Rack design and heat tape maintenance.

Ok I am at the final stages of designing my new rack with great guidance from many preppie here.

I don't see anyway to access the heat tape on closed rack designs. Mine is going to be 6 41 qt tubs so about a 3' deep cabinet. I am planning on putting an 8" access door at the back so I could switch out the heat tape if I need to. I am going to recess the 12" heat tape because I don't want the tubs to rub and wear it out. I don't think I will loose too much heat fr the minimal air gap.

Why don't people put a door on the rack? Btw it will be a plywood rack with screws hidden so I won't be able to take it apart. I wouldn't want to have to to fix wiring or heat tap problems anyways.

Am I over thinking this?

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Originally Posted by whispersinmyhead

Ok I am at the final stages of designing my new rack with great guidance from many preppie here.

I don't see anyway to access the heat tape on closed rack designs. Mine is going to be 6 41 qt tubs so about a 3' deep cabinet. I am planning on putting an 8" access door at the back so I could switch out the heat tape if I need to. I am going to recess the 12" heat tape because I don't want the tubs to rub and wear it out. I don't think I will loose too much heat fr the minimal air gap.

Why don't people put a door on the rack? Btw it will be a plywood rack with screws hidden so I won't be able to take it apart. I wouldn't want to have to to fix wiring or heat tap problems anyways.

Am I over thinking this?

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YES! ;)

You can add a door to the back so you can access the heat tape if you would like. There's no harm in it. Someone on here (I can't remember the username) actually put a door on front and back of her rack.

I actually like the idea of recessing the heat tape. I think that's what I like most about my racks now. It sure does beat having to replace heat tape because of sliding tubs. Good luck! I demand pictures.

I promise build log! I will begin the build in the next couple months. This may have a door on the front if I need to hold more heat on for ambient temps but from the sounds of it I should be ok.

Does anyone find they have to replace heat tape often? If so I am guessing you have to disassble the rack to access it. That sounds painfully tedious.

Well, my old rack is about 6 months old and the heat tape still works great...so I'm not sure how often you need to replace it. I just keep track of my temps so I notice when they start to wear out.

I am just reading a lot of people replacing every 5 years. I am adding the door or at least a section that is easy to remove.

Thanks. I know it lasts a whole especially if it is recessed.

I wonder about the RBI racks if you can replace it. They don't look like you can dismantle.

Depending on how you attach the heat tape, removing it may be easy or nearly impossible without removing a side of the rack. I don't know where in the room you plan on placing the rack, but I would consider leaving one panels screws accessible (probably the back panel as they likely won't be visible anyway) This way you can easily gain access to the entire rack for maintenance. Work smarter not harder!

I don't think that a small access door will really make any difference.

My rack the whole back comes off ,6 screws. I being OCD clean the rack and all the tubs at least once every two months. I fully disinfect during the clean so that means saturating the rack body with liquids. I remove the flexwatt for to keep it from being wet. Having easily removable flexwatt is a huge boon. Few seem to bother disinfecting the body of racks so I am in the minority or so it feels. Racks save space to be sure but I find harder to heat and harder to clean.

I just didn't want to loose structural integrity by having the whole back come off. 12" x 12" heat tape for each level and maybe a 10" strip down the back to come off would be enough. I plan to route the wires straight down that strip. This way I still have strong corners that are permanent. I was going to hinge and latch that panel so no screws to bother with. I may go with a 12" door. Your right 8" wouldn't be enough but 10-12 wi be I think.

As for removing the heat tape... I was going to use foil tape to hold it down. I haven't thought about removing it for cleanings but that isn't a bad idea. Maybe I can just screw thin pieces of acrylic along the sides to hold it down. I will probably just tape it though. Something to think about.

Have you used the THG heat tape with the new connectors? Exclusive snakes carry it in Canada! Very happy about this. For my personal reasons I want to support that product. I am just not sure how much I like the connections. I hate soldering but I may consider it. Lol again I a. Leaning on your experiences. I would trust the alligator type clips and theatre insulators. I also true solder. I think the new connection is interesting. I love the low profile and heavey duty insulator tape makes sense. I just don't know about that rivet. The flat part will make good contact but if the hole the rivet goes through is loose at all it could cause a potential issue.

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Originally Posted by whispersinmyhead

I just didn't want to loose structural integrity by having the whole back come off. 12" x 12" heat tape for each level and maybe a 10" strip down the back to come off would be enough. I plan to route the wires straight down that strip. This way I still have strong corners that are permanent. I was going to hinge and latch that panel so no screws to bother with. I may go with a 12" door. Your right 8" wouldn't be enough but 10-12 wi be I think.

As for removing the heat tape... I was going to use foil tape to hold it down. I haven't thought about removing it for cleanings but that isn't a bad idea. Maybe I can just screw thin pieces of acrylic along the sides to hold it down. I will probably just tape it though. Something to think about.

Have you used the THG heat tape with the new connectors? Exclusive snakes carry it in Canada! Very happy about this. For my personal reasons I want to support that product. I am just not sure how much I like the connections. I hate soldering but I may consider it. Lol again I a. Leaning on your experiences. I would trust the alligator type clips and theatre insulators. I also true solder. I think the new connection is interesting. I love the low profile and heavey duty insulator tape makes sense. I just don't know about that rivet. The flat part will make good contact but if the hole the rivet goes through is loose at all it could cause a potential issue.

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I have some of the THG Heat tape with the riveted connections. Personally I think it is a much better connection than the old clip system. There is no play in it at all.

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Originally Posted by The Serpent Merchant

I have some of the THG Heat tape with the riveted connections. Personally I think it is a much better connection than the old clip system. There is no play in it at all.

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That is good news. I will try that out. If I don't feel confident I will solder it but. I trust your advise. Thanks.