So, i’m fairly new/just learning about racks, as I really only use them to grow up baby colubrids. SO i’m not experienced with issues on the hardware level! We got this rack from a local repticon here in Georgia, and it holds 15 bins, 5 rows of 3!
The issue we randomly had a couple months ago was the heat tape in our rack melting the bottoms of a few bins. There was a thermostat set with a probe directly on the mat, and set to 83. of the 15 bins, 4 of them were randomly melted one day with the heat tape blackened and exposed. All on different shelves.
Ontop of that; its super hard to get several if not most of the bins OUT. They keep getting stuck on something and we’re really not sure what as when I investigate, there’s nothing protruding or sticking up. Nothing looks warped. and it wasn’t always doing this.
Now the heat tape has totally just gone out/stopped heating. So we’re replacing it.
My question is, what else can I trouble shoot to try and fix while i’m already replacing the heat-tape? Is there something specific that could be causing the issue with the bins not coming out? And the tape melting them?
The bins melting sounds like a combination of bad heat tape and the thermostat not working properly. I would recomend getting a thermostat like the Herpstat or VE thermostat. There really isn’t anything you can do about the bins. If it is a big enough issue you could get a new rack like the Vivarium Electronics I-6 or Vivarium Electronics I-10 both of which are not too expensive. They also can hold two different sized tubs which is nice. Other than that, just buy some high quality heat tape and set it up properly.
Sounds like the heat tape, the thermostat, or both were not working properly. What sort of thermostat are you using? I’d double-check to be sure it’s set properly.
Is it possible that the issue with the bins not sliding out easily was related to the issue with the heat tape? That could have warped the bins.
Reptile Basics sells excellent heat tape pretty inexpensively. You can buy it pre-wired and ready to go, or you can buy rolls of it and wire it yourself. If you’re new to setting this stuff up, the pre-wired option is the way to go, as it’ll be easier and safer.
Thats sorda what I thought honestly; we were using an inkbird but if that could be having issues then I think we’re definitely switching to one of the others. It was just one we had already that we saw a lot of good suggestions for. BUT its just not worth it to guess.
Honestly, yeah those are great prices too! Thank you loads for the suggestions; I think a new rack is in order anyhow
Thats sorda what we thought. It’s an inkbird thermostat, and it was brand new out of the box when we set it all up, and had the probe sitting directly on the heat mat. It seems to be reading temps properly otherwise, so im not totally sure the issue if its thermostat related!
I think the heat tape wasnt stapled properly to the rack, so there were parts sticking up that melted the bins. BUT the bins arn’t the issue; if we move the bin to another shelf that isnt having the issue, it slides out no problem!
We actually got some heat tape from them, i’m just waiting for it to get here to install!
Heat tape absolutely should not be stapled to anything, and needs to be flat. that might be your issue right there.
More areas to troubleshoot: is your thermostat rated for the wattage your heat tape requires? Is the tape plugged into the thermostat? Is there enough air gap? To help with the bin fit, I’d say your best bet is to post photos of the rack itself. I’d also check the shelves with a level and a ruler/tape measure to see if you have any warping or bowing. It could be a materials issue.
If it’s an on/off thermostat that requires you to set a range of temperatures (so it’ll turn on when it drops below a certain temp and turns off when it hits a certain higher temp), you have to be super careful to make sure that it’s set correctly. If you get mixed up and accidentally set the “on” temp higher than the “off” temp, it won’t know what to do and will just let the heat tape run continuously and get too hot. I speak from experience. (Fortunately I realized my mistake pretty quickly and no animals were harmed.)
If you can, I really recommend one of the higher-end Herpstat or VE thermostats that are pulse proportional and/or dimming. You can just set the temp you need and it will regulate automatically, it’s much safer and more user-friendly. They also have a lot more safety features. It really decreases the chance of disasters due to user errors, or even electronics failures. But they’re also a lot pricier. I initially questioned if they were worth the money, but once I finally sucked it up and bought one, I can say that they are most DEFINITELY worth every penny.
I also suggest before installing the new tape you read through the Reptile Basics heat tape FAQ to avoid a recurrence of the overheating issue. I’m guessing this is a home build style rack based on the mention of stapled heat tape, so it’s best to make sure that the appropriate size tape was used as well. For example, Reptile Basics doesn’t recommend belly heat for racks with 6 quart tubs because it doesn’t allow the snake enough room in the bin to get away from the element if there were a malfunction.
If i had to guess, there’s a multitude of issues going on here.
if the heat tape was stapled, and the tubs being that snug/tight in the rack, I’d imagine your tubs rubbed or caused issues with the heat tape, causing it to malfunction in the areas where it rubbed it.
as others said, stapling isn’t the best idea. I would recommend using the foil hvac tape, as others have noted as well.
was this a DIY rack, or a name brand rack that someone made? the clearance issues it sounds like your having shouldn’t be the case from a reputable rack maker.
I was unaware of that; Im SURE that was a good bit of the issue then honestly.
It took me a while to answer just because I was waiting on new heat tape and a new thermostat; but I made those matched up this go around. I dont know anything about the previous heat-tape! There was plenty of room for bins to slide in and out while remaining secure, but randomly one day we’d go down and it was hard to pull out and in. Move it to a different shelf, it was fine! Wait a week, move it back, it was fine!
We got a level out and it SEEMS level, but I know theres got to be bowing based on pics!
(sorry for the dustiness, we pulled it out to deep clean and since nothings been on this rack for a bit since it broke, its unkempt)
But the staples are all throughout the tape.
I read through that, thank you! We just got the new tape and thermostat, SO we’re going to try to fix the issue ourselves if we can!
I’m assuming it was a home built rack; I cant for the life of me remember who made it/what the vendor name was. But based on the staples, I can assume! It was definitly a hatchling rack with 4" heat tape and 6qt bins; and the vendor told me the bins were not interchangeable because it wouldn’t disperse heat properly if we took away 3 bins to make one larger bin.
Yeah, i’m thinking it was for sure the stapling aspect; the first thing we noticed was that the heat tape was pulled up in spots. Probably from catching on the bins. The bins that were burnt left big blackened spots on the tape itself, which im assuming was the bin being too close and the thermostat not regulating.
I’m assuming this was definitly a DIY rack; I think the vendor was Cinderella Dragons so I dont think they are reputable rack makers at all!
(Fortunately I realized my mistake pretty quickly and no animals were harmed.)