being manufactured, he might have on sitting around. I do HVAC for a living and I might do some research and see if they have one in the industry I could market. Have you tried insulating your incubator even better than it is already to hold more accurate temps?

[KLMuller]

You might be able to use a line voltage baseboard proportional thermostat. They are typically wall mounted units but of you have a room setup might work well

~Karl

[snake lab]

The incubator is a 6 ft wide by 5 ft deep by 7 ft high. When i gutted the walk in space i insulating in between studs, put plywood up oncwalls and ceiling, wrapped with tyvek, then 3/4 inch fiber foam insulating panels for the finish. So yea its insulated well. I do remember helix having a higher wattage stat but havent sen one in a long time. Ill give them a shout and see.

[snake lab]

Woohoo problem solved. I called jeff at helix and he said they are developing a new 1500 watt hd version of the dbs and it should be ready in limited supply in a few weeks so he put me on the list for one.