It's getting cold...

[Xharyel]

Agreed with @Dorifto .

I'm in Europe and it's getting pretty chilly as well, although I'm comfortable, I still use heat mats (never use them without a thermostat).

Been using them for some time now and never had an issue, it costs me less than a space heater and it's more suitable for me.

I dunno why heat mats have such a bad rep when they're clearly efficient if used correctly (been using them for years for many kind of reptiles, amphibians, etc. and they've never failed me once).

 

[Dorifto]

I dunno why heat mats have such a bad rep when they're clearly efficient if used correctly (been using them for years for many kind of reptiles, amphibians, etc. and they've never failed me once).

Because people used them without thermostat, cooking the Ts... So instead of teaching the people how to use it, the easiest was to demonize them...

 

[Dry Desert]

Agreed with @Dorifto .

I'm in Europe and it's getting pretty chilly as well, although I'm comfortable, I still use heat mats (never use them without a thermostat).

Been using them for some time now and never had an issue, it costs me less than a space heater and it's more suitable for me.

I dunno why heat mats have such a bad rep when they're clearly efficient if used correctly (been using them for years for many kind of reptiles, amphibians, etc. and they've never failed me once).

I think the ones mainly available for the American market are from dubious Asian manufacturers, and they never specify using a quality stat. is essential.

 

[Dorifto]

I think the ones mainly available for the American market are from dubious Asian manufacturers, and they never specify using a quality stat. is essential.

99% of stuff comes from asia, it doesn't neccesarily mean bad quallity.

If someone is looking for mats, ultratherm mats are very good and don't have a bad price.

 

[viper69]

Ultratherm mats are excellent, I use several. Never an issue for decades of constant use of the same mats. I buy no other UTH.

t. It was effective at producing the right temp it was also a really effective way to turn an arboreal T into a terrestrial t as my t decided to live on the substrate above the heat source

Effective and Deadly - your T was lucky

 

[The Grym Reaper]

I know heat mats are a big no no

This is nonsense, they're fine if used correctly. They've been used successfully in the UK/Europe for decades.

and I've seen it suggested that if I'm comfortable my tarantulas should be comfortable

This is also nonsense because different people are comfortable at different temps, I could comfortably sit in a walk-in freezer in shorts and a vest for longer than it takes for a tarantula to freeze to death, conversely, temps that I find uncomfortably hot (basically anything over 25°C) wouldn't even phase a tarantula (my M. mesomelas female deals with heatwaves better than I do lol).

I'm keeping my house at a constant heat of 18 °c and it still feels cold to me, well at night anyway.

Lowest temps I've had in my room were 17°C and it didn't cause any issues. That said, I use a small ceramic fan heater to heat the room to 22°C - 24°C.

I dunno why heat mats have such a bad rep when they're clearly efficient if used correctly

Because most Americans plug them straight into the mains, stick them underneath the enclosure, and then wonder why they ended up with a cooked tarantula or electrical fire, they then proceed to demonise them rather than learn how to use them correctly. People in other countries then parrot that.

 

[darkness975]

I am happy when the temperature is between 75F - 85F (with 0 humidity). Sadly it is rarely that nice here it's usually much colder.
Anything between 65F - 85F I would not be concerned about in regards to the spiders.

 

[Dorifto]

with 0 humidity

That's imposible in a planet called "earth" where 71% it is covered by moistu... water

Just joking, hot and dry climate usually has around 50% of RH. That's dry for us. Everything lower, and our body starts suffering issues (not severe issues).

 

[VaporRyder]

It was 81% humidity and 3C here about an hour ago, according to my exercise app.

 

[Dorifto]

It was 81% humidity and 3C here about an hour ago, according to my exercise app.

Heat that air to 25C and you have around 30% RH... The reason behind why some had and have problems in winter.

 

[greeneyedelle]

I'm in the Inland Northwest in the US where temps bottom out at about zero degrees Fahrenheit (-17 C?) during the winter and top at about 100 (38 C?) at the height of summer--112 F (44 C) was the records this past summer--and I've been lucky enough that the room where I keep my t's has a baseboard heater which I keep at a steady 75 F (24 C). Other than losing a little more moisture because it's warmer in there, I haven't seen benefits or deficits to higher vs. lower temperatures.

"As long as you're comfortable": I'm comfortable at about 82 F (27 C), which is neither financially feasible nor healthy for my plants or other animals. At anything less than 68 F (20 C), my fingers get cold and my dexterity decreases. I apply that principle to the tarantulas. Decreased activity, lower mobility, but not going to freeze to death. Power went out after a bad windstorm here last winter, and we were without heat for about 24 hours. Temps in that room dropped to a little over 48 F (9 C), and yeah, it definitely wasn't comfortable for me or them I'm sure, but no one died.

So my experience has been that there's a lot of flexibility and room for error, but I really think it's a preference, not a necessity.

I could comfortably sit in a walk-in freezer in shorts and a vest for longer than it takes for a tarantula to freeze to death

.....There aren't enough words to describe how utterly awful that sounds

 

[Dorifto]

.....There aren't enough words to describe how utterly awful that sounds

I'd love to see you in my old hamlet, where we had 45F inside...

I'm very confortable at low temps too. Today we had 48F outside, and I was walking the dog on shorts hahahahaha

 

[The Grym Reaper]

.....There aren't enough words to describe how utterly awful that sounds

I was built for the cold, I don't cope well with heat though, anything over 25°C makes me very uncomfortable, anything over 30°C for prolonged periods makes me physically ill.

 

[greeneyedelle]

I'd love to see you in my old hamlet, where we had 45F inside...

I'm very confortable at low temps too. Today we had 48F outside, and I was walking the dog on shorts hahahahaha

I was built for the cold, I don't cope well with heat though, anything over 25°C makes me very uncomfortable, anything over 30°C for prolonged periods makes me physically ill.

“Crazy” is considered a subjective term, right?

To be fair, the majority of Inland Northwesters agree with you guys. It’s a perfect balance of seasons here with more cold than hot, but I just happen to be someone who would happily lay down on the sidewalk in the middle of August and melt

 

[Craig73]

Anything under 22 C and I’m practically holding my dog hostage as a heat source. Fortunate daytime temps are around 22 C with lows reaching around 8 C in the very late evening this time of year where I’m at. I use a space heater for the evenings.

 

[Charlie1234]

I'm also in the uk and my room regularly hits 13/14 in the winter and all of mine are fine, even slings. 18 is nowhere near a concerning low temperature IMO

Do you also keep without heating then i assume bcus i also do and my Ts do fine