Heating pad/Bugsincyberspace

[cecdog]

Greetings! I am in the process of setting up my first millipede enclosure and have gotten conflicting info about heat mats. I was planning on using a mini 4W mat on the upper rear, above the substrate. My apt. is kept at 70 degrees and I live near central Indiana. I asked Peter C. about the heat and he implied I hadn't read the care sheet, and that's his last reply. Anyway, I bought some of his substrate, but will not be buying anything live bc his location is far away, and I've read some negative things recently.

Can anyone offer their opinion on the heat mat? I also plan on figuring out how to post in classifieds looking for some closer-to-home captive bred young millipedes for sale. I would eventually like to breed them but that's further down the road. Also, will males pester/stress females of a different species?

 

[mickiem]

Hi neighbor! I'm in Cincinnati. I have over 80 millipede (and other) enclosures and I use heat on several of them. I have a thermal heat gun and the temperature spans 4 degrees from floor to ceiling, so I make sure that I know what the temperature is where each enclosure sits. I've added heat mats (above the soil line, like you said) to all of them that prefer temps over 75˚ and I also situate them higher on the racks. I've been using heat like that for 3 years and have never had trouble. Not only do I situate them higher on racks, but I also group them to take advantage of the heat. Since I started buying heat mats they have more than doubled in price, so I take advantage of the placement of each one!

Sometimes males do pester females of other species. Oddly, the small scarlet has one of the worst reputations for this!

To post on Classifieds, I believe you have to have posted at least 50 posts and then create a user review on yourself.

Do you ever visit the CinCity Reptile Show? That's a good resource and there are a few breeders near you; I'll pm you.

Welcome to the hobby!

~Mickie

 

[RTTB]

Curious what you have heard about BIC? I’ve had good dealings with him in the past.

 

[cecdog]

There are more good reviews than bad, I just got the impression he's very busy by the way he replied, which is understandable. Really I just needed to research more on my own before I asked questions. I'm very new to this and there's a lot of conflicting reviews/info, but I've already contacted some more local sellers that have been much more helpful.

 

[maxpede]

I use a heating pad same style as mickiem. Keep my apartment in louisiana at about 70-71 degrees (68 at night) . So heating pad isnt 100% necessary but it is highly beneficial. I just keep it above the substrate a few inches. My Agb's so far do fine.

 

[SFA]

I also use the heat mats on the sides of my enclosures. I've purchased from Peter at bugs in cyberspace a number of times with excellent results. He packages really well, and all the critters I've gotten were in great shape, and he usually included a few extra too.

 

[Greasylake]

I've ordered from Peter a few times as well and honestly I can understand his short replies as not only does he run a business, but he also has to care for animals. Before one of my orders when I was getting something a little rarer I asked him for husbandry tips, as he didn't have any posted and he was very helpful. Another time he even listed a certain amount of animals early because I told him I was interested in them and was wondering when they were coming in. He can be really helpful, but I'm assuming now is his busiest time of year as people are trying to get shipments done while the weather is good. I'm actually considering selling some of my H. davidbowie sack to him if he's interested.

 

[cecdog]

Yea I figured he was annoyed by my inexperienced questions, I should've came here first. His care sheet and the many others that I had been researching over the past week didn't mention heat mats, but gave conflicting info on temperature. I wanted to ask an experienced expert and potential salesman and when he implied I hadn't read anything it rubbed me the wrong way. It made me seek out this forum though and I've already learned so much here!

 

[Aquarimax]

Hi neighbor! I'm in Cincinnati. I have over 80 millipede (and other) enclosures and I use heat on several of them. I have a thermal heat gun and the temperature spans 4 degrees from floor to ceiling, so I make sure that I know what the temperature is where each enclosure sits. I've added heat mats (above the soil line, like you said) to all of them that prefer temps over 75˚ and I also situate them higher on the racks. I've been using heat like that for 3 years and have never had trouble. Not only do I situate them higher on racks, but I also group them to take advantage of the heat. Since I started buying heat mats they have more than doubled in price, so I take advantage of the placement of each one!
~Mickie

@mickiem what specific type of heat mats do you find work well on your plastic bins?

 

[mickiem]

@mickiem what specific of heat mats do you find work well on your plastic bins?

I use Zoo Med Reptitherm UTH, I use either the small or medium and I put another enclosure that needs heat beside it so I create a little ambient heat. I never place one on an enclosure on the "outside". I guess that wouldn't work if you only have a few enclosures... I just try to trap the heat to make good use of it.

I think the price went up a year and a half ago.