Waterbed Heater?

I just picked up a waterbed heater for a couple dollars. I saw it and thought it could be a great UTH. It has a temperature control and is about 3' long so I could use it for something BIG. I just wonder if there's any reason why this would not be safe for herps. It IS designed to have substantial weight on it, and to be left on for periods of time.

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It has a temperature control and is about 3' long so I could use it for something BIG. I just wonder if there's any reason why this would not be safe for herps. It IS designed to have substantial weight on it, and to be left on for periods of time.

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Sounds good to me.....and shoot, for a couple dollars, it sounds even better !

Those things have to maintain temp on several hundreds of gallons of water... i would set it up on an empty cage for a bit first and test it before putting an animal on it.

ooo very very good point.

Yes, of course. I would test it for a good amount of time first. It has a temp control, so if I set it all the way down, it may be an ok temperature. We'll see. If it doesn't work out, heck it's only a couple dollars.

I've had a waterbed and those things can make the bed very hot...too hot sometimes, I'd be careful, definitely use a thermostat w/it, but may put out too much....let us know how the test goes.

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Originally Posted by sophie42204

I've had a waterbed and those things can make the bed very hot...too hot sometimes, I'd be careful, definitely use a thermostat w/it, but may put out too much....let us know how the test goes.

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Hmm.. my cousin has a waterbed and her heater doesn't make it hot at all. Depends on the heater I guess.

What thermostat would you recommend? Could I get away with a rheostat? I don't quite have enough extra money for a helix right now.

Will the thermostat work with any type of heater? Human heat pads etc?

Yeah, I was wondering that too

Yeah, maybe it does depend on the heater, but I had that bed for years and the same heater and it definitely got too hot sometimes...

They work w/human heating pads for sure. I believe that Big Apple Herp has them ranging in price from $16 to $110.

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Originally Posted by sophie42204

Yeah, maybe it does depend on the heater, but I had that bed for years and the same heater and it definitely got too hot sometimes...

They work w/human heating pads for sure. I believe that Big Apple Herp has them ranging in price from $16 to $110.

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Ok thanks. I'll check it out.

I don't need the heater for any animals yet.. I was thinking when I get some sort of monitor (probably ackies) it would work since it's such a big heater.

Yes, a thermostat will work with any type of heating device that doesn't have moving parts (the on/off or pulsing action of a thermostat will burn out motors).

Personally, I am not a fan of using human heating pads, water bed heaters, foot warmers or whatever else to heat an animals enclosure. Those things really aren't designed to be on 24 hours a day 7 days a week for months or even years at a time. They are designed to be used for a while and then turned off. The long term constant running of those devices has probably never been tested by the manufacturer and could become faulty or hazardous when run constantly for long periods of time.

Bulbs, ceramic heat emitters, radiant heat panels, heat mats, flexwatt (my favorite), etc, have all been designed and manufactured to be run constantly for extremely long periods of time. IMO they are a much safer way to go.

Please be careful.

-adam

Alright, maybe I'll just use it to heat my crickets. DIE FOUL INVERTEBRATES!

Or maybe not.

I agree that human heating pads aren't designed to be on 24/7, but I'm sure manufacturers test them in that manner to test for longevity/safety.

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Originally Posted by sophie42204

I agree that human heating pads aren't designed to be on 24/7, but I'm sure manufacturers test them in that manner to test for longevity/safety.

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Are you "sure" or are you guessing? I would guess that they do some type of safety testing as well, but I can't imagine it would be for greater than a year? or two years? Ball pythons live a LONG time and how often would you think you'd need to change out a human heating pad? I've never heard anyone that recommends using human heating pads give an estimated life span? But I certainly have heard of human heating pads developing hot spots or just altogether not working anymore.

Things like flexwatt on the other hand have been running in some captive collections constantly (give or take a day or two here and there) for at least the last 15 years if not more. This is because they were designed to be used that way. That's not to say that they are not foulable as well, but all things being equal, I'd rather go with the product that was designed to be used in the manner that I am going to need it.

Just my $.02

-adam

lol...not trying to start a debate here...I was just saying that I would venture a guess that they test in terms of leaving it on until it burns out--so to speak. I work for a manufacturer of full-spectrum lighting and the fixtures that house our bulbs/tubes, our lamps are not intented to be left on 24/7 but we sure do test them in that manner. They are left on until they go out by themselves, for longevity testing AND safety testing. I am currently using human heating pads, one has already gone out on me. I have been looking into heating elements made specifically for housing snakes/reptiles, I just haven't made any purchases yet. However, I won't discourage anyone from employing this (human heating pad) method either, as long as it's monitored as any heat source should be.

