Using Reptile Heat Mats for T's

[Drezan]

It's starting to get colder in Indiana and my room in particular has been getting under 70 degrees Fahrenheit in the mornings. Would it be a good idea to get a heat mat?

 

[FrDoc]

Nooooooooooooo!!!!!

Space heater.

(Search "heat mats" and read for for a week if you wanna take it any further)

 

[antinous]

Do not use a heat mat directly under your enclosures, it will cook your tarantula alive. You can attach the heat mat to the side of a larger box and put your enclosures in their, but never put it directly into contact with the enclosures. I'll be making an 'incubator' for my T's later today when the UTH I ordered comes in and I'll post directions on how to make it.

 

[PanzoN88]

Space heater

 

[cold blood]

Better to get a space heater....mats are less than ideal, as theyre designed for reptiles, which have signigicantly different heat needs.

That said, a mat can be used, just not in the conventional manner, as direct contact heat sources should be avoided.

To use a mat, you want to place it on the side of a larger enclosure, and place your t enclosures within that larger, heated one....this turns a potentially dangerous direct heat, into a much safer secondary heat.

Do not use a heat mat directly under your enclosures, it will cook your tarantula alive. You can attach the heat mat to the side of a larger box and put your enclosures in their, but never put it directly into contact with the enclosures. I'll be making an 'incubator' for my T's later today when the UTH I ordered comes in and I'll post directions on how to make it.

interesting, ive never heated an incubator.

 

[chanda]

I use a space heater in my bug/reptile room, paired with a humidifier to combat the drying effects of the heater.

 

[Drezan]

Do not use a heat mat directly under your enclosures, it will cook your tarantula alive. You can attach the heat mat to the side of a larger box and put your enclosures in their, but never put it directly into contact with the enclosures. I'll be making an 'incubator' for my T's later today when the UTH I ordered comes in and I'll post directions on how to make it.

I was thinking of putting tin foil on the heater to absorb most of the heat and then putting it on the side of a bigger enclosure. I'll do more research. If it's not a must then I won't get it.

 

[Krystal Anne]

I agree with the others. Space heater > heat mat.

Also, there's nothing wrong with temps between 68 F - 80 F (as long as it's not for a long time for both low and high ends of that spectrum). During summers, my room is 75 - 80 F, during winter, 69 - 74 F. If it starts to drop below 68, I use a space heater to heat the entire room. If your room is constantly below 70, then yes, get a space heater! Or if you only have a few slings, use the method @Phormic28 suggested.

 

[antinous]

interesting, ive never heated an incubator.

It's not really a 'traditional' incubator, it's made from a styrofoam cooler. I just attach a UTH on the side of it and it retains the heat. I've used it before when my roommates kept my apartment at 68 during the summer. I was thinking about posting a thread about it if people were interested.

 

[Potatatas]

I just bought a space heater and works perfect, way better than expected. Went for the cheapest I could get and still heats room even on low settings. Is a little heavy on the electric bill though but not too bad. So yeah, space heater!

 

[SuzukiSwift]

I just bought a space heater and works perfect, way better than expected. Went for the cheapest I could get and still heats room even on low settings. Is a little heavy on the electric bill though but not too bad. So yeah, space heater!

Wonderful! Common sense wins again =)

 

[Teal]

I have used space heaters when I have had a critter room... I also made a "micro climate" with a jewelry store display case and a space heater in the compartment underneath when my Ts shared my bedroom in the winter.

If you're going to set up something, use a thermostat and thermometer.

 

[Drezan]

Thanks for the advice guys. Sounds like I don't need a heater. In the mornings and at night it drops to about 65, but in the mornings it's 70 and up.

 

[PanzoN88]

Thanks for the advice guys. Sounds like I don't need a heater. In the mornings and at night it drops to about 65, but in the mornings it's 70 and up.

It's going to be near 90 next week according to wrtv6, so I don't think you will need any form of supplemental heating until further notice.

 

[Drezan]

It's going to be near 90 next week according to wrtv6, so I don't think you will need any form of supplemental heating until further notice.

Ya probably not. I'm just preparing for winter xD

 

[Dovey]

I'll just toss this out there as an alternative to the space heater. I have purchased an admittedly pricey water distiller system for home use because our well water has so much mineral content in it that it stains the sides of my habitats something fierce and cannot be good for creatures that have to filter their food to drink. Also, I have a number of small appliances such as oil diffusers and a CPAP that require distilled water, as well as a number of aquariums I'm trying to bring the PH down to something manageable.

The thing cost me about $150, but it produces a gallon of distilled water every 4 hours of use for about $0.70 worth of power. However, a windfall in winter is the heat that this thing puts off. It keeps my spider room, which would otherwise be 65 or 66, at a toasty 78 or 80 degrees when I run it on winter nights after 8 pm, when the cost of electricity drops substantially.

In the summer, it lives in the garage!

 

[viper69]

Would it be a good idea to get a heat mat?

Go ahead and kill it, knock your socks off.

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

It's starting to get colder in Indiana and my room in particular has been getting under 70 degrees Fahrenheit in the mornings. Would it be a good idea to get a heat mat?

Toasted or roasted tarantula is no good but a space heater and if it 67-70 degrees they might be fine .
I wouldn’t let it get any colder then that.

 

[MissouriArachnophile]

There any reason why tarantulas are attracted to heat like moths to light, even though it can kill them? Lack of heat sensory nerves?

 

[Potatatas]

There any reason why tarantulas are attracted to heat like moths to light, even though it can kill them? Lack of heat sensory nerves?

I don't think they are attracted to the heat mat. I think it's that a tarantula's instinct is to burrow deeper if it's too warm for them to get to cooler substrate. But if there's a heat mat at the bottom then the deeper they go the warmer it is instead and you end up with a cooked tarantula. That's why if you do use a heat mat then putting it against the side of the enclosure is better but still not recommended