Which thermostat

[Blackyote]

Hi, everyone. I have a pretty simple question I hope:

I plan to build a little 10 tub, 3'x3' melamine rack this summer. I'm not a breeder and this is just for my personal collection. I thought of going with the VE-100 thermostat from Reptile Basics as it's significantly cheaper than the 200 and 300, but seems to have nearly all of the same features.

I see a lot of people recommending the VE-200 specifically, but I read that if the proportional thermostat fails it goes to full current and might kill your snakes. If the On/Off thermostat fails it goes to Off mode, which isn't a big deal where I live (ambient temperature's currently 82 degrees).

I only want to buy one thermostat. Do you think the VE-100 is okay for my rack?

[The Serpent Merchant]

I would get the Herpstat 1. Proportional thermostats are much better. But the failing in the on position can be an issue. This has been addressed by the Herpstat 1. The Herpstat 1 an a safety relay that will kill the power in the case of a thermostat failure (which is extremely rare anyway). Overall I think that herpstats are a better product than the VE line and a better bang for your buck.

http://spyderrobotics.com/home/products.html

On/off thermostats can fail in the on position as well just so you know.

[Mike41793]

I have the VE-200 and love it. I would imagine it would have no problem running the rack your planning to build. My next tstat i buy will probably be a herpstat or helix just so i can try out both and compare them. (most likely a herpstat so i can see what all the hooblah is with them according to Aaron lol).

[Blackyote]

@Aaron: That is rather pricey, but probably worth it for the peace of mind. :x Thanks for the link!

Another, unrelated question: I'm currently running 7 separate under tank heating pads. I'd guess they're 24 watts each. If I switch to 20 feet of 4" 8 watt, can anyone tell if that would lower or raise my electricity usage? I ask because I split the electricity bill with my landlord and would rather they not see a spike in usage. lol

[The Serpent Merchant]

20 feet would be 160 watts (20 feet x 8 watt)

Your 7 pads totals 168 watts so the flexwatt will use slightly less electricity.

[Blackyote]

I hope I'm right on the under tank wattage then! I'm using multiple brands so it's hard to say.

Either way, so long as it's not a HUGE difference it should go unnoticed. Thanks.

[kitedemon]

Multiple brands may produce different amounts of heat even at the same wattage. You may have issues beyond the T-stat.

I would also suggest herpstats the relay is a great feature if enabled (not the default) but a second on/off tstat can also work just as well. A fail safe and it also covers controller failure as well. The cost of the herpstat becomes clear when you consider a ve100 and a ve100 as a fail safe.

[Blackyote]

When you say the relay's not the default, you just mean I have to manually turn it on, right? But it is already built into the Herpstat 1?

[The Serpent Merchant]

The relay is physically there, you just have to change a mode in the software (it is outlined in the owners manual)

[kitedemon]

They way the herpstats are set up off the shelf is exactly like the old models and the competition. If the probe is too hot the unit turns off. if the probe gets too cold the unit runs max power until it hits the correct temp.

The other setting is if the probe goes dramatically too cold (your setting) it will shut down the power rather than apply more power.

The best example is a probe pull off an enclosure. Lets say the probe is controlling a heat source set to 90º. Something happens and the probe is pulled off the heat source (child, cats, dogs, other people, ect all have caused this in the past) The probe rather than reading 90 drops to 80 the room temp of cooler as it is now on the floor. The thermostat traditionally would turn the heat to max trying to warm the probe to 90º (on the floor and unaffected) this means a typical UTH hitting 160º is unregulated and maxed out.

The herpstats configuration (if set) would note a 10º drop five degrees farther than allowable (in my settings) and would turn off the power to the heat source rather than overheating and potentially burning the snake.