SAFE WAY to place a basic film heatpad inside an enclosure

I have used the "heatslab" shown for my water skinks for over 7 years trouble free inside plastic tubs.

I have another version using 7W heatpads for my bearded dragons and bluetongue skinks. Again these go inside rather than under the enclosure and my practice is I place the hides ontop the heatslab , giving my pet lizards nice toasty warm refuges to sleep in overnight and to nap in during the day, all my pet lizards love their heatslabs and use them frequently.

The thermostat sits outside the enclosure (usually ontop) connected to a powerboard.

As far as I have read, don't use heat pads. They can malfunction and overheat causing burns to any reptile on them. The best bet is to use a basking bulb as beardies and skinks are used to overhead heat and uvb.

SquirtTheDragon":2785clxa said:

As far as I have read, don't use heat pads. They can malfunction and overheat causing burns to any reptile on them. The best bet is to use a basking bulb as beardies and skinks are used to overhead heat and uvb.

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The ones I use are designed so that if their inbuilt thermostat fails , they'll never get hotter than 40oC, and if my thermostat fails no power goes to the heatpad (so it is essentially off). I have tested them (by disassembling some test pads and setting up fail situations and a test thermostat ("in the lab") and confirmed this is the case).

The two layers of ceramic tile covering the heatpads even out the temperatures and ensure they don't vary much in temperature so the thermostats do not need to be constantly cycling through a hysteresis loop with a high frequency of cut ons and cut offs.

My heatslabs are NOT the only heat source in my rearing tubs and enclosures (I also provide basking globes).
None-the-less the lizards all LOVE their heatslabs and nice toasty hides (especially at night).

My main objective was to provide a nice warm place for the lizards to retire to at night, and they do use them most nights , even in summer.

A 5W heat pad will be apple for a young hatchling / juvenile beardie for several months.
ie http://www.reptiledirect.com.au/p/85/GC ... at-5W.html , I connected mine to a thermostat to make sure they never got warmer than my desired temperature (36oC for beardies) , and sandwiched them between old ceramic tiles

A few tips in using these items:

1. These items are not waterproof so should never be emersed in water.

2. It is often best to place the heat mat outside of the enclosure to prevent overheating, and to protect the heat mat from getting wet or dirty. The heat mat can be placed under your enclosure or even attached to the wall of the enclosure depending upon your needs.

3. Ceramic tiles are good conductors of heat and can be used as a buffer in situations where less intense heat is required. Just place a ceramic tile on the heat mat such that the ceramic tile can give off the heat that your pets require. It is also a good idea to place a heat resistant barrier ( such as a piece of glass or tile) under the heat mat to seperate the heat mat from combustible materials and protect any furniture that the heat mat and enclosure may be sitting on.

4. Ensure adequate ventilation around the heat mat.

5. Set your enclosure up completely BEFORE you put any animals into it so that you can test and ensure that the heat mat is achieving desired temperatures. A good thermometer and/or thermostat can help with maintaining correct temps and these items are available seperately in ebay stores.

6. Put the heat mat toward one end of the enclosure as you should have a heat gradient which results in a warmer end of the enclosure and a cooler end of the enclosure.

7. As a rough guide a heat mat that is about a third of the floor size of your enclosure will provide appropriate heat for that enclosure. This is not a rule of course but a good rough guide.