Quote Originally Posted by Abby_The_Python View Post
Good point Argentra, where would u suggest finding these "Johnson or Herpstat, they look slick
Johnsons and Rancos are both on/off thermostats, so they turn off once they reach a certain degree, and turn back on when they drop to a certain degree (I have a 1 degree variable on my Rancos). They work like your thermostat in your home does that cuts your heat on and off and your air on and off. When your home cools to a certain degree, your air cuts off, when it warms to a certain degree, it turns back on.

Herpstat and Helix are proportional thermostats - so they always stay on, but regulate the amount of power to keep the temps right where you set them, only varying by a fraction of a degree. I'm sure I just did a horrible job explaining proportional thermostats, so hopefully someone will come behind me and do a better job explaining them.

Edit - from the link below explaining the Helix:

This proportional controller mimics nature by continuously adjusting the amount of power delivered to the heater, as opposed to simply turning ON and OFF as done by other manufacturers.
You can purchase Johnsons, Rancos and Helix thermostat at http://www.reptilebasics.com/Thermostats-p-1-c-250.html - be sure on the Johnsons and Ranco to order the wired, not the raw unit.