i know my animal plastics rack has little slits on the side of the rack at each shelf specifically for people that want to do this. i'm sure if you sent ali an email explaining how you want to do this they'll send you the separate shorter heat tapes pre wired. might cost a few bucks extra for the additional parts, but i highly recommend them. they are very flexible and able to work with what you want. not to mention, their customer service is second to none. at least IME.