Before you buy a rheostat, read this.

they're worthless! i recently set up my rack with a rheostat and set the temp at 93. when this cold front hit us here in Central Florida, my hot side temp dropped down to 80! word of advice to anyone considering a rheostat: take the hit and spend the extra money on a good thermostat!

sorry you had to learn the hard way man, that totally sux

Oh, it should be well known that rheostats are only a temporary measure and best used in very stable environments. If you have no other choice, as I do until I get a new awaited t-stat, then the rheostat is wonderful because it at least keeps the temps from spiking too high and harming your animal.

They are a major pain, however, as they will not adjust to changes in room temp. The only way I can get mine to work for me right now is to have it on the lowest setting connected to a timer set to come on for 15 min every hour.

Sorry you had to learn that hard lesson, Street Killer. And I hope your snakes are alright despite it.

i read about them not keeping consistent temps, but i had to try for myself. haha. and it didn't work out.

as for my snakes, i only had one in the rack, and i have since moved him to a glass tank with a heat lamp and some flexwatt underneath (attached to the rheostat on the lowest setting.) thermostat will be ordered soon.

I got a qustion, a thermostat is like 12 bucks right? tells you the temps and Hum? what is a rheostat and i just orderd my flexwatt so do i need a rheostat to hok up to the flexwatt to kep it right or do i just need a thermostat from walmart for 12 dollers to tell me the temps and Hum

Thermo: "temperature"
Meter: "measure"
A thermometer measures the temperatures near it, but does not control them.

Thermo: "temperature"
Stat: "unchanging"

A thermostat controls the temperature of a device and keeps that temperature stable, by adjusting the amount of electricity that the device gets. The thermostat measures this with a temperature probe that you put in the enclosure or on your heat tape. You tell the thermostat what temperature you want, and it adjusts the heat up and down for you, so you never get too hot or too cold.

In your case, you would run it like this:

Flexwatt --->Thermostat--->Wall outlet.

If you don't use a thermostat on your flexwatt, it will get way too hot and can burn your snake. Flexwatt absolutely cannot be used without a thermostat. Good brands are Helix and Herpstat. I have Herpstats and haven't had a problem with them, but Helixes have an equally good reputation from what I've heard.

A rheostat is like a dimmer switch for your heat tape. You can turn it to a particular setting, and it will allow just that much current to flow through. This works okay in a room where the temperature never changes, but if the room temperature goes up and down a lot, the rheostat won't adjust the heat for you. It has no way to sense the changing temperatures, and just keeps putting the same current through no matter what.

Hope that helps a bit...

yes, that does to a point so how much is the thing i need for my flexwatt, and where can i get it? walmart?

Thanks for the info, I was curious to all this too! :snake:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by slartibartfast

Thermo: "temperature"
Meter: "measure"
A thermometer measures the temperatures near it, but does not control them.

Thermo: "temperature"
Stat: "unchanging"

A thermostat controls the temperature of a device and keeps that temperature stable, by adjusting the amount of electricity that the device gets. The thermostat measures this with a temperature probe that you put in the enclosure or on your heat tape. You tell the thermostat what temperature you want, and it adjusts the heat up and down for you, so you never get too hot or too cold.

In your case, you would run it like this:

Flexwatt --->Thermostat--->Wall outlet.

If you don't use a thermostat on your flexwatt, it will get way too hot and can burn your snake. Flexwatt absolutely cannot be used without a thermostat. Good brands are Helix and Herpstat. I have Herpstats and haven't had a problem with them, but Helixes have an equally good reputation from what I've heard.

A rheostat is like a dimmer switch for your heat tape. You can turn it to a particular setting, and it will allow just that much current to flow through. This works okay in a room where the temperature never changes, but if the room temperature goes up and down a lot, the rheostat won't adjust the heat for you. It has no way to sense the changing temperatures, and just keeps putting the same current through no matter what.

Hope that helps a bit...

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Both of these companies are nice people who sell good thermostats:

The Bean Farm
www.beanfarm.com

Reptile Basics
www.reptilebasics.com

I've used The Bean Farm myself, and they have wicked-fast shipping and reasonable prices, but I've heard great things about Reptile Basics too. You can't go wrong with either company.

I used a rheo, briefly, while waiting for my HerpStat to arrive. Fortunately it went okay, but I'm now using a nice proportional thermostat and I rest much easier.

True story: the furnace in our house didn't cut in one day this winter, early in the morning. The rest of the house was cold as heck, but the inside of my snakes viv was perfect! Right then and there I didn't regret the $$$ AT ALL!!!

Just to add here that if you don't put a reostat or a thermostat on flexwatt you can over heat it and not only burn your snake but also burn your house down. Flexwatt isn't stuff to mess around with without some sort of temp regulator. There have been a lot of homes lost due to flexwatt being used incorrectly.


Chuck

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Street Killer

they're worthless!

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That is a very blanket statement. As another poster mentioned, in a fairly stable environment, they work very well for what they were designed to do, to provide a consistent amount of power to a device that requires power.

With that said, I have used a rheostat on my Cornsnakes for three years now, and have never had a problem. I also use a rheostat on my Kenyan Sand Boas, for slightly over a year, and have not had a problem there either. A well thought out and educated decision needs to be made when picking devices to control temperatures in an enclosure for a live animal. There are many ways to heat an enclosure, and more than one way to heat each enclosure properly. So, please refrain from saying that something is worthless, just because it did not work in your scenario.

Ah yes, good point there Muddoc. I should have added that I, to, use rheostats on my cornsnakes with very little trouble. Since I live in a place where the temps tend to surprise you, I just hook up every rheo I use to a timer and that works like a charm.

With herps that need high, solid temps like BPs, you really do need a proper thermostat to regulate whatever heat element you have. Dimmer types are only good for the 'meantime' until you can get the t-stat.

Hotshot: No, sadly you cannot get thermostats at any simple place like Walmart or Home Depot. The sort of stat needed to properly control these heating devices is only really found online. ReptileBasics.com is the greatest, with good prices and excellent service. Cost normally runs $75 for Ranco or Johnson and @$130 for Helix.

I wouldnt say they are worthless...Temps do fluctuate a lot tho. I still kept one for "just in case". :gj:

I have been using rheostats for years now. So I guess my snakes should be dead by now, huh? :)
I keep the temperature in my snake room Consistent. All year. I do not let outside temperatures influence my snakes at all. Sure, if you use a rheostat improperly, and expect it to regulate hugely fluctuation temperatures; nope, it is not going to work. If used properly, they make great regulating devices. If someone expects one to keep nice stable temperatures in a room that fluctuates 10-20 degrees, they are in for a not-so-nice surprise.