# under tank heat mat, possibly defective?



## snappleWhiteTea (Aug 14, 2010)

I have never used heat mats, last year I really wanted a leopard gecko so i went to the lps and asked them what would be best for a ten gallon glass enclosure. the clerk said 
"this"
and handed me an exo terra heat wave substrate heater.
i said
"is this alright for a leopard gecko, she said
"oh yeah. yeah"
I got home and the only instruction were to basically stick it on the cage. I plugged it in with out peeling off the plastic and it doesn't seem to produce that much heat, i was thinking that i needed some thing else, but the clerk old me o just plug it in.
 the heat that it gives off doesn't seem to be enough, could it be defective or could it might still work? does the backing paper keep it from warming up at all?

heres a pic, any help is appreciated


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## Anubis77 (Aug 14, 2010)

From my experience, those aren't very high quality. They die on me very quickly, especially if on thermostats. I have two that are running straight from outlets that have lasted more than 2 years, but the rest have died.

I've switched over to heat lamps mostly. They might not do me any humidity favors, but the bulbs run cheaper for me than getting new heat pads every time one dies. I'd just keep a Leopard with a heat lamp if I were you.


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## snappleWhiteTea (Aug 15, 2010)

Anubis77 said:


> From my experience, those aren't very high quality. They die on me very quickly, especially if on thermostats. I have two that are running straight from outlets that have lasted more than 2 years, but the rest have died.
> 
> I've switched over to heat lamps mostly. They might not do me any humidity favors, but the bulbs run cheaper for me than getting new heat pads every time one dies. I'd just keep a Leopard with a heat lamp if I were you.


any advise on what brand to look out for?


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## pitbulllady (Aug 15, 2010)

I had two adult Boas, including my male Suriname, badly burned last Feb. by an Exoterra heat mat that overheated when the thermostat I had it plugged in to(another brand, though supposedly compatible)malfunctioned.  Both snakes had 2nd and 3rd-degree burns and it cost me a lot of money at the vet's to get them well, and I spent many a hour soaking and medicating and debriding their wounds, with no help at all(both of these are big snakes).  I have had two other Exoterra heat mats just up and quit on me, not working at all, so I'll stick with Zoo Med.

pitbulllady


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## whitewolf (Aug 15, 2010)

Mostly all but the cobra heat mats burn up or go out on me. The cobra was expensive where I got it and I haven't priced them in a long time. I just bought heat cable so I could get my rack finished the other day and that seems to be doing pretty good so far. Easy to work with too.


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## snappleWhiteTea (Aug 15, 2010)

pitbulllady said:


> I had two adult Boas, including my male Suriname, badly burned last Feb. by an Exoterra heat mat that overheated when the thermostat I had it plugged in to(another brand, though supposedly compatible)malfunctioned.  Both snakes had 2nd and 3rd-degree burns and it cost me a lot of money at the vet's to get them well, and I spent many a hour soaking and medicating and debriding their wounds, with no help at all(both of these are big snakes).  I have had two other Exoterra heat mats just up and quit on me, not working at all, so I'll stick with Zoo Med.
> 
> pitbulllady


i have of exoterra heat mats doing that before. i will never go to the store i purchased this from again. i think they sold me some thing that some one else returned.

i heard that flex watt heat tape is best, but for the amount i need it would be cheaper to buy zoomed. so say i have a 10 gallon, all i would need for heating is http://www.petco.com/product/6353/Z...reCat=LeopardGeckoHPTemperatureControlHeating
?
i was thinking that I would need more, but no?


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## malevolentrobot (Aug 15, 2010)

i've used the zoo med ones for about 2 years now, and other than the mat losing adherence over time, i've had no problems. i even used one that i had to re-adhere myself that had started warping for my dubias and it still went on 8 mos strong before i replaced it because it kept falling down.

i've also been using a zilla UTH for about 6mos now. so far, so good...

we used to have people return those exoterra ones at the store quite a bit until we stopped carrying hagen products all together. i have heard similar malfunction/burn stories as pitbulllady, but without knowing the exact situation, i cant say the stories i heard are 100% reliable that it is a bad product.

i'd return or get an in-store credit for a zoo med UTH if you absolutely dont want to use lamps.


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## snappleWhiteTea (Aug 16, 2010)

malevolentrobot said:


> i've used the zoo med ones for about 2 years now, and other than the mat losing adherence over time, i've had no problems. i even used one that i had to re-adhere myself that had started warping for my dubias and it still went on 8 mos strong before i replaced it because it kept falling down.
> 
> i've also been using a zilla UTH for about 6mos now. so far, so good...
> 
> ...


i would use lamps, i thought that it would be easier to go with the mat.


 so far all i need is the zoomed mat, along with this ↓ and i should be good? i read that the mat will only get over room temp. so is the temp controller crucial?
http://www.petco.com/product/108340...tail_1-_-Zilla Temperature Controllers-108340


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