1. What size should I use, and what watt should I use? 3" flexwatt with 6 watts, 3" flexwatt with 10 watts, 4 inch flexwatt, 11 inch flexwatt?
I use 4" flexwatt for my racks, and I believe this is what most people use in their racks for belly heat. Just stay away from the 3" 10 watt.
2. How should I cut it? Should I cut single peices of it, and put down a seperate cut of the flexwatt for each shelf? If I do this, is there a way to wire all of them together so that I only need 1 plug? Or will I need to wire them all seperately and plug them all in seperate into an outlet?
Just cut straight through and be sure not to cut through the black parts. In my shelf, I put a separate piece on each shelf and connected them all separately. They are plugged into 2 different power bars, and the power bars are plugged into my Herpstat. There are 9 shelves total. Lots of wires but worth it IMO.
3. A few people have told me to run it throughout each shelf. How is this done? From side to side, or front to back? How will I run it from one shelf to the next?
If you decide to do it this way, just do it in a zig-zag. Side-to-side for a regular rack, or front-to-back for a sideways rack.
4. What is better, belly heat or back heat? I know belly heat will help with digestion, but so many people use back heat now, it seams like many are switching to it.
I don't think I will ever use anything other then Belly Heat. It is better for them but many many people use Back Heat without a problem. I think it's safe to say it is totally up to you. Back heat is easier to put together.
5. Anything else I need to know? I just want to make sure I understand EVERYTHING about flexwatt heat tape before I go burning my house down or putting a snakes life in danger.
Just make sure you know how to wire it properly. There's a tutorial on here which I followed as well as a video on Youtube.
YouTube - Wiring Flexwatt (Part 1)
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...148383#1148383
Good luck!