Bin cage and heat pad?

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Mircat

Well-known member
Joined
May 7, 2013
Messages
55
Location
L.A area
My set up is 2 sterilite bins without the lids, connected by a 4" pvc pipe. The bins are 66qt each and each measure 20 by 14". I live where it doesn't really rain or snow much, and we're approaching summer and it gets hot! My house really doesn't get cold either, and we always put the heater on if it does get chilly. The breeder that I'm getting my baby from only uses water bottles filled with hot liquid, wrapped inside a sock. She uses a space heater for when its cold, but not all the time. I think I'm going to use heating pads. I'm thinking of using two of these : Amazon.com: MILLIARD Pet Bed Warmer 20"x12": Pet Supplies Amazon.com: MILLIARD Pet Bed Warmer 20"x12": Pet Supplies
My bins are 20 by 14 so this will cover enough area so the hedgie won't feel temperature shock if one side is cooler right? Or should it be a smaller pad? Do I use these all day long, or just at night? How do I use a thermostat/thermometer with this method?
Also, should I use it under the bin on my carper floor, wrapped in fleece? Or should I wrap it in fleece and set it under my fleece liners (which are uhaul pads + fleece)?
Please help!
 

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It will be difficult to get the exact right temperature using heating pads. It could easily become too hot or too cold.

I'd advise using different methods: either heating the entire room or using a CHE set-up.

If, indeed, your home stays at a relatively consistent temperature, you could add a heater like one of these: http://www.laskoproducts.com/ceramic-tower-heaters/ that allows you to set the temperature. That way, if the room is at a consistently warm temp on its own, it'll stay off. But, once the room drops below where it needs to be to keep hedgie happy and healthy, it'll kick on.

Or you could use a more focused solution in which you get two small ceramic heat emitter bulbs (http://www.bigappleherp.com/Big-Apple-Black-Infrared-Ceramic-Emitters?sc=2&category=13), screw them into appropriately-rated lamps (http://www.bigappleherp.com/Zoo-Med-Brooder-Fixtures?sc=2&category=22), and connect them to a thermostat (http://www.bigappleherp.com/BAH-1000-Thermostat). Again, if your room is consistently warm on it's own, the thermostat will keep the CHE's off. But when the temp drops, the thermostat will activate the lamps/bulbs. Just make sure it's a "thermostat" not a "rheostat" - some places will try to sell you a rheostat and claim it will work just as well.

Whichever way you decide to go, make sure you have thermometers inside the bins so you can check the temperature right at hedgie-level. The round analog ones that you can stick right to the side of the wall work quite well in this context (http://www.bigappleherp.com/Big-Apple-Thermometer-Humidity-Gauges?sc=2&category=16).

There are many suppliers... Big Apple, PetCo, Pet Supplies Plus, Pet Smart...
 
I really don't want to spend so much money, and whatever heating method I use I will be getting off of Amazon.com. The breeder only uses hot water bottles and a heater if it gets cold. So there's no way to use heat pads safely? I've seen some threads that talk about it but they're all so vague lol.
 
Okay, I made a stand out of storage grids and will be using a 150watt che with a 10inch dome, angled so that it hits both bins. Does this sound like it'll work?
 
Seems like it could work. To be certain, get a thermometer and set it in one side, check the temp, then set it in the other.
 
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