| Author |
 Topic  |
|
|
ryanred5
Hatchling
United Kingdom
254 Posts |
 Posted - 28/09/2010 : 07:59:23
|
I'm not sure if I've asked this before, so I thought I'd ask (again) before I sort my heat mats out.
At the present I've got a 11"x6" heat mat in Tangos viv (which needs to go under Phoenix's Faun) which is sat on a thin piece of laminate floor underlay (not the actual laminate flooring itself) and then covered up by a thin piece of cardboard which is then all well taped down.
After mentioning I had it like this a while ago, I was told not to have anything covering the mat at all, only substrate. Now even though I have the mat on a Habistat Pulse Stat I am still concerned Tango could burn himself, does anyone know if that is possible?
I will soon be moving the 11"x11" mat (that is sat under Phoenix's Faun) to Tango's viv and I wanted to ask would it be okay to have a couple of pieces of loose newspaper over the mat (and the rest of the bottom of the viv) and then aspen over the top of the paper?
If that is okay, can I also put the underlay (that I used before) under the mat but loose instead of taped down, would that be okay too?
I just want to be 100% sure before doing the mats around and leaving Tangos not taped down as I'm sure you can all appreciate.
If I have confused anyone with what I've put, please ask me. I know how easy it is to think of what you want to say but are not sure exactly how to put it when you type it.
Thanks for your help.  |
Best wishes
Catherine xx
0.1 Bloodred Cornsnake - Phoenix
1.0 Amel Cornsnake - Tango |
|
|
Kellog
the nice one
United Kingdom
7308 Posts |
Posted - 29/09/2010 : 06:04:52
|
I am not sure how helpful I can be Catherine as I am no expert, but I do use a heatmat with a Habistat pulse in Sylvesta's viv and I can tell you how I have it set up.
I have the heatmat on the base of the viv (I am not quite sure why you would want to have the extra piece of laminate floor underlay between the base and the hatmat?) and have then covered it with vinyl. It is not sealed down as I was concerned about airflow....not being an expert in these things I dont know if that is an issue or not. I then have the probes for the stat and the digital thermometer (which you dont mention and is vital to monitor the temp in the viv) lying horizontally against the vinyl and weighed down with rocks....I know some people stick them down with aquarium sealant but I prefer to be able to move them. I then have a very light sprinkling of substrate covering that area.
As long as you have a digital thermometer monitoring the heat that the heatmat is emitting then there are no concerns about it getting too hot and burning Tango. IF your mat were unstatted it could reach a temperature that would burn Tango and stats have been known to malfunction, which is why you need the digital thermometer to monitor it.
Sorry, I dont think I have really answered your question about the taping down I am afraid....but hopefully someone who knows better will be along soon who can. All I could do is tell you how I do it and it works fine....I have a happy snake and I am a happy owner  !
xxx
|
  
   |
 |
|
|
ryanred5
Hatchling
United Kingdom
254 Posts |
Posted - 29/09/2010 : 07:12:25
|
Hi
Thanks for your reply.
Yes I do have a digital thermometer for each end of the viv. The hot end one is fastened to the stat probe and that is fastened on to the heat mat.
When you say you have vinyl, do you mean vinyl tiles or one whole piece fitted across the bottom of the viv?
I wanted to use the underlay to stop the heat going into the wood. |
Best wishes
Catherine xx
0.1 Bloodred Cornsnake - Phoenix
1.0 Amel Cornsnake - Tango |
|
|
|
Gaz_1989
Yearling
United Kingdom
931 Posts |
Posted - 29/09/2010 : 11:40:09
|
Kellog is spot on as far as I know.
I do the same but my vinyl is siliconed down. However I don't think this is nesescary.
The heat should not damage the viv floor so don't worry about that.
Experts... What do you do? Is the vinyl required? Or could you just put the heat mat in with a hide on top to keep it down? |
0.0.1 CB15 Amel Corn - Billy
1.0.0 CB16 Brazilian Rainbow Boa - Hunter |
|
|
|
Gaz_1989
Yearling
United Kingdom
931 Posts |
Posted - 29/09/2010 : 16:26:00
|
| Bumped back to top... |
0.0.1 CB15 Amel Corn - Billy
1.0.0 CB16 Brazilian Rainbow Boa - Hunter |
|
|
|
DannyBrown91
Fully Grown Corn
United Kingdom
3070 Posts |
Posted - 29/09/2010 : 16:34:40
|
The vinyl is not necesary and so long as the mat is correctly statted it should not do any damage to the viv or the snake.
It may be an idea to stick the thermostat probe to the heatmat though. Something such as sealant could be used but please do not use sticky tape. |
0.0.1 Ghost Corn - Casper
0.0.1 Diffused Corn - Reggie
0.0.1 Amel Corn - Candy A.K.A Baby
1.0 Commom BCI - Rocky
0.1 Japanese Akita - Sasha
Location: Liverpool |
|
|
|
Sta~ple
qeeun speler
United Kingdom
6129 Posts |
Posted - 29/09/2010 : 16:45:18
|
No it isn't. Mine is held down perfectly in place with a hide ontop. I have had no problems with snakes trying to burrow under nor burning. Your snake is just as likely to get burnt with laminate over the top as to it having none. That's why you secure the probes, so they don't get moved so they can't burn.
Ryan, what your suggesting to me, doesn't sound at all safe. It just seems like one big heatmat sandwich which sounds like it would make everything overheat making it more likely for snakey to get burnt.
I would personally just put the heatmat in and sprinkle with a thin layer of substrate, it doesn't matter if the snake directly lies on the mat to be honest, mine moves all his substrate off the warm side and lies directly on the mat. If you wanted to cover it though, I would only cover with a very thin layer or vinyl flooring, the plastic stuff that comes on rolls for bathrooms and stuff.
Edit: Sorry did not see your post Danny, it mysteriously appeared! |
  
A very special super, duper thanks for K :3 |
Edited by - Sta~ple on 30/09/2010 09:23:26 |
|
|
|
ryanred5
Hatchling
United Kingdom
254 Posts |
Posted - 29/09/2010 : 23:39:40
|
quote:
Originally posted by DannyBrown91
The vinyl is not necesary and so long as the mat is correctly statted it should not do any damage to the viv or the snake.
It may be an idea to stick the thermostat probe to the heatmat though. Something such as sealant could be used but please do not use sticky tape.
When you say use sealant to stick the stick to the mat, can you tell me what sealant it is that I'd need to use?
If I didn't want to use the sealant, then could I use Cyanoacrylate Glue, just put a few drops of it on the probe and then glue it to the mat?
Thanks. |
Best wishes
Catherine xx
0.1 Bloodred Cornsnake - Phoenix
1.0 Amel Cornsnake - Tango |
|
|
|
Kellog
the nice one
United Kingdom
7308 Posts |
Posted - 30/09/2010 : 04:14:26
|
I think a lot of people use aquarium sealant to stick down their probes Catherine, although I prefer to weigh mine down with rocks. This thread may help give you some info on what to do with them, Probe positioning.
I certainly agree with Sta~ple about being concerned with you wanting to isolate the heatmat using paper under and over. I know that a correctly statted and monitored heatmat would be fine uncovered, it is just my personal choice to put a piece of vinyl over it. Although I know that the heatmat is totally waterproof, safe electrically and easily cleanable, I just prefer to cover it with the vinyl for my own peace of mind.
xxx
|
|
|
|
|
Sta~ple
qeeun speler
United Kingdom
6129 Posts |
Posted - 30/09/2010 : 09:27:48
|
I have no idea about sealants and glue. My thoughts would be you could use it but it would need longer than 2 days to set and air out. Although it is best to be safe than sorry and just use aquarium seal. Just to make sure, you put what ever your using to stick on the clear laminate of the heatmat along the edges, not the black bit.
Just had visions of someone completly coating one-side of the heatmat, that's all. |
A very special super, duper thanks for K :3 |
|
|
|
ryanred5
Hatchling
United Kingdom
254 Posts |
Posted - 01/10/2010 : 04:37:37
|
quote:
Originally posted by Sta~ple
Ryan, what your suggesting to me, doesn't sound at all safe. It just seems like one big heatmat sandwich which sounds like it would make everything overheat making it more likely for snakey to get burnt.
I really don't think a sheet or 2 of newspaper loose over the top of a loose heatmat which is then sat on a piece of underlay, makes the big sandwich you have mentioned and can cause more heat problems and ahem its Catherine lol. 
quote:
Originally posted by Sta~ple
I would personally just put the heatmat in and sprinkle with a thin layer of substrate, it doesn't matter if the snake directly lies on the mat to be honest, mine moves all his substrate off the warm side and lies directly on the mat. If you wanted to cover it though, I would only cover with a very thin layer or vinyl flooring, the plastic stuff that comes on rolls for bathrooms and stuff.
If your saying its okay to put stuff (ie the vinyl) over the heatmat, then a couple of sheets of newspaper lay over the heat mat should be okay (forget the underlay), shouldn't they?
What do you think?
I'm trying to save a bit of money hence wanting to use newspaper instead of buying some vinyl.
If I used silicone or the glue I have to position the probes on the heat mat, I would leave it a few days to cure before letting Tango back in the viv, so don't worry about that. |
Best wishes
Catherine xx
0.1 Bloodred Cornsnake - Phoenix
1.0 Amel Cornsnake - Tango |
Edited by - ryanred5 on 01/10/2010 04:41:24 |
|
|
| |
Topic |
|
Heat mat questions
