heat tape soldering questions--HELP!!

i have so many questions that i need help with...somebody please help! can anyone give me detailed instructions and pictures on how to solder flexwatt in parallel? probably going to use 4" flexwatt.

what gage wire to use?

what kind of solder?

do you twist the connecting wires(between each piece of flexwatt) together then solder them to the flexwatt?

when connecting a power wire, do you strip it and then connect each of the 2 wires to each side of the flexwatt(one wire to each side of heat tape)?

thanks a ton in advance everybody :)

i dont use flexwatt myself ( i use heat mats ) but I did google this for ya , hope it helps

http://www.arbreptiles.com/cages/flexwire.shtml

take care

thanks, but i really would like pictures of flexwatt being soldered. more than 1 piece, too. I don't plan on using clips, so i really need pictures of soldering. If no one has pictures, could you give me any answers on what size wire to use, do you twist the wires together, and do you split the power wire so that one wire goes to each side of the flexwatt?

thanks for the reply. anybody else??

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Royal Tartan

i dont use flexwatt myself ( i use heat mats ) but I did google this for ya , hope it helps

http://www.arbreptiles.com/cages/flexwire.shtml

take care

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I solder 4" in parallel. I strip about 1 1/4" of insulation off of an extension cord every 14 inches or so, squeeze the exposed copper together and twist it so the cord looks like it has 2 - 1/2" metal tabs sticking out in parallel, spaced ever 14". I solder them to the tape and secure all the connections with electrical tape.

Its pretty simple... I dont have any pics but can prolly take some for you sometime this week if you still need them... to make it simple...

Use a soldering wand to melt off the plastic on the metal strips on each side

tape the opposite ends up with electrical tape

cut just enough of the wire covering off to fit in the now plastic free metal strip

twist the wire ends and then smush em with the soldering wand and kind of spread em out a little bit

hold the soldering wand on the wire and rub whatever sodder you have on the wire until its covered... remove the wand ... let it harden and put some electrical tape on it.

Plug it into a thermostat and your good to go.

Just to throw this out there being an electrician for a living, unless you have electrical experience and are very sure of what you are doing do not attempt this. Electricity is very dangerous and if not done properly you can seriously harm yourself, your animals and even your entire home. Just remember this is something that will be on when you are not at home and it only takes a second for electricity to make a bad fire. Just my .02

Okay, I think i'm starting to understand. so I twist 2 ends of the wire together then solder it to the flexwatt? Can someone chim in on a couple more things i'm still wandering about?

1.) what cage wire to use?
2.) what kind of solder to use?
3.) do I split the power cord all the way down and attach it 2 each side of the flexwatt?

thanks for the replies!!!! also, I will have someone with a little more electrical experience help me out.

P.S. pictures would be awesome. close ups and details. thankyou

Quote:

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Originally Posted by JoshJP7

Its pretty simple... I dont have any pics but can prolly take some for you sometime this week if you still need them... to make it simple...

Use a soldering wand to melt off the plastic on the metal strips on each side

tape the opposite ends up with electrical tape

cut just enough of the wire covering off to fit in the now plastic free metal strip

twist the wire ends and then smush em with the soldering wand and kind of spread em out a little bit

hold the soldering wand on the wire and rub whatever sodder you have on the wire until its covered... remove the wand ... let it harden and put some electrical tape on it.

Plug it into a thermostat and your good to go.

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what cage wire?... do you mean what gauge wire?... it doesnt matter really because theres only 20watts coming from the heat pad so you dont need anything heavy duty... I just grabbed a 2$ extension cord from HomeDepot and chopped the end off like in those pictures on that website posted earlier...12-16 will work. What kind of solder? I can let you know when I get home tonight as its sitting on my book shelf and unfortunately im at work till 5... Just split the wire far enough down so you can reach both metal strips... I'm no electrical pro but my father helped me wire 8 flexwatts up when I built my custom cages and hes like Bob Vila Jr.... After the first one your like wow it was that simple??