I want to use a heating mat to heat up my locusts as I don’t want to use a basking/heat lamp as I’m worried the plastic will melt. The heat mat is way too large for the faunarium that I will be getting (I am not prepared to go and buy smaller ones when I already have 2), but I was planning on putting them under the faunarium. Does anyone have any advice on this? Any personal experiences with doing this?
As I am going to put it under the faunarium, will it be okay to kept on top of my viv that is made of wood (I absolutely DO NOT want a fire, obviously)?
If you use a mat you will probably want it set on a rack or something that will allow airflow under the tank/mat to help control the temps. It's also a good idea to use a thermostat to shut the mat off and prevent overheating. I don't have locusts but keep roaches. I have a heat projector bulb suspended above their tank using an adjustable lamp stand and that works well. It keeps the heat source out of contact with the tank so that may be another option available to you.