Heating new rack

[Corrupter]

I am just finishing up my new rack and I want to order my heat tape ASAP but could use a little advice... First, I should describe the rack. Its 6' tall, 4' wide, and 2' deep. VERY similar to the racks built by Halfdawg/Denegerous except it holds 10 rows of tubs instead of 6 (not a bad deal for only making it 2' higher and only ~$30 more in materials ). I was going to do 3" or 4" belly heat but I calculated that I would need 40' of heat tape plus all of the connectors to do it that way which will easily cost way over $100. Would it be ok to run 3 strips up the back instead? 11"? That would mean only 18' is needed which will cut the cost in half. BTW, this rack is HEAVY! Over 320 lbs!!!

[Corrupter]

I know theres gotta be someone online right now that can offer advice. I promise I will take a couple pics to put up later if someone helps me figure out the heating issue

[Freakie_frog]

In my adult 41qt racks and my juvi 32qt racks get belly heat. I use 11" flex watt and just use one 12"x11" section pertub and solder the connections. So if you do it that way you'll only need 1 foot per tub cuts down on cost.

hope that helps

[nevohraalnavnoj]

I'm a bit confused by your question. It sounds however like your choice is between 3" belly heat and 11" back heat. Either should work, and as you noted back is cheaper. Rich at Reptilebasics can hook you up with either. I prefer belly heat, but that's just my preference.

Best,

JonV

[Damon Theis]

I'd take 11 inch over the smaller stuff any day.
It is far more stable and heats better.
That said, you need to understand the difference in back or side heat vs. belly in a rack. i.e. probe placement and adjustments.
Pics would help tho.
-d

[Corrupter]

Well I guess what I am really trying to figure out is if back heat is ok when so many people use belly heat instead. The easiest way to do it seems to be running 3 strips of 11" up the back but I dont want to have any problems arising from it. Danegerous's rack apparently has 2 strips of 11" up the back, but I cant picture how it can be done to make the heat distributed evenly for all 3 tubs on each shelf. It seems obvious that belly heat is the best way to go but its so much more expensive. Even if I did all the wiring for each tub to have a pad, thats still 30 feet and all of the wiring supplies would add up. Sorry for not presenting a clear question.

[Corrupter]

BTW thanks for the input so far guys! I do have one more question which should be a little less vague than the first... If I use back heat and decide to change the tub size (I believe there is a larger and smaller one that are the same height as the 32QT) will it be harder to maintain a similar temperature? Will sliding the tubs closer to/farther from the back wall of the rack allow me to correct any differences in temperature? That is my main concern about using the back heat.

[rabernet]

Since heat rises, back heat isn't the best choice, and you really probably want to keep the room at 80-82 degrees as well, because the heat will not move horizontially to the front of the tub.

Why can't you buy however many feet you need for one shelf and wire each strip, rather than each one foot section? For example - you can get it cut in 3 or 4 foot section if you like, lay it across the shelf and wire just each shelf? Wouldn't that help cut down on the costs? However many shelves is how many connectors you'll need. Make sure your thermostat is rated to handle the total wattage.

[Damon Theis]

I don't agree with that completely. I keep my room 68 generally and have no problem with non-belly heat racks that are designed with adequate heat.
Heat rising, yes, but if the rack is engineered with each compartment enclosed and thus not allowing the heat to rise anywhere except out the front, it will heat just fine assuming there is enought heating surface. In fact, I think they do a much better job at creating ambient heat than belly heat does.
I have racks that use both and a correctly built rack using side or back heat is by far my choice. That said, a rack built that is not suitable for it is worthless, whereas, even a poorly built rack will work fine with belly heat.
just my 2 bits.
-d

[Gloryhound]

In my small 4 tub 32 quart rack I used the 11" Flex watt. One 12" piece under each tub. This works very well. Now I have to go back and remove the double rows of 4" flex watt I used under my 41 quart tuba and put in a piece of the 11" flex watt. For me this will be a little bit of a chore as I have to remove a couple risers from the steps I built my rack under to gain access.