PVC Enclosures - How to Heat ?

I have an Animal Plastics T12 (48x24x24). Animal Plastics cages are made from 1/2 inch thick PVC. The cages that you are looking at I believe are only 1/4 or 1/8th inch thick PVC. I use 11 inch flexwatt on one side to provide a hot side, but I also have a 11x40 inch IR heat panel on the top the heat panel is regulated by my herpstat 4 to control the ambient air temp in the cage. this way the entire cage stays at 80 and the flexwatt provides a hotspot of 92

How hot are your RHPs getting? I just installed my Pro Heat panel in a 2x2 melamine cage and it is barely getting the bottom of the hot side to 82-83, and the surface temp of the panel is 180 degrees according to my temp gun.

I have no issues with heating through PVCx (1/4 and 3/8 inch and 1/2 Pvc) with UTH systems. I would be concerned at having any surface that is hotter than 100ºF inside the enclosure. The RHP I have encountered have all been to heat arboreal snakes where the heat gradient goes up and down not horizontally. It seems poor efficiency to heat horizontally with a vertically mounted panel. In 12 inches how much height does the panel take 2 inches or more? That is getting hard to reach back for cleaning.

Tubes inside an enclosure do a wonderful job of raising ambient temps inside the enclosure and acting as a passive 'engine' for a ventilation method. I use tubes in all my custom enclosures to help keep the ambient temps during the day. Mine are on 12 hours and allow the temp to ramp up in a very natural way and down over night. (at 6 hour intervals starting at 9am 77ºF, 84ºF 82ºF 79ºF)

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Originally Posted by spitzu

How hot are your RHPs getting? I just installed my Pro Heat panel in a 2x2 melamine cage and it is barely getting the bottom of the hot side to 82-83, and the surface temp of the panel is 180 degrees according to my temp gun.

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how long has it been running and what size is it?

i have two heat pannels in PVC cages and neither get that hot and i have hot spots in the 88-90 degree range.

It's a 12"x10" and I've had it on for a few days now. Think I'm going to grab the next size up.

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