Radiant Heat Panel suggestions?

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Originally Posted by DooLittle

I didn't say your snake got hurt. Just saying I've never seen one hurt, and you throwing out there that your snake could get scratched by them. Not gonna happen. Don't want other people (that haven't experience with them) to read that and be worried. And it seems every time there is a heat panel discussion, and I recommend Pro products, you single out my posts to knock the Pro Product panels. And I think they are great. You use what you like, I'll use what I like. And I will continue to recommend them.

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My suggestions are based on my experience. If the snake rubs against the Pro Products panel there's definitely a chance of them getting scratched. Again, that's my opinion from my experience.

I apologize if you think I single out your posts. If that is the case, I don't do it intentionally and again apologize. Just like you, I want people to make the most informed decision.

I do however have a caution towards their UL cert. I don't belive something a company just claims. If you claim something as big as a UL certification, I expect the company to display it or at least have it on their site. I think it's strange that no one can find this mysterious UL certification or for what product it's actually available for.

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I don't think any animal is supposed to come in contact with the heat panel. So the texture doesn't really matter. I thought the point was once they felt the heat on their nose/heat build up they would turn away from it. So I don't think anyone's snake would reach up and touch their face to the panel. The heat is supposed to deter them from doing that. Personally my snake doesn't even get close to the panel, he may look at it but he never tries to touch it. That's just my 2 cents though. All in all either way you can go with Reptile Basics or Pro Products whichever one your prefer or suits your needs.


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This is from Reptile Basics Radiant Heat Panel FAQ:

What about fire safety?

The Reptile Basics RHP now incorporates a thermal fuse, something our competitors do not. Should the panels internal temperature exceed safe levels encountered in normal operation it will automatically shut down. While the element itself and the insulating material/lens are all fire resistant consumers have expressed concern over the safety of heating devices used in their caging for some time. While many types of cage heating, heat tape for example, do not lend themselves to this type of safety device we have found RHP's to work very well with them. For this reason we have incorporated it into our design. One of the advantages of producing the panels "in-house" as opposed to repackaging/labeling a product designed for use in other applications and manufactured by others!

To properly use this RHP with the thermal fuse you must take a couple of small precautions to ensure proper operation-

•Do not mount the panel in such a way that the lens is closer than 6 inches from a cage surface
•Do not set the panel lens side down on any surface while it is plugged in (don't know why you would do that??)

Either of these will cause the internal panel temp to potentially exceed the operating temp of the fuse and potentially void your warranty and incapacitate the panel!


So there appears to be a safety measure in there to prevent issues. As others have noted, both companies have solid reputations and good products. Go with the one that you feel most comfortable with. In the case of electrical components, your biggest concern is that the system is a "fail open" type of system. What this means, is if it fails, power is lost (open as in the contact is opened so no power can be transmitted) and the apparatus can no longer produce heat/energy. Its good to confirm this when purchasing any product be it a heat panel or a thermostat.