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Hi Guys,
Some tips for peeps that have trouble keeping temps in large tanks.
1) Mount all heating internally
2) Make a proper hood out of wood for glass tanks to minimise heat escaping.
3) Use a combination of lights, dont be shy to combine two different wattage bulbs in the one tank i.e. it might take a 40 watt and a 50 watt to heat the basking site to optimum temp rather that just going to the straight 150 which may get two hot. You save on power bills too.
4) Hologen lights give off more heat than regular bulb, a 20 watt halogen is comarable to the heat output of a 50 watt bulb, again you saves on power bills. Regular bulbs are being phased out as they are not as efficient (energy wise). Time to start running some test people, they are dimmable as well.
5) Use dimmer switches where applicable (not to be used on MVBs) for high wattage bulbs.
6) Run CHEs on thermostats (power saver).
7) Run a combination of lights on thermostats i.e. leave a 40 watt bulb on constantly on the basking site and have another higher wattage bulb connected to a thermostat pointed at the basking site. When it needs an extra boost the thermostat will kick in the higher watt bulb and shut it off when it gets too hot.
8) Heat mats and heat cords can be mounted on the side of enclosures to give off heat, just not as UTH.
9) Heat cords are a great alternative to CHEs. What you need to do is thread them through a shelf rack. Kinda like weaving them through the little wires (if that makes sense) and mount them on the roof of the enclosure. They are usually cheaper than CHEs and you won't need another light mount for them. They also don't blow out like CHEs.
Some tips for peeps that have trouble keeping temps in large tanks.
1) Mount all heating internally
2) Make a proper hood out of wood for glass tanks to minimise heat escaping.
3) Use a combination of lights, dont be shy to combine two different wattage bulbs in the one tank i.e. it might take a 40 watt and a 50 watt to heat the basking site to optimum temp rather that just going to the straight 150 which may get two hot. You save on power bills too.
4) Hologen lights give off more heat than regular bulb, a 20 watt halogen is comarable to the heat output of a 50 watt bulb, again you saves on power bills. Regular bulbs are being phased out as they are not as efficient (energy wise). Time to start running some test people, they are dimmable as well.
5) Use dimmer switches where applicable (not to be used on MVBs) for high wattage bulbs.
6) Run CHEs on thermostats (power saver).
7) Run a combination of lights on thermostats i.e. leave a 40 watt bulb on constantly on the basking site and have another higher wattage bulb connected to a thermostat pointed at the basking site. When it needs an extra boost the thermostat will kick in the higher watt bulb and shut it off when it gets too hot.
8) Heat mats and heat cords can be mounted on the side of enclosures to give off heat, just not as UTH.
9) Heat cords are a great alternative to CHEs. What you need to do is thread them through a shelf rack. Kinda like weaving them through the little wires (if that makes sense) and mount them on the roof of the enclosure. They are usually cheaper than CHEs and you won't need another light mount for them. They also don't blow out like CHEs.
