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AP Heat rope question

jglass38

jglass38

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I love AP cages and racks but I have never been able to get proper consistent heating out of the heat rope that comes with it. I just wired up a 3 tub Iris CB70 rack. I put the proportional tstat probe in the middle level foil taped directly to the heat rope. Right next to it i taped a digital thermometer probe with foil tape as well. I set the tstat to 98 so theroretically I should get around 94-95 on the floor of the tubs. The tstat has leveled at 98 but the thermometer says 93-96. What could my issue be? Should I not have used foil tape with the thermometer probe? Could it give false readings? Thanks in advance!

Jamie
 
I'm not sure what the problem is. I use electrical tape to keep my thermostat (Helix brand) on the heat rope. I double check it with my temp gun and the temp gun readings are consistant with my thermostat readings. I seem to remember early on checking it with one of my thermometer probes too and getting a different reading than the thermostat, but since my thermostat and temp gun were in agreement I attributed the discrepancy to the cheap thermometer.

-Alice
 
The problem as that the heat rope doesnt seem to warm anything but a tiny area. It just doesnt work properly. I have had this problem with a cage and 2 different racks. I dont believe heatrope is the way to go...I double checked it with the temp gun. 100 in one spot, 93 in another, 83 just one inch away. this isnt even heating in my book...
 
Jamie,

We don't recommend that you put the probe right on the heat source. Many times it will confuse the thermostats you are using. For example, if you had a stove and the the thermostat probe for the stove was set directly on the heating element your items would never heat because the element heats and cools so quickly it will not warm the oven.

I would recommend starting with an empty rack, place the bedding or newspaper as you would for your animals. Set the probe at least an inch away from the cable set your desired temperatures for the hot spot. Once it reaches the desired temperature, check the hot spot in the tub to see what that temperature is. It should be a little warmer than the temperature you have set on the thermostat. So, now that you know the difference between the actual hot spot and the setting you have, simply adjust your thermostat to accommodate the difference. Check temperatures regularly.

I am sorry you are having trouble, we have worked hard on trying to establish you as a happy customer, and we will continue to do so.

Once again, with rack systems it is common practice to have only a hot spot while the rest of the tubs have a gradient to the front. Heat cable has been used for years in this business; I think it is just an opinion of how much heat some want versus others.

We have also just designed our racks around flex watt, 3 and 4 inch, for some who think it will perform better.

I did research on your profile with us; the only rack I could find with heat was the one I just sent you. Are those other racks you mention with the cable ours?

I agree with Alice also, digital thermostats will vary, be careful.

Thanks,
Mark Mertens
 
Animal Plastics said:
Jamie,

We don't recommend that you put the probe right on the heat source. Many times it will confuse the thermostats you are using. For example, if you had a stove and the the thermostat probe for the stove was set directly on the heating element your items would never heat because the element heats and cools so quickly it will not warm the oven.

I would recommend starting with an empty rack, place the bedding or newspaper as you would for your animals. Set the probe at least an inch away from the cable set your desired temperatures for the hot spot. Once it reaches the desired temperature, check the hot spot in the tub to see what that temperature is. It should be a little warmer than the temperature you have set on the thermostat. So, now that you know the difference between the actual hot spot and the setting you have, simply adjust your thermostat to accommodate the difference. Check temperatures regularly.

I am sorry you are having trouble, we have worked hard on trying to establish you as a happy customer, and we will continue to do so.

Once again, with rack systems it is common practice to have only a hot spot while the rest of the tubs have a gradient to the front. Heat cable has been used for years in this business; I think it is just an opinion of how much heat some want versus others.

We have also just designed our racks around flex watt, 3 and 4 inch, for some who think it will perform better.

I did research on your profile with us; the only rack I could find with heat was the one I just sent you. Are those other racks you mention with the cable ours?

I agree with Alice also, digital thermostats will vary, be careful.

Thanks,
Mark Mertens
Click to expand...

Mark,,
Thanks for taking the time to visit here and respond to this. One question I have is if you want a 90 degree hot spot, to get that a few inches from the cable you will need to really up the tstat and will end up with a SUPER hot spot right where the cable is which could cause thermal burns. I find that the heat cable does not create a wide enough hot spot on the shelf to be effective. To get that wide hot spot the heat cable is up around 110 degrees or more. I also have a T3 cage from you guys with which I have had the same issues. The heat cable was even replaced once and it still heats unevenly. Its disappointing because the routered grooves with the heat cable make it so nice and clean. But flexwatt is just a better option in my opinion for keeping a stable, even hot spot. For an 11" by foot long piece of flexwatt, I don't find much of a variance in temperatures when I use a temp gun on multiple points. With the heat cable its more extreme. I really appreciate the time you have put into my case to make things right. So far the heating just doesn't meet expectations. Let me say to anyone who is reading this though, that the Animal Plastics products themselves are amazing. Very well constructed and you can see what Mark puts in to customer service. Thanks!!

Jamie
 
By the way. I was having a discussion with someone else and it seems to me that the racks have become lighter. Did you change from HDPE to PVC foam board? I have no complaints with the racks but it definitely feels like a different material.
 
