flexwatt and 20 gallon tank

[junko]

Sorry to rehash something everyone has probably answered a million times, but I did a search, I promise! I searched on flexwatt and aquarium enclosures but came across a post that said flexwatt may crack the glass if used without a thermostat. :eek: Is that a proportional thermostat or any thermostat? I am planning on putting an 11" flexwatt under the tank wired to a Ranco thermostat. Is that going to be a problem?

Also, the probe goes right against the flexwatt, I'm reading. It just doesn't sound right to me- wouldn't you want the probe on the floor of the enclosure where the snake will be? Can someone explain?

Thank you yet again!

[tmlowe5704]

if it is run full power and gets to a high enough temp, it can crack the glass. Keep it on a thermostat and you are fine. Just be sure to attach the probe to the glass on the inside.

[elevatethis]

Also, if you are using fw on the bottom, be sure that you aren't using a thick substrate like mulch or aspen...that will basically serve as an insulator and the fw will do nothing for your ambient temperatures.

[junko]

Thanks! I'm planning on using newspaper to start off.