For those of you with Animal Plastics Racks.. a heat tape question.

This is not a noob "where do i put the thermostat probe" question.. but more geared towards people who have AP racks specifically and know how the heat tape is installed in them.. and why there may be such a drastic temperature change from where the heat tape bends and the flat areas of heat tape the tubs rest on. Ali at AP wasn't sure so i figured i'd check here to see if anyone else had experienced this. So far i love my rack and plan on doing business with them again, just tryin to get these temperatures sittin right, and beginning to wonder if it may be a defect in the heat tape itself..

I had originally planned on placing my thermostat probe in the middle of the heat tape on the middle shelf, but after doing so, I soon noticed that this kept the tub from sliding in because of the snug fit (which is a good thing). I then decided to try the probe in the corner of the same shelf, directly on the heat tape, where it "snaked up." I then took an accurite thermometer and taped its probe to the inside of the middle tub directly above the heat tape so I could play around with the thermostat temperature settings and get an appropriate hot spot temp. Now normally, when i was just in tubs without a rack, I would have to set the thermostat 5-7 degrees higher than what i wanted my hot spot to be to make up for the heat loss when transferring through the plastic tub and the newspaper. I soon realized that when i had my thermostat probe in the corner where the heat tape bent, the accurite probe that was inside the tub was reading higher than my thermostat which was directly on the heat tape. I then decided to tape the accurite probe directly to the middle of the heat tape while my thermostat probe was left in the corner. My thermostat probe read 96.4 degrees while my accurite probe was 118 degrees.

Now my question is, is this suppose to happen, where the corner of the heat tape is so much cooler than the middle? And if so, will the long parts of the heat tape (on the bottom of the shelves) get hotter than the shorter strips running up the sides? kind of like more "surface area" before the bends? I plan on playing around with it more when I get off work tonight, but from my understanding, the heat tape is suppose to be the same temperature all throughout regardless of whether it bends or not. none of the heat tape was creased really, yet some of the bends are pretty tight, but thats just how it is installed in the AP racks. when i have the thermostat probe taped to the middle of the heat tape (without a tub in of course, because it won't fit) i get the expected results just fine with the thermostat set a few degrees higher than the desired hot spot temp.

Ali suggested it could be due to air flow or the sides of the rack being cooler than the middle, but i dont believe this to be the cause of a 20 plus degree temperature fluctuation, especially since my room is not cool at all.

any ideas? anyone else experienced this? when i get home i'll try taping the thermostat probe to the heat tape where it runs up the side, but the heat tape on the sides felt cooler to the touch than the tape on the shelves as well.

wow.. i stumped the whole damn forum..

Well I use AP racks however I never knew there was a difference in heat between side and flat area.

I have some AP racks with a slot for the probe so I assume yours is not one of those models?

I also have some with no groove (economy hatchling racks) and I just tape the probe in between some tubs.

Any chance you can move the probe closer to the tub?

Either way what matter is the temp in the tubs and therefore you should adjust your t-stat based on that.

As for an explanation on why the difference I guess I will have to check mine and see the difference if any.

My AP rack uses a heat cable. It's an older one they must have changed then. Sorry I can't help.

what kind of T-stat are you using?, the size of the probe tip i have seen are not all one size, i got a VE-200 and it fits easily under the center tub, without issues, my accurite is taped just above it in the tub. VE-200 set to 92 deg's, and accurite reading 89 deg. my cheaper T-stat has a huge probe tip i couldn't fit under the tub.

Even if there is is some temp difference at the corners vs the middle, it really does not seem to matter on mine. The tape sits in a groove, and I still use the center probe placement to adjust the temps.

I posted a YouTube vid a while back where I build a AP rack from start to finish, and I am pretty sure I discuss the routing of the heat tape on there.

I have my probe on the vertical portion of tape right in the middle. I set my t-stat to 97 and it gives me 88-90 in the tubs along the tape.

Sorry I don't have more than that to offer.

I have an AP rack and I don't think I've noticed this heat differential. I know I *did* have to replace the original heat tape, it was heating very unevenly and not getting hot enough. It was wired with the clips and I think they may have gone bad. I replaced it with the THG heat tape from Reptile Basics and all is good now. Replacing or removing heat tape in them is NO fun by the way.

I taped the probes at the bend in the corner under the tape so that there is no chance of a tub ever hitting them. I haven't noticed any real difference in temps throughout the rack.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jcoylesr76

what kind of T-stat are you using?

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herpstat basic.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Coleslaw007

Replacing or removing heat tape in them is NO fun by the way.

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tell me about it. puttin that stuff in was a pain. after its in though you can tell it definitely isn't goin anywhere. lol

and i think i got it figured out.. not the heat difference, but i was able to rig it to where the probe could fit under the tub and still be able to slide the tub in and out, although it's a tight fit. all the shelves are holding about the same temps now so we should be alright.