Ceramic Heat emitters - questions!!!

[MissT]

I recently decided to purchase a ceramic heat emitter for my little guy (I already have one for the female but generally dont use it - just when she was ill recently, and when its rather cold - on a timer to come on at 3.30am and go off at 5am).

Anyway, when I went to the petstore the guy advised me against it saying that it would cost me around £100 ($200) to set it up correctly with the correct thermostat and avoid overheating. And even then, he said they were a risky, unadvisable option. Im now rather worried about using one in either viv but will need something for the little guy as his night temp is currently dropping to as low as 62 and winter is not yet here!!!

I currently have a heat mat (I know, very bad) hooked up to a matstat underneath the shelf liner and carpet on the cool side which is only switched on at night. But, im now totally in 2 minds about what to do as a PERMANENT solution - do I invest in a CHE with all the 'trimmings' as this guy suggested (I will need to purchase the 'trimmings' twice) or do I go for the moonlight black bulb on much the same timer as previously discussed... meh.... im confused!!!

Thanks for any input!!

T

 

[RedHandFilms]

You don't need all the "trimmings." You don't have the have a thermostat to control the CHE. Overheating shouldn't be a problem at night. You're really just looking for something that could raise the temps like 10-15*F to give you more of a buffer zone when it gets cold. If you do want control over it, you could add a cheap dimmer switch. You can get one and play around with the settings at night to find what works right.