Quote Originally Posted by knox View Post
I once tested a 3.5 foot section of Flexwatt - 3" wide @ 6 watts/foot - with a temp gun. I tested both through a thermostat and plugged directly in the wall.

Along the stretch, I got readings that varied as much as 5 degrees on the same strip, with the hottest spot right at the connection.

So, no, you will not get exact temps. However, if the flex is the same on each shelf, it will be close enough. If you have a temp gun, and you find the same results, I would put my thermostat probe on the hottest spot. For me, that was right at my connection.

If anyone else has tested with a temp gun, I would love to see if this is typical.

Oh, un regulated, I was getting temps from 109 to 114. Regulated, with thermostat set at 85, it was anywhere from 83 to 87.

I like the 6 watts per foot, because if a thermostat DOES happen to fail, it does not have as high an output as the 10 watts per foot.
I do the same thing. I use the lowest wattage I can get away with. Not only is it less likely to fry a snake (not only does it not get as hot but the surface area is smaller) but it is also a lower fire risk too. I use a backup on/off thermostat hooked to my proportional so if the main thermostat fails, the on/off one will shut it down. Can't be too safe with this stuff.