Hydrofarm thermostat question.

I know a lot of people on this site use these thermostats to regulate heat for the UTH on a ball setup. I don't have a UTH yet because of some financial issues. Here is my million dollar question: Can I use this thermostat with a UTH/black light setup via a power bar? I only see one plugin to the thermostat and was thinking- Self, can I plug a power bar into that and run the UTH to the power bar along with my black light? Here is a link to the exact thermostat I am looking at so there is no confusion.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/cr/B000N...6518979&sr=8-1

Me and Cuddles really appreciate it.

Here is a pic of my current set up. It's a 20L tank, cypress mulch for humidity, a towel on top because humidity is hard to keep in the highland desert of Colorado a water dish 2 probed thermometers an accurite thermometer and humidity gauge a small plant and 2 awesome homemade hides. http://img.tapatalk.com/43be6083-7549-7549.jpg

http://img.tapatalk.com/43be6083-755a-6f2d.jpg

http://img.tapatalk.com/43be6083-7569-420f.jpg

http://img.tapatalk.com/43be6083-7589-079c.jpg

http://img.tapatalk.com/43be6083-75b2-a852.jpg

http://img.tapatalk.com/43be6083-75c2-6b83.jpg

http://img.tapatalk.com/43be6083-75db-803b.jpg

http://img.tapatalk.com/43be6083-75f0-12fd.jpg

http://img.tapatalk.com/43be6083-7604-afc5.jpg

Thanks everyone and if there is a problem with the set up chime on in!

*bump*

No, the UTH and heat lamp have vastly different wattages... The only time that a single thermostat can control 2 heat sources is if they are identical in every way.

I would suggest getting a lamp dimmer or second hydrofarm to control the heat lamp.

Yeah I have a dimmer I forgot to take a pic of it lol thanks though!

I have this thermostat on my rack system. I have seperate heat strips for each tub and each heat strip has it's own plug. All of the plugs are plugged into a power strip and the power strip is plugged into the hydrofarm. The herpstat comes with one temp sensor probe. The probe is attached to one of the heatstrips and when that heatstrip reaches the desired temp, the hydrofarm kills the power to the powerstrip which kills the power to all of the heatstrips. Once the probe recognizes that the temp has dropped a few degrees, the hydrofarm repowers the powerstrip and the heat strips. This works well because all of my heatstrips are identical and I want the temps in each tub to be identical.

Basically if you used the thermostat, your light would cut off each time the desired temp was reached on the UTH...so basically it would cut on and off every 5 seconds or so.

What is the purpose of the black light on your tank? Extra warmth? The UTH should be enough. You could plug the light in seperately if you want it on all the time.

I don't have a UTH yet so the black light right now is the only source of heat

No as stated it would strobe. The Hydrofarm is a poor t-stat painfully in accurate and slow to response make it a poor choice. It can be made to work but is not something I'd recommend unless it were used as a failsafe.


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Quote:

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Originally Posted by kitedemon

No as stated it would strobe. The Hydrofarm is a poor t-stat painfully in accurate and slow to response make it a poor choice. It can be made to work but is not something I'd recommend unless it were used as a failsafe.


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i completly disagree with this ive been running a hydrofarm for months and my temps remain very well withen 93-95 degrees im constantly checking with an infared it works just like all the other on/offs i wouldnt use it for a incubator but for a rack system it works good

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Abaddon91

i completly disagree with this ive been running a hydrofarm for months and my temps remain very well withen 93-95 degrees im constantly checking with an infared it works just like all the other on/offs i wouldnt use it for a incubator but for a rack system it works good

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That's all I needs to know thanks!


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Also should be noted that the hydrofarm allows temperatures to sway about 5 degrees (+-2 each direction from set point) before activating and deactivating. It can be slightly problematic for stable stable, but because the temperatures aren't within +-2 degrees from a medium in the wild I doubt that there will be much an issue with it. Just plug the light and the uth to a power strip, plug it into the t-stat, put the probe in the cage where it can sense the ground temperatures, and make sure it can't be moved by the snake. It may not be a precise set up, but it's a set up that will work in a pinch.

http://images114.fotki.com/v1605/pho...CA_9509-vi.jpgHosted on Fotki

26.9ºC = 80.42ºF

83.8
82.4
81.6

Accurate? No not at all. !.6 is the best of three and 3.8 is the worst and these are the 'new and improved accuracy versions" direct from the manufacturer. They due to the metal probe tend to swing more than most on/off and the response of the probe is slow so this increases the swing again. I was hired to do testing on the hydrofarm and after 6 weeks I was not impressed. It is great for doing what it was designed to heating dirt for seedlings.

It is spec'd at 3ºC accuracy That is 6ºF up or down a 12º span.

Ive had great luck with these thermostats. I dont use them on racks, but i do use them on enclosures with flexwatt and rhp's. The accuracy may be off but i base my temperture readings on my temp gun rather then the thermostat. Just adjust and itll be fine.

How accurate is your gun?

http://public.fotki.com/alexchisholm...gun-specs.html

The swing is the real issue, glass eats up a lot of swing but on anything other than glass it can be extreme. I have tested all three of the pictured and 5 more and all swing at least 8º up and down. For me that is too much. For a bit more you can buy a T-stat (herpstat basic 100) that does not swing and has an accurate probe more accurate than most temp guns and thermometers. unless you have access to a Platinum RTD.

Hydrofarms can be managed and are ok repeatability wise, but the cost of an accurate thermometer (300-2000$ for a traceable 0.5º accuracy) out weights the T-stat.

I just need an affordable t stat. I have had to shell out a lot of money lately because of car troubles lol. But I really want a t star and UTH setup. Cuddles would be more happy and the humidity in her tank would be more regulated.


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The basic is less than the cost of one vet visit, just saying. If you do decide to go with a hydrofarm I'd highly recommend an accurate thermometer (traceable) as clearly the hydrofarms are not to be trusted, by the time you get one it is about the same anyway. Your snake your responsibility, I don't trust them full stop, inaccurate with a tendency to swing far over the set point and then far below. I just tossed one of the extras I have kicking around on a tub and since my last post the data logger is recorded a high of 97º and a low of 86º the hydrofarm is set to 90... Ten degrees every 3 min.