Jamie,

In my post you will see I said about an inch, a few inches might be to far. I also said that the hot spot would be warmer than the thermostat reading, that is why you have to check the temperature in the tub and adjust the thermostat accordingly. We recommend and have had great success when people place the probe at the desired location, whether in an empty control box or an inch from the cable, let the rack heat for a few hours, maybe even overnight. Our plastic is very thick and takes time for the heat to disperse. Once it does disperse the benefit is that it takes a long time to lose heat as well.

11" flex watt WILL give a wider controlled heat area, but 11" is far to much heat for most rack systems. I can understand the 11" flex watt in cages and maybe 36" deep racks.

Our cable S curves in the belly heat with about 4" in between the cable loops. Yes, your raytech will read different readings between the loops in the belly heat area, our cable is designed to produce an "overall" warm area or hot spot for you reptile. Believe it or not, once you have your bedding or newspaper down your reptiles will not recognize the variations between the loops, they will be absorbing the average temperatures.

There are many healthy twenty foot retics that are warmed with 11" or smaller flex watt, these animals are designed to absorb and spread energy efficiently.

Jamie, thanks again for your input we always appreciate it.

Mark Mertens
 
Mark,

I see what you are saying. I will definitely run a test like this before the weekend to see how it works. I will definitely let you know and post my results. Being that it is nearly 36", it seemed to me that 1/3 of the area with heat would be reasonable. I was not aware that the animals can absorb the heat just as effectively from a smaller area of heat. I would love to see what some of the others on the board feel about this. Thanks again Mark for caring enough to follow up here and try to make things work. Thats why I have ordered from you guys before and will do so again. Its also the reason I don't order from one of your primary competitors (whose name I won't reveal). They exhibit a total lack of dedication to customer service. Thanks!

Jamie
 
Jamie,

I agree with you about the 36" deep racks. I have our Deep Racks in a heated room, roughly 78-80. It probably will make a difference in cooler rooms as well. We will start working on some new designs.


See Ya

Mark Mertens
 
Animal Plastics said:
Jamie,

I agree with you about the 36" deep racks. I have our Deep Racks in a heated room, roughly 78-80. It probably will make a difference in cooler rooms as well. We will start working on some new designs.


See Ya

Mark Mertens
Click to expand...
Now THAT is customer service.
 
Animal Plastics said:
Jamie,

In my post you will see I said about an inch, a few inches might be to far. I also said that the hot spot would be warmer than the thermostat reading, that is why you have to check the temperature in the tub and adjust the thermostat accordingly. We recommend and have had great success when people place the probe at the desired location, whether in an empty control box or an inch from the cable, let the rack heat for a few hours, maybe even overnight. Our plastic is very thick and takes time for the heat to disperse. Once it does disperse the benefit is that it takes a long time to lose heat as well.

11" flex watt WILL give a wider controlled heat area, but 11" is far to much heat for most rack systems. I can understand the 11" flex watt in cages and maybe 36" deep racks.

Our cable S curves in the belly heat with about 4" in between the cable loops. Yes, your raytech will read different readings between the loops in the belly heat area, our cable is designed to produce an "overall" warm area or hot spot for you reptile. Believe it or not, once you have your bedding or newspaper down your reptiles will not recognize the variations between the loops, they will be absorbing the average temperatures.

There are many healthy twenty foot retics that are warmed with 11" or smaller flex watt, these animals are designed to absorb and spread energy efficiently.

Jamie, thanks again for your input we always appreciate it.

Mark Mertens
Click to expand...

Mark,

I read this over again and I realized I am not sure what you mean about 4" in between cable loops? There is no loop on the Iris rack but rather a straight across line on each shelf. Is that not what I should be seeing? On the T3 there is a loop up and down the left side. Thanks!

Jamie
 
mmmmmm AP caging and flexwatt.. makes me wanna wire something..lol
 
I was just concidering this myself, trying to choose between the rope, and the flex watt tape for my new cage I am building.

My idea was to use the rope, route out the path it will follow, but I wanted to recess the whole area, so I could cover it with ceramic tile (or melamine or something similar) to absorb, and evenly distribute the heat, and protect against the rope itself, with the probe in between the gap of the ceramic tiles for control.

Those with more experience using this rope would know if this idea would work out effectively. I never used it before, and really dont know how well it works. Have read that the rope can get "HOT" at times. (My main concern)

Sounds like the flex watt tape is easier to use, and I planned on that for my upcoming rack system, but I really wanted to try the rope for the cage.

Any oppinions would be welcome.

Ciao,
Rick
 
Mark,

FYI for you. I took the empty rack, let the heat rope heat for about 7 hours with no thermostat on it just as a test. Temperature of the rope itself, 177 degrees. The temperature HALF an inch from the rope, 87-91 degrees. Temperature 1 inch from the rope, about 79-80 degrees. To me this says that the rope does not properly heat the shelf. Its disappointing because I would much rather have used the heat rope. By the way, I use the heat rope in the T3 and it works pretty well because of the looping. I think I have taken the experimenting as far as itll go. Let me know if I missed something on this. Thanks!

Jamie
 
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