thoughts and oppionions on the Ranco thermostat???

just wondering if any of you have ever used this brand and what do you all think of it ?> getting ready to make a purchase of a few more animals and looking to get one of these first...any input is greatly appreciated thanks

I've heard some good things but I've had horrible luck with them. In my experience they last a couple years at most and then you start getting error messages. I've thrown away approx. five in the last few years. As they die I replace them with Herpstats.

I don't think that they are worth their price. They are no more accurate than a $30 hydrofarm thermostat and usually cost twice as much. An entry level Herpstat that costs slightly more But is far more accurate and have way more capability.

I know many people have had success with them and will recommend them. I have had 2 and replaced them both with the Spyder Robotics Herpstats. One stopped working after only a few weeks and I found that the second one did not keep an accurate temperature, might have just been my luck though.

I inherited a Ranco with a rescue and it seems to be working great on my quarantine rack.
I haven't had any errors or failures with it yet.
It replaced my budget Hydrofarm and it is much more accurate. It sustains a 1 degree shift in temp before turning on and off versus the Hydrofarm's 3 degree difference.
For an On/Off, I would say its much better than a Hydrofarm.

While my Ranco works great, I personally wouldn't have bought one for myself. The only thing that I like about it is that a power strip can be directly wired into the unit.

Overall, I recommend just starting off with a Herpstat. It will save you money in the long run.

thanks so much for the help.. my other question is where can you get the hydrofarm one other than amazon ? or is that the only way to get it?

That is the only place I have seen it, some people say that you can find them at some gardening centers.

I've seen them at Hydroponic stores since they are made for indoor plant growing. But they're more expensive than Amazon. I saw them going for $40 compared to the $30 on Amazon (was $25 when I got mine).