Just my $.02

Hey, no debate here, just trying to understand and discuss. :D If you did have actual knowledge of how human heating pads are tested I think it would have been extremely useful to a lot of people using them.

Hopefully the companies manufacturing those heating pads are as responsible and thorough as the company that you work for.

Like you, I also would never discourage anyone from doing anything that worked out well for them and their snake, no matter what it was. Although, I do know what I personally do and do not like to do for my animals and like to contribue my experiences and opinions (even if sometimes they aren't all that popular). :wink: :lol: :lol: :lol:

-adam

I wonder where we could find out that kind of info...I'm intrigued. If I find anything I'll be sure to pass it along.

That would be awesome!

-adam

i brought this up a while ago. main problem would be, that a waterbed heater turns on when it gets to cold, but it just keeps heating up, theres no stopping until it reaches that amount of heat. they just get to hot

i have one and i was thinkin bout usin it too!

Heh, wow this thread is a little old

I'll post on it anyway because I came very close to using a waterbed heater in the cage I'm currently working on. Don't know if every heater is the same, but here's what I found out while test driving mine.
I put it flat on the floor and stood on it in my socks with the little temp probe they all seem to come with under one foot. I set it at 90 and plugged it in. Looking back I guess I couldv'e found myself doing an electrically charged watusi, but apparently god looks out for drunks and fools alike. The mat did get nice and toasty, but after a minute or so it kicked off as the sensor got warm. It would only come back on when the temp got low enough. Almost ideal, but I'm not a big fan of things that need to turn off and on like that. If that little thermostat should happen to fail, the device would then shoot to max and let the cookin begin! I'm more of the type to use a manually adjustable dimmer switch (like a lightswitch dimmer simply wired into a device or sliding dimmer...there's all types at walmart and such) that I can set to a desired temp and regulate the amount of power the heat source gets...less moving parts is best I guess is what I'm saying. Of course the trade off with the dimmers is they require the keeper to monitor temps daily, but I've found I adjust rarely....once or twice at the beginning of each season for the most part.
Also the heater is designed to be under a big water mattress for safety. The theory is to surround it with a lack of oxygen and fireproof material so the house doesn't burn down. I was going to recreate these conditions by attatching it to the floor underneath the outside of the cage and covering it with insulation. Mount a smoke detector right next to it for peace of mind.
So will it work? Yep. I simply didn't because of the thermostat. Don't like all that off and on, ya know?
I wound up using some heat cable that I already had in the basement. It's designed to wrap around a water pipe to keep it from freezing. 12 feet long, 84 watts. Maxes out around 125 or so. It has a simple thermostat built in which is easily bypassed. I could have removed the waterbed heater's thermo, but it was more involved. I laid it serpentine under the floor, backed it with insulation, hooked in a dimmer. Works dandy.

Also, on the debate of things that should or should not be left on 24/7...
Things not designed to be left on that long could indeed burn themselves out and create a hazard. Care and common sense.....lol
I'm with Adam on being apprehensive about using things outside of thier designed purposes. Another huge reason I didn't go with the waterbed heater. The pipe wrap is designed to run full blast for 6 or 7 months at a time, so I reasoned that running it all year would be ok since I'm regulating the amount of power the device recieves. It just can't overheat this way. They are made to last till judgement day. Whether wrapped around a pipe or heating a floor, it's going to last.

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Originally Posted by steelsack

Almost ideal, but I'm not a big fan of things that need to turn off and on like that. If that little thermostat should happen to fail, the device would then shoot to max and let the cookin begin! I'm more of the type to use a manually adjustable dimmer switch (like a lightswitch dimmer simply wired into a device or sliding dimmer...there's all types at walmart and such) that I can set to a desired temp and regulate the amount of power the heat source gets...less moving parts is best I guess is what I'm saying.

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Helix thermostats actually are designed to shut off if any component of the system should fail. There are also capable (through add-ons) of signaling an alarm on a low or high temp reading and even calling your home, cell, pager, etc. They tend to pulse power to heating elements instead of the on/off action, but will cut off completely if temps are stable at the set levels. Much much easier than regulating temps manually with a dimmer or rheostat in my opinion. (Note: other thermostats may do similar things, my experience is mainly with Helix)

FWIW, heat tape is designed to be run 24x7x365 .... It cheap, effective, and when used properly in conjunction with a quality thermostat, very safe.

-adam

Very interesting, thanks!

Yeah, heat tape is good stuff from what I hear. I would have ordered some flexwatt, but when I remembered that heat cable I had....well it works and didn't force me to throw any more money into the project, lol. Always so tempting to use what you have.
But my bp will be getting a new place this year and I'm out of heat cable...

Floyd's new crib is almost done, getting excited! 'Bout a week I guess including drying time for the sealer.