heat cable

How do you hook it up where can I find it and can I use a herpstat or any other thermostat
and pro's and con's of heat cable and heat tape thank you all

Heat cable is not really reliable, it can get hot and cold spots in it from what I understand.

I personally am going with flexwatt heat tape and a herpstat 2 for my racks. I've heard nothing but good things about that combo if it is set up correctly.

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Heat cable works great actually. It does not develop hot and cold spots like heat tape tends to do. I use both, and both work fine.

I prefer heat cable because, while its more expensive, it is coated in a fire retardant materiel. Meaning it will smolder instead of catch on fire. You use it just like heat tape and yes you plug it right into the thermostat of your choice. You can buy it at most reptile specialty stores, but I usually get it on amazon.

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Originally Posted by Zombie

Heat cable works great actually. It does not develop hot and cold spots like heat tape tends to do. I use both, and both work fine.

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You have never had an issue?
I only have experience with che bulbs because I used them with my hedgehog.


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Originally Posted by GuNDeZZZ

You have never had an issue?
I only have experience with che bulbs because I used them with my hedgehog.


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No, I have never had an issue with heat cable. I have had some heat tape quit working before tho. Heat cable is more expensive, but IMO, is safer.

Heat rope sucks, flexwatt all the way every day.

I have used both for many years with good results. But after hearing about fires related to heat cables like the fire at Pro Exotics I no longer user heat cables.

I have an older AP rack with heatcable. It works fine imo. My snakes who used to be in the RBI rack with flexwatt never complained about the switch.

Jerry why do you feel that it sucks?

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Originally Posted by West Coast Jungle

I have used both for many years with good results. But after hearing about fires related to heat cables like the fire at Pro Exotics I no longer user heat cables.

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http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news...d-3-000-snakes

They used heat tape according to the articles...

I use heat cable for my incubator and my racks never had a problem in either setup

I use heat cable for my 28qt vision rack with no problems. I have it hooked up to a hydrofarm and keeps all my tubs at the right temp. I have yet to use flexwatt so I can't chime in on how well it works. I believe LLL Reptiles in San Diego uses only heat cable for their herps so maybe they can give us their advice.

Does heat cable have to be placed in grooves, never used it before but looking at new ways to sort my racks out. cheers ;)

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Originally Posted by Zombie

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news...d-3-000-snakes

They used heat tape according to the articles...

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If you look at all the pics of the fire you would see that the racks that caught on fire were Vision racks which only use heat cables. No way to use flexxwatt on a Vision rack or I would have switched it myself. Don't go by what some reporter says as I can count on my fingers and toes all the news reports on snakes and reptiles that are completely wrong, happens all the time. Look at the actual pictures of the fires and you will see one melted Vision rack after another. The problem with heat rope is if it gets pinched, which is quite easy on a Vision rack, it could short out and possibly ignite. I have used Vision racks for many years and owned 7 of them, any little tug on the cable can pull it up out of the plastic U holders and then you slide a tub on top of it and pinch or crush it. I have talked to several other breeders who knew their setups and they all say it was a shorted cable on the Vision racks that caused the fire.

If you look at many of my old posts I used to endorse Vision all the time as I had many of them and had nothing but great results with them but after much feedback and research I decided to get rid of them at the cost of many thousands of dollars. Not because I like to spend money but because I have too much to loose.

Heat cables are made in China which lets face it is not known for safety or quality. I have nothing to gain here, I only want to share my personal experience and knowledge with others.

Animal Plastics, on the other hand, has their cables recessed and permanently fixed so this can't happen. They also use a much higher quality cable too. I have personally used all these racks and this is what I have learned from my own research and experiences, not from some article on the net.

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Originally Posted by West Coast Jungle

If you look at all the pics of the fire you would see that the racks that caught on fire were Vision racks which only use heat cables. No way to use flexxwatt on a Vision rack or I would have switched it myself. Don't go by what some reporter says as I can count on my fingers and toes all the news reports on snakes and reptiles that are completely wrong, happens all the time. Look at the actual pictures of the fires and you will see one melted Vision rack after another. The problem with heat rope is if it gets pinched, which is quite easy on a Vision rack, it could short out and possibly ignite. I have used Vision racks for many years and owned 7 of them, any little tug on the cable can pull it up out of the plastic U holders and then you slide a tub on top of it and pinch or crush it. I have talked to several other breeders who knew their setups and they all say it was a shorted cable on the Vision racks that caused the fire.

