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Roach tank


Cliff

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ya thats what thay normally go to but there is always a chance of them shorting out, and i have heard alot of stories about that happening so i dont risk it. the dimmer is another good suggestion.

+1

I use that on my reptiles along with a light to keep the temp. stable!

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might be but you should still look into Ceramic heat emitters it's basically a light bulb that doesn't produce light but heat instead and thay last alot longer than most heat bulbs more expensive though, i think the cheapest i've seen was like $18ish for a 50watt also you probably should get a fixture that has a ceramic housing because these do get quite hot.

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.

might be but you should still look into Ceramic heat emitters it's basically a light bulb that doesn't produce light but heat instead and thay last alot longer than most heat bulbs more expensive though, i think the cheapest i've seen was like $18ish for a 50watt also you probably should get a fixture that has a ceramic housing because these do get quite hot.

Yeah I have heard about them before, never looked into much. I think I'll have to do some research.

Honestly I'd rather not use a thermostat. They are kinda costly, I've already spend alot of $ on the roaches. I think heat tape + thermostat would be like $80 cheapest or something.

I'm thinking ceramic heat emitter and a lamp dimmer? (I don't know how the lamp dimmer works, but I think I saw one at home depot the other day while looking around at plants. (Wanted to buy my GF a plant for valentines day).

I was thinking of getting a 50gallon tub with lid to put my roaches in, or 2-3 30 gallons. I have to see where I have room in my apartment once I move everything in, and figure out if I'm keeping them in a closet or a corner of a room, or what.

Can't wait to start my colony :) yay for roaches :D

- Cliff

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no and with that dimmer you can control how hot it gets

[/quote

Have a 4ft dubia tank so understand wanting a 6ft tank. Got a space heater for my office so I only have to supplement heat for certain species.Then disassembled the walk in closet put in industrial shelves. Then put up thick curtains. The roaches are very happy now warm and dark. Have ceramic heaters but prefer heat mats they dont scare me as much and a lot of roaches stay close to floor. Hope this helps.

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Have a 4ft dubia tank so understand wanting a 6ft tank. Got a space heater for my office so I only have to supplement heat for certain species.Then disassembled the walk in closet put in industrial shelves. Then put up thick curtains. The roaches are very happy now warm and dark. Have ceramic heaters but prefer heat mats they dont scare me as much and a lot of roaches stay close to floor. Hope this helps.

I've read with heat mats they can kill the babies. They get too hot on the bottom and just die. Read this somewhere, possibly this forum someone had this problem if I am remembering correctly. I might just get two under tank heats and put them on the side of the container? I think this will be cheaper than 2 lamps + 2 lights. But I think lighting could control the heat better with the dimmer? Will be making my colony/tank/everything this next week. Just gotta buy the stuff I need, and figure out which heating I want to do.

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I've read with heat mats they can kill the babies. They get too hot on the bottom and just die. Read this somewhere, possibly this forum someone had this problem if I am remembering correctly. I might just get two under tank heats and put them on the side of the container? I think this will be cheaper than 2 lamps + 2 lights. But I think lighting could control the heat better with the dimmer? Will be making my colony/tank/everything this next week. Just gotta buy the stuff I need, and figure out which heating I want to do.

You may be right. Keep my heating always on one side gives my animals the ability to cool off. With a long tank its easy. Dimmers have there advantages. Enjoy!!!

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  • 3 weeks later...

Got a 45 gallon sterlite container. Fits lots of roaches, working on heating it... I have 100 watt bulbs in a 2 socket lamp, dangling above the lid, wrapped to the pole that should hold hangers in a closet, with a ethernet cable...

Will take pics once my girlfriend is home, she just had her wisdom teeth taken out and stayed home. I'll use her camera and take a few pics.

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  • 2 weeks later...

If you want to breed dubias you should use a small tank or rubbermaid container. It will take a lot more to keep it heated to 100 degrees and have a humidity of 60%. They also do better with less space and it's easier to maintain. I keep a couple hundred females in each plastic totes or small 10 gallon tanks with heating pads under them. A ratio of 3 females for every male is a good start. The females are live bearers, you will get about 30 nymphs a month from each adult female. I just sorted out one of my colonies and now have approx 5000+ babies, and they will all go into another bin. It's amazing how many fit in a rubbermaid tote. It's a lot of work if you plan on making money from them. I started breeding them to feed my beardies a few years ago. It is nice to always have feeders and not have to buy them. I also make a few hundred bucks a month selling them. My hisser colony just started to explode too, but I found it harder than I thought to sell them.

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If you want to breed dubias you should use a small tank or rubbermaid container. It will take a lot more to keep it heated to 100 degrees and have a humidity of 60%. They also do better with less space and it's easier to maintain. I keep a couple hundred females in each plastic totes