Quote Originally Posted by Ginevive
Now I am a bit confused. I looked up the Ranco on their site, and it holds 1500 watts (the Helix does 500) and has the powerstrip attached; so I would have to buy the strip seperate for the Helix? Not a big deal, but why the huge price dofference? (Helix is $130, Ranco os inly $75?) I just want to learn all about this before buying.

Ranco:
http://www.reptilebasics.com/store/p...roductid=16172

Helix:
http://www.reptilebasics.com/store/p...roductid=16139
The short answer is that the Ranco is and on/off thermostat. Which means you set a desired temp (say 90 degrees) then you set an offset (say 3 degrees)...then the Ranco will heat up to 90 degrees and shut off completely...it will then allow the flex to cool down 3 degrees to 87 before turning back on to heat back to 90. They work well but made an audible "click" when they turn on/off (annoying if you sleep in the same room)...and are very ineffecient (it is all power or no power). Ranco are industrial thermostats designed for heating/cooling units this is why they have a higher output wattage.

Helix on the other hand is a proportional themostat which means you set a desired temp (say 90 degrees) and Helix will heat up to 90 but then it will then turn the power down to hold 90 degrees...basically it is always "on" but in a very low power mode. The benefit is that the temps stay much more stable...they were designed for use with Flexwatt and reptile care.

I have used Ranco on my racks without issue (as the up/down temps aren't a problem)...but with an incubator rock steady temps are a must (as you know) so a proportional themostat is required.

Hope this helps