If you look at many of my old posts I used to endorse Vision all the time as I had many of them and had nothing but great results with them but after much feedback and research I decided to get rid of them at the cost of many thousands of dollars. Not because I like to spend money but because I have too much to loose.

Heat cables are made in China which lets face it is not known for safety or quality. I have nothing to gain here, I only want to share my personal experience and knowledge with others.

Animal Plastics, on the other hand, has their cables recessed and permanently fixed so this can't happen. They also use a much higher quality cable too. I have personally used all these racks and this is what I have learned from my own research and experiences, not from some article on the net.

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In no way was I trying to say you were wrong and I was right. I was just saying that in the articles I have read it was always heat tape that was the culprit. I am not saying they didn't have melted vision racks, but most of the pics I have seen were a built in style rack. Like a wall of melamine. The fire was intense and destroyed everything, so naturally the plastic vision racks would melt. In the pics there are also a large amount of freedom breeder racks burned and melted...

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Originally Posted by Zombie

In no way was I trying to say you were wrong and I was right. I was just saying that in the articles I have read it was always heat tape that was the culprit. I am not saying they didn't have melted vision racks, but most of the pics I have seen were a built in style rack. Like a wall of melamine. The fire was intense and destroyed everything, so naturally the plastic vision racks would melt. In the pics there are also a large amount of freedom breeder racks burned and melted...

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I realize that, I'm just sharing what I have learned from the feedback I received and why I switched. No worries:)

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Originally Posted by Mike41793

Jerry why do you feel that it sucks?

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Aside from the fire hazard which all by itself makes this product something I won't use there's the fact that it doesn't spread nearly as much heat evenly across tubs.
It has to be turned up very hot to achieve the same ambient temps inside of the tubs that you get with flexwatt.
You can't put it under tubs on a xpvc rack without putting it into a groove, which means it's basically useless imo.
I wouldn't take a vision rack with heat rope in it if you gave it to me.

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Originally Posted by snakesRkewl

Aside from the fire hazard which all by itself makes this product something I won't use there's the fact that it doesn't spread nearly as much heat evenly across tubs.
It has to be turned up very hot to achieve the same ambient temps inside of the tubs that you get with flexwatt.
You can't put it under tubs on a xpvc rack without putting it into a groove, which means it's basically useless imo.
I wouldn't take a vision rack with heat rope in it if you gave it to me.

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I wouldnt use a rack with flexwatt unless the flexwatt was recessed. Ive heard that the tubs sliding over the flexwatt can screw it up, not sure if thats true though.

You gave me an idea for a little experiment though.:gj:

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Originally Posted by Mike41793

I wouldnt use a rack with flexwatt unless the flexwatt was recessed. Ive heard that the tubs sliding over the flexwatt can screw it up, not sure if thats true though.

You gave me an idea for a little experiment though.:gj:

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So not true, I have been sliding tubs over the same flexwatt for 5 years with zero wear and tear

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Originally Posted by snakesRkewl

So not true, I have been sliding tubs over the same flexwatt for 5 years with zero wear and tear

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Do you just have it held in place with foil tape?

I don't believe there is a clear best here. Each have advantages and disadvantages. Flexwatt is not assembled so to some extent the ability of the person attaching the wires defines the quality and safety of the product. Cable is consistent to the manufacturer. I have used a number of brands and like the zoo med best of the ones I have tried. The cable is water resistant and this in some applications is a big advantage (RACKS!!!) It is fairly even heat wise and easy to work with. I do like flexwatt for the size of the heat area cable is a big trickier that way. I don't believe one is more prone to issues than the other. The blunt truth is neither should be trusted. All heating devises need to be routinely inspected and carefully checked over. I do all my heat elements at least twice a year and some more than this. The only other comment is a Canadian legal issue, if you are planning on being a business or are, flexwatt must be wired by an electrician under Canadian law. This makes flexwatt very very expensive. Failure, means no insurance, and criminal liability if anything goes wrong.

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Originally Posted by West Coast Jungle

I realize that, I'm just sharing what I have learned from the feedback I received and why I switched. No worries:)

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It's hard sometimes on forums because you can't hear someone's tone. That's why I was trying to make sure you weren't taking it as me arguing with you, just discussing :) .

Like I was saying earlier, I use both and like both. I just prefer heat cable probably because that's what my vision racks use. My boaphile racks use flex watt and it works great as well...

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Originally Posted by Mike41793

Do you just have it held in place with foil tape?

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Nope, I hold my flexwatt down with HD clear packaging tape and have had no issues with tubs scraping flexwatt.
If it does the tub is too tight in the slot, there's no need for a tub to be so tight it scrapes the plastic.