Flexwatt worries

[Jatango]

Hey all!
First time BCI owner but familiar with herps in general. However, I have no clue about Flexwatt. I have a 10gal and a juvie BCI, how much flexwatt do I need? The 11" stuff is 20watts per foot, if I put that on a thermostat is this appropriate or am I using too much wattage for what I need? The room is about 68-69, so I may need a little more heat than the average tank.
Any suggestions? Thanks!

	Boa Constrictor Imperator Boa Constrictor (Boa constrictor imperator). Most common is the Colombian Boa.

[CraigC]

Hey,
If you use a non-proportional thermostat, you might want to use 4" flewwatt. This type of thermostat is more or less an on/off switch that powers up the flexwatt to full when it turns the power on. When it hits the set point and cuts out, there is still somewhat of a "surge" that will continue the heating a degree or two before it begins to cool. That might be a problem with the 11" stuff. I would have no problem using the 11" with a proportional thermostat though, as it only gives enough power to maintain the set temperature.

Craig

[Jatango]

So how much of the 4" should I use on a 10gal? Just a foot of it down the center of the tank? Will that provide enough heat? Matt, my bf, is running something like 16watts of UTH and a fluorescent (negligible, I know) just to maintain a 90 degree basking spot. As for the thermostats, I may have a problem funding the proportional thermo right now, so I may stick with a non-proportional now and switch when I get a bigger tank. Thanks!

	Under Tank Heater Under Tank Heater

[CraigC]

Are you just using the under tank heating?

Craig

[JMReptiles]

you can make a homemade dimmer thermostat for less then $10 bucks and you can adjust the temps that you need from there and just adjust it as you need more heat or less. heres a link for it. hope it helps.

http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/sho...8&page=1&pp=10

[Jatango]

Yeah, he has a 10g size zoomed UTH (I think) on the bottom and that wasn't doing it. He put one on the side and now we're in business. It maintains rather well. Do you suggest something to supplement the UTH? I would rather not plaster an adhesive UTH on the side of the tank. I'd rather have an ultratherm or some flexwatt on the bottom and maybe need to supplement with something else.

Matt also has 3 sides covered with a blanket on the tank. For some reason we're having real trouble maintaining temp normally. Probably the room.

	Under Tank Heater Under Tank Heater

[CraigC]

Well my main use of the flexwatt is water evaporation to produce humidity. For actual heating we do that with the whole room. However we used to keep the enclosures in the air conditioned part of the house and used ceramic emmiters controlled by proportionals. We started changing over to radiant heat panels but then decided to put everyone in a controlled room. Now the CHE's are only used during the cooler months if needed.

Craig

	Ceramic Heat Emitter Ceramic Heat Emitter: A porcelain heating device that screws into a standard porcelain incandescent socket