Heating hints and info

The Snark

Dumpster Fire of the Gods
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Aug 8, 2005
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Three types of heat source. Conduction, convection and radiation.

-Radiation as heat lamps. Transmits energy, normally infrared, through the air to heat surfaces it shines on. Very inefficient at heating the air. Nearly all increase of air temperature is from the energy heating objects which in turn produce convection. Creates hot spots on whatever it shines on. Can burn animals by direct transmission or overheating surfaces, even if the ambient (air) temperature is cold. Very difficult to regulate. The most energy inefficient form of heating.

-Conduction, as strip heaters. Warms by direct contact. Indirectly warms the air from convection off itself and the surfaces it warms. Most heat sources are very easily controlled. Since these are purely resistive electric elements a simple light dimmer can be used to regulate the heat output and generic thermostatic controls with remote sensing bulbs, as oven thermostats, coupled tightly to the element can be used to regulate the temperature. Used to only heat surfaces as the substrate in terrariums this is the most efficient form of heating.

-Convection. Uses a medium as a liquid or gas to transmit energy. The commonest form are space heaters which use the ambient air, either passively like heat sinks in electronic devices or actively, using pumps or fans. Normally the most efficient in heating the air in a terrarium but the heat output source presents burn and fire hazards. It must be thermostatically controlled.

For terrarium environments the safest and most reliable method of heating is a dual method. Heating the surfaces animals come in contact with to a desired temperature by conduction combined with heating the ambient air by convection. If there is sufficient air flow over the heated surfaces the convection source can be eliminated.

Augmented heating. In some environments and for some animals, a very steady temperature is desirable. Or, to emulate day and night cycles, two temperatures may be desired. By far the easiest method to achieve this is by using conduction coupled with a thermal battery.

A thermal battery is simply a material of high density that heats and releases it's heat slowly. As a typical example, rock or concrete. While using a thermal battery inevitably requires some trial and error experimentation it can provide the most desirable overall temperature range for a terrarium. For example, a strip heater running only a few minutes or an hour or two heating a high density material like a rock or concrete slab below the substrate can produce a gradual warming of the entire terrarium for several hours then cools down to emulate night time temperatures.

All living organisms are oriented towards some fluctuation, variation, in temperature. This helps animals keep their internal clock adjusted. Knowing their preferred minimum and maximum preferred temperatures and achieving them in a terrarium will often have a significant effect on an animals longevity, ability to breed, shed or molt, and hibernation (rejuvenation) cycles.
 
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