How did I ever live without a rack system, Herpstat, and tempgun?

[Slitherous]

I've kept reptiles on and off for decades, (worked in a zoo & owned a couple of pet stores too), have seen and used every type of cage, tub, tank, and even old showcases as caging for my herps. Recently I expanded and purchased a small herd of BP's, and with them came a Vision rack system, (V-70/11), a Herpstat Pro and a temp gun. I had several rheostats I was using for controlling various types of UTH's and ceramic heaters, (you know, the "old school" way), and several refrigeration analog probe thermometers which all required quite a lot of tweaking and constant adjustment to maintain proper enclosure conditions...and until I got this rack system and thermostat I was perfectly comfortable using those tools.

After getting the Vision rack and figuring out how it went together, (cleaning and sanitizing it completely with F10 as I went), I still was a little skeptical about it. But, now that I have everything firing on all cylinders I just love this thing!! It was missing a couple of tubs, but I noticed that the same rack will take different sizes of tubs I decided to customize it by ordering four V-35 tubs, (already had some baby tubs as well as eight V-70's). I cut some support tubes to get the baby tubs on the top row, put two rows of four V-35's below that, then 8 rows of V-70 tubs below that. My collection is small, 5 BP's and 5 Leos, (and counting), but the fact that I have all those animals in one unit, controlled by a device which controls up to four separate zones independently is just a wonderful thing. I have room for more snakes and Leos alike should I obtain more, (like I won't ...duhh!). Of course I'm still tweaking placement of the heat rope and temp probes for max efficiency, but having the temp gun to spot-check areas within the tubs really helps with that. I'm finally getting it set up in a way that works for me and the animals alike, and really wonder how I ever lived without these husbandry "tools". Also, when I had the animals in various tanks & cages I was using both UTH's and overhead ceramic heat emitters to maintain proper temps, which altogether were sucking up 500+ watts of power to operate. Now I'm running the entire set up at an average of about 100 watts, (usually less), so over time this efficient unit will pay for itself in energy savings...cool!!

Yes, I know there are many types of racks out there, and I don't want to start a discussion of the pros & cons of those different systems, or get a "this system is best" argument going. I just was a bit giddy once I got this unit going and started realizing it's benefits, and I just wanted to show it off! Since I live in a one bedroom apartment this is just what I needed, and I was able to get rid of all those bulky glass tanks and actually have room for furniture again! See photos below:

[Don]

Yup, right tools for the job. Every time I upgraded my setups, the cleaning got easier and the care better. I don't think people realize how important it is to have the right setups and tools. You can make do with some things, but it is sooo much easier when done right. Congratulations!

[Badgemash]

It's true, all of these things make life so much easier! Although once you have improvements in one area, it seems to snowball. This morning I was thinking how nice it would be to have a big sink to scrub bowls in, and how it would "only" take cutting a "few" holes in some walls...

[Slitherous]

Yup, right tools for the job. Every time I upgraded my setups, the cleaning got easier and the care better. I don't think people realize how important it is to have the right setups and tools. You can make do with some things, but it is sooo much easier when done right. Congratulations!

Thanks. You're absolutely right. The time and cost savings are obvious, though I maintained herps very successfully using the old methods & tools, it was much more labor intensive. Now, having it all condensed into one unit, and controlled by that cool little digital brain, (Herpstat Pro), makes the whole process easier, and like you say that's better for the critters in the long run. Of course, nothing is perfect, and if I were to design a rack system I would probably do it a little differently, but I am more than happy with what I've got. I also would like to mention that I have found Vision Products to be a pleasure to deal with when ordering tubs and accessories Their customers support & service is just as good as their products are useful.

S

[Slitherous]

It's true, all of these things make life so much easier! Although once you have improvements in one area, it seems to snowball. This morning I was thinking how nice it would be to have a big sink to scrub bowls in, and how it would "only" take cutting a "few" holes in some walls...

Ha, me too! I can see another rack in my future, and now that you mention it, a big deep industrial sink would be wonderful wouldn't it? Currently my bath tub does double duty as a tub/people cleaner, which is good because I keep it cleaner for the herps than I ever did when I was the only one using it!

S

[OctagonGecko729]

Labor saving devices are where its at couldn't agree more. Mistking has also allowed me to grow my Uroplatus collection out.

[Slitherous]

Labor saving devices are where its at couldn't agree more. Mistking has also allowed me to grow my Uroplatus collection out.

Just so happens I got a Repti-Fogger with the rest of the stuff: hmmm, Uroplatus you say? (I'm doomed!)

S

[MrLang]

My system is streamlined right now. I am not jealous of anyone trying to keep their husbandry on point without the 3 items mentioned in the subject.

Congrats!

[Slitherous]

I'm lovin' it. I'm still working to find the "sweet spot" as far as temp probe placement, air temp, hot-side/cool-side temps etc, but I'm getting close. The only small issue I'm having is that currently I'm using one of the four zones available on the Herpstat for two V-70's & all four V-35's. With the temp probe suspended in a V-70 the temps in the V-35's tend to be a little too high, with the "hot spot" being nearly 100 in the smaller tubs, (hot spot is around 90-95 in the V-70's). Of course the answer to that is get another heat cable and run the V-35's as a separate zone, or reduce the amount of heat cable beneath the smaller tubs. Other than that all I have to do now is maintain the animals I have, and figure out how to fill those empty tubs.....like I said, I'm doomed!!

S

[southwind]

Same here! I have a CB-70 rack and holy shizzles! it makes life 150% easier when you don't have to constantly worry about humidity, temp's etc.