Johnson controls aren't bad thermostats, they are just on/off as opposed to proportional. I know a few breeders who use the Johnson with no ill effects, but i seem to see a preference for herpstat or other proportional t-stats on these boards. I use Johnson Controls a419 with my racks and have never had a problem so long as all the heating elements it controls are the same (i.e all racks it controls use 4 inch flexwatt) but I always check with my tempgun to make sure temps stay accurate.