Possible cheaper thermostat option?

[Nate]

Wow. See, I think I was making a pretty valid point. Homemade racks and cages, those are good ways to cut costs. However, I cheap thermostat can malfunction, and seriously injure your animal. So, I state again, now is not the time to pinch pennies. Buy the absolute BEST thermostat you can afford. Personally, I wouldn't risk my animals safety on a brand name many people haven't heard of.

I agree with this.

Herpstat - while it is more expensive, it is one sexy piece of equipment that belongs in everyone's herp collection

[Freakie_frog]

unless you have actual experience with this model or can provide factual data on said thermostat, i'd ask that you refrain from commenting.

I'm guessing by this statement you have first hand real world experience with this model and can provide factual data on said thermostat.

I would then like to ask a user of said model..

Is it a proportional control system or an on/off control system like many of BAH's thermostats? I read the spec's on it and must have missed where they stated this info.. The only reason I ask is that on/off systems have been shown to cause fail more often and cause premature ware to heating elements like flexwatt and UTH systems.

How accurate is it? Helix is accurate to with in .25 of a degree. While the info claimed to be accurate they didn't give any numbers to back this up. So I'm sure you've check it with your temp gun as I do anytime I install a new thermostat on any of my racks. How close does it get.

What kind of a user alert does it offer for when a failure does occur. With many systems there is an alert that tells the user that a power surge has happened or that the system has failed.

If God forbid a failure does happen does the system shut down or will it stick wide open like has been my experience with BAH's thermostats. I mean I know they say this

FAIL SAFE - We at Big Apple Pet Supply believe this to be one of the most important features in our design of the new BAH-1000SC thermostat. The system permanently maintains a special overload safety circuit which automatically activates in the case of a unit malfunction. This unique feature greatly reduces the chance of accidental overheating amongst other heating hazards. Note: This safety feature could be compromised in the event of plugging in more than the maximum of 800 watts or in the event of an electrical power surge so always use a surge protector.

But that doesn't make allot of sense since most house hold surge protectors are rated for protection between 1200 and 1500 watts.

The only reason I ask all of this that the only system I've ever had fail was a BAH's proportional and it stuck wide open a cause a burn in my system.

Just wanting to hear from someone that seems to have used them.

[kitsunex]

Ken, when you post a public thread you do not get to control who can or cannot "comment" on it. Unless they are commenting using words, imagery or links that run contrary to this site's TOS and in that case staff will deal with it.

Minibun made a valid point as well that tstats are highly important and sometimes cost cutting is best done in other areas. Minibun did NOT indicate this was a poor product or a good product but simply made an obervation quite appropriate in a discussion on tstats.

but, that wasn't the point of the post. i was asking if anyone had used this particular tstat and if the claims they make about it are valid. a tstat is not a complex piece of electronics. i made one using 3 different methods in college in the lab. we called it a chicken cooker, it was just a light bulb that had a temp probe taped to it and the voltage to the bulb was varied to keep within a desired temp range. i did it once using a breadboard and op amps, another time using a ni-daq card hooked up to a mac, and a third time using Allen Bradley PLCs. so to me it doesn't seem inconceivable that a company could be making a good, yet basic tstat for a reasonable price. The specs on the one i listed SEEM to be good, but as we all know there isn't necessarily truth in advertising.

[Spaniard]

but, that wasn't the point of the post. i was asking if anyone had used this particular tstat and if the claims they make about it are valid. a tstat is not a complex piece of electronics. i made one using 3 different methods in college in the lab. we called it a chicken cooker, it was just a light bulb that had a temp probe taped to it and the voltage to the bulb was varied to keep within a desired temp range. i did it once using a breadboard and op amps, another time using a ni-daq card hooked up to a mac, and a third time using Allen Bradley PLCs. so to me it doesn't seem inconceivable that a company could be making a good, yet basic tstat for a reasonable price. The specs on the one i listed SEEM to be good, but as we all know there isn't necessarily truth in advertising.

Actually you asked no questions. The only question is in the title of your thread and even that doesn't clearly define the information you are looking for.

If your set on the idea that reliable thermostats can be achieved at low cost then by all means go ahead an use them on your animals.

I bought a helix for 130 dollars and it has worked like a charm for the last 4 years. Thats $32.50 per year so far on my investment and I expect to get many more years of use out of it. Not only this but I get the peace of mind that I'm using a tried and true product that has been proven effective for my application.

Is it possible that your thermostat could perform just as well? Sure, but I'm not willing to risk my animals to find out.

[frankykeno]

Minibun made a valid point as well that tstats are highly important and sometimes cost cutting is best done in other areas.

MiniJ83, my apologies for confusing you with another member here in the above quoted post.

[MiniJ83]

MiniJ83, my apologies for confusing you with another member here in the above quoted post.

Haha, not at all.