why doesnt my flexwatt heat up? plz help!

ok i saw on your rack the heat tape under the tubs for belly heat and your probe on the lid. what is your thermostat temp set at?


the way you have it is similar to the way im trying to do it.

i dont understand why the heat tape wont get hot... heat bulbs will burn you if you touch em and will heat up an enclosure nicely but the heat tape only gets warm and doesnt even seem to emit any heat... how am i supposed to achieve the proper temps?

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Originally Posted by bigballs

ok i saw on your rack the heat tape under the tubs for belly heat and your probe on the lid. what is your thermostat temp set at?


the way you have it is similar to the way im trying to do it.

i dont understand why the heat tape wont get hot... heat bulbs will burn you if you touch em and will heat up an enclosure nicely but the heat tape only gets warm and doesnt even seem to emit any heat... how am i supposed to achieve the proper temps?

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My thermostat is set at 90 and each shelf can range +1 or -1.How long are you allowing the flex-watt to heat up before you check it? Do you by chance have a temp gun? I have a temp gun and i randomly use it to check the heat in all of my enclosures.Now on the heat lights yes they will burn you,thats because you are touching its small surface area.Flex-watt is stretched out and its surface does not heat up as fast.Try this allow the flex-watt to heat up for say 4hrs without being plugged into the thermostat.If after the 4hrs it barely feels warm to the touch something is wrong with the flex-watt itself.

First of, your flexwatt is working. Flexwatt either works or it doesn't, there is no in between.
What are your ambient temperatures in the room that the enclosure is located?
You are only going to be able to transfer so much heat from the heat tape to the space in which you are trying to heat. You have too much heat loss to obtain the temps that you want.
I would say that your best bet would be to either raise the ambient temps in the room or try using a radient heat panel.
You say the enclosure is 4' high? Is that all open space?
Wil

i know my heat tape is working. i just don't understand how to use it properly. the enclosure is 4' high but is sectioned off four times so each section in the 4' enclosure is one foot. i think you're right about the ambient room temp being too low and that is my problem. i am moving the enclosure to the room it will be in permanently and the temp in there is around 72. do you think that will still be too cold for heat tape?? what can you suggest i do to get proper temps? should i add another heat source as well as heat tape or should i use a space heater to heat up a section of the room???

thanks guys i really appreciate all this help. im sorry if im sounding dumb here but i have never used heat tape before and really wanted to start because of all the good reviews i hear about it on our forums.

please keep it coming!

ok here's the pics of what im trying to heat!


https://ball-pythons.net/gallery/fil...5/S4020001.JPG

side view

https://ball-pythons.net/gallery/fil...5/S4020002.JPG



the heat tape in the back will not be exposed and will be covered by a 1/8" thin strip of hardboard with predrilled holes.

thanks!

definitely will not heat it right. what some people do with enclosures like that is get a piece of plexi glass cut to be the same size as the floor and put the FW under that and seal the edges.

but if i did that would it heat the whole enclosure or just the floor to 94?


i think i need to modify this for heat lamps...

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Originally Posted by bigballs

but if i did that would it heat the whole enclosure or just the floor to 94?


i think i need to modify this for heat lamps...

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If you use heat lamps you need to be wary of the wood getting hot and possibly burn.I really dont think you will ever be able to correctly heat that enclosure well enough for a ball python.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by bigballs

but if i did that would it heat the whole enclosure or just the floor to 94?


i think i need to modify this for heat lamps...

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it will only heat the spot over the tape. the heat will branch out a little, but only the small area over will be that hot

thanks for the encouragement joe but i think i'll get it done!;)