using flexwatt?

I set up a temporary sweater box enclosure ( for quarantine and until I can get a regular tank set up.
How should I heat it? Would a regular reptile heat pad be safe? WHat about flexwatt?
If I used flexwatt what kind and how much should I use?
It is a 100 liter sweater box ( about 26 gallons) it is a weird shape the bottom is smaller than the top and the bottom on the short sides makes an "m" shape and the top widens as it reaches the middle.
The top leagth is about 30"-33"-30" and the width is from 17"-19"-17"
The bumps on the "m" on the bottom are about 28 inches while the middle is about 26-27". the bottom width from the center is about 15-16".

Also what exactly do I use to control the heat and how do I connect it to the flexwatt.

I use 1 foot of 11" flexwatt. Connecting it to a thermostat is ideal, but if you're on a budget like me, go to the hardware store and buy a 6' extention cord and a rotary lamp dimmer. You can either solder, or buy clips to wire it up, and it's ready to go. Matt (justcage) can help you more with this.. he has all the stuff you'd need.

here is the flexwatt Q&A page on matts site : http://www.mgreptiles.com/FLEXFAQ.html

he is having a great sale right now, so it would be a great time to pick up a t-stat.

I have a 4 tub rack that used 1' strips of 11'' flexwatt. That heats tubs that are 31x17x6. I would definately recommend getting a t-stat if you can. But a dimmer(matt sells them too) will work if you cant afford one. Hope that helps a bit.

Very cool link - I need to get Matt's help on the best way to wire it serially - as I am sure I'd boof the pooch on that one.

why not make a post out of it (here or on matt's forum)? I would also like to get his input on that one. :)

Hey how bout that Matt - be glad to add it to our DIY section and give full credit on it. That offer extends to anyone with useful how-to's/DIYs/etc - be great to have the bulk of resources here reflecting the community effort that has always been the hallmark.

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Originally Posted by daniel1983

here is the flexwatt Q&A page on matts site : http://www.mgreptiles.com/FLEXFAQ.html

he is having a great sale right now, so it would be a great time to pick up a t-stat.

I have a 4 tub rack that used 1' strips of 11'' flexwatt. That heats tubs that are 31x17x6. I would definately recommend getting a t-stat if you can. But a dimmer(matt sells them too) will work if you cant afford one. Hope that helps a bit.

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I looked at the t-stats and omg, I don't think I could afford that for one snake right now. What about these:
http://www.reptiledirect.com/index.a...ROD&ProdID=112

I havent used those - but I think Smynx may have tried one very similar. Right about the same price too - only problem with it was the plugs were not very compatible (wasn't grounded or polarized - i know i just butchered some terms there) only fit plugs that were 2-prong of equal measure (one is sometimes wider or taller than the other).

You can see I am quite the electrician there hahaha. As long as it's no more complicated than active electronics for guitars I am good lol - though the only action my soldering iron sees anymore is ventilating tupperware.

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Originally Posted by Shadow

I looked at the t-stats and omg, I don't think I could afford that for one snake right now. What about these:
http://www.reptiledirect.com/index.a...ROD&ProdID=112

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I really dont know. I stick with the reliable t-stats. Email matt he is always willing to help. Also, He has tested, gutted and evaluated just about every t-stat out there. He will know if it is ok or not. But, My guess would be no. You kinda get what you pay for with this kinda stuff. If you dont want to spend the money on a t-stat, just get a dimmer. They work well, if you dont mind monitoring a bit. Something is better than nothing. :)

I'm not sure about the RT500Rs. At one point early on in my herping experience, I had ordered the RT500R, but I never got to use them because they didn't accept polarized plugs. I then realized why they were so cheap.

that thermostat is kind of ok if that's all you can afford for now. better than nothing at all but i wouldn't use it longterm if you can help it. the cheaper thermostats just aren't very consistent or accurate and seem to require constant adjusting and tweaking. whatever you do make sure that you use a digital thermometer in your enclosure to measure temps--the thermostats like that one that you set according to what temperature you want are not accurate at all. for instance--if you set it to be 90 degrees it may well heat the floor of your enclosure to 100 degrees--which you would never know without an internal digital thermometer.

Hey Guys.. Sure Ill put it up in the DIY section.. The next order i have of the parallel circuit Ill take step by step pics. I have thought about it everytime I wire one but just dont do it..lol.. Shadow on the tub you talking about I am kinda lost as to what you mean..The"w" threw me way off..lol and no its not hard to do... For the deminsions you said is the tub at the bottom 28wide by 16 deep? A one foot strip of 11" flexwatt will heat that size fine.. What you can do if it is a little to big is just slide it out from under the tub to get the correct amount you need under the tub.. The exposed part will be alot cooler than the part under the tub because of the source of thermal mass(the tub) pressing down on it. Any UTH, bulb, che or any element for that matter has to have some sort of control. You can use the cheap tstats but I would use them in conjunction with a dimmer in case of failure.. The dimmer will limit the amount of power going to the element... Not to plug..:) but the ranco @ 72.99 is your best and cheapest bet.. It is really an investment since you can add onto the themostat as your collection grows.. Hope this helps....,
-Matt