# Heat Mats



## YummyMummy04 (Apr 23, 2009)

Hello

I have 2 size vivs for some Gecko i will be getting:

4ft wide 16 inches deep : 

2ft wide 16 inches deep

I was looking at the Habistat Heat mats and they are are 11 inches by whatever.

So i wont have enough mat to cover the depth of my Viv. Does that mean i need to get 2 and over lap them?? 

I realise that they need to cover min 1/3rd of the Viv.

Also for the 2ft i need 8 inch mat but they do a 6 or 11 ??

and for the 4ft i need 16 so can use the 17 inch they do.

Thank you for any advice i have got myself all confused.

Also is there a lot of difference between Brands of the Heat mats or should i stick to a better brand like the Habistat ones.


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## lucozade3000 (Aug 16, 2008)

Hay there!

Haven't got any reptiles but the principle is the same :
Heat mats will heat up the furniture and the glass they are set on rather than the ambiant air, they will give a little boost to the room temp (just a feeew degrees above room temperature in your tank) Whatever you do, dont overlap them, it could be dangerous (overheating) specially if they are not on a stat. Go for the 11 for your 2ft, up to 50%(max) covered is still fine
Shop around, i've seen some very large ones.
To be honest i dont find them very effective, i would recommend a ceramic bulb on a stat or a heating bulb.
I'm about to switch to ceramic heating for my Scorpions...
Good luck
-J


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## tigerpaws (Feb 21, 2009)

.. ok as j said don't overlap them.. they will de-laminate and pose a electric shock risk .. 

microclimate also do heat mats .. in all the various sizes .. 

plus your only covering a 3rd of the viv floor space. you dont really need to go right to the edges. plus if your gecko is cold it will find the warm spot .. and and the reverse is true. 

just make sure it is on a stat.. my local rep store has the habistat matstat for £23... 

alan


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## YummyMummy04 (Apr 23, 2009)

lucozade3000 said:


> Hay there!
> 
> Haven't got any reptiles but the principle is the same :
> Heat mats will heat up the furniture and the glass they are set on rather than the ambiant air, they will give a little boost to the room temp (just a feeew degrees above room temperature in your tank) Whatever you do, dont overlap them, it could be dangerous (overheating) specially if they are not on a stat. Go for the 11 for your 2ft, up to 50%(max) covered is still fine
> ...


Thank you J. I am using the heat mat as it is to be used for Leo Gecko and everywhere i read that is what they recommend for them. With my other rep i have used bulbs. I will get the bigger size heat mat. for the 2ft. Thanks for your help. : victory:



tigerpaws said:


> .. ok as j said don't overlap them.. they will de-laminate and pose a electric shock risk ..
> 
> microclimate also do heat mats .. in all the various sizes ..
> 
> ...


Cheers alan i was worried about not getting right upto the edge and if that would be a issue. Thank you for your advice :2thumb:


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