Heat mat/ Thermostat nightmare :/

[rosscleland]

Hi all. I have tried 2 different brands of heatmat and 3 different brands of thermostat but despite this my heatmat always overheats significantly! Another issue I'm having is that I have a long heatmat (for a long tank) and only the portion of the mat surrounding the probe overheats- the rest of the mat refuses to even reach the set temperature. For example- if I place the probe in the middle of the mat and set the temperature at 42c; the middle of the mat will reach 53c and the outer portions of the mat will reach 30c. Has anyone else ever experienced so much difficulty with heatmats/thermostats and how did you overcome it? Thanks for the help!

 

[Introvertebrate]

It sounds like you’re getting what most invertebrate owners strive for - a temperature gradient.

 

[basin79]

Hi all. I have tried 2 different brands of heatmat and 3 different brands of thermostat but despite this my heatmat always overheats significantly! Another issue I'm having is that I have a long heatmat (for a long tank) and only the portion of the mat surrounding the probe overheats- the rest of the mat refuses to even reach the set temperature. For example- if I place the probe in the middle of the mat and set the temperature at 42c; the middle of the mat will reach 53c and the outer portions of the mat will reach 30c. Has anyone else ever experienced so much difficulty with heatmats/thermostats and how did you overcome it? Thanks for the help!

Are you using the mat UNDER an enclosure?

I use heat mats on stats and don't have any problems.

 

[CamranT]

If you are willing to do some research and put some time in, heat tape is a great alternative. You can lay it out how you want and cut it to your preferences, not to mention you get a lot more bang for your buck when buying heat tape.
As for thermometers I have 5 exo terra thermostats all with different wattage and at different temps. All of them work great, Little expensive but they get the job done. With heat tape I stick my probe to the actual tape but with heat mats I put the probe in the enclosure.
I have no reason for this, just habit. I have no issues with any of my setups though.
Name brands supply lots of different sizes for heat mats normally, I don't know where you're located or what your price range is but if you look around id assume you could find one that's compatible with your setup

 

[cold blood]

It sounds like you’re getting what most invertebrate owners strive for - a temperature gradient.

Reptile owners strive for it, invert owners should avoid such things.

 

[viper69]

I would check out a reptil forum. I've never had such issues w/my herps.

 

[rosscleland]

Are you using the mat UNDER an enclosure?

I use heat mats on stats and don't have any problems.

Yeah I use the mat under a plastic tank. I can understand that trapping heat between a tank and a mat can cause overheating- but I have a good few mm of air between the tank and mat control the overheating. (I've experimented with different amounts of space between the mat and tank but the over/underheating issue remains either way) If it was simply a case of the mat overheating by 10°c- then I could simply set the stat to 10° less than I want. But the mat overheats and underheats by different amounts and in different areas of the mat each day. It really is frustrating :/

 

[rosscleland]

If you are willing to do some research and put some time in, heat tape is a great alternative. You can lay it out how you want and cut it to your preferences, not to mention you get a lot more bang for your buck when buying heat tape.
As for thermometers I have 5 exo terra thermostats all with different wattage and at different temps. All of them work great, Little expensive but they get the job done. With heat tape I stick my probe to the actual tape but with heat mats I put the probe in the enclosure.
I have no reason for this, just habit. I have no issues with any of my setups though.
Name brands supply lots of different sizes for heat mats normally, I don't know where you're located or what your price range is but if you look around id assume you could find one that's compatible with your setup

All of the top of the range more expensive thermostats seem to only go up to 35°c- but because my mat is underneath the tank I need it to go to 42° to reach the desired temperature. And I wouldnt want to put the probe inside the tank as I wouldnt feel safe putting an electric probe in a humid tank containing damp soil and water dishes- plus id be worried about the probe getting moved by insect activity. Maybe I'm being silly?

 

[basin79]

Yeah I use the mat under a plastic tank. I can understand that trapping heat between a tank and a mat can cause overheating- but I have a good few mm of air between the tank and mat control the overheating. (I've experimented with different amounts of space between the mat and tank but the over/underheating issue remains either way) If it was simply a case of the mat overheating by 10°c- then I could simply set the stat to 10° less than I want. But the mat overheats and underheats by different amounts and in different areas of the mat each day. It really is frustrating :/

Where are you putting the probe? Inside the enclosure or under the mat? What will be going in the enclosure? What substrate are you using? What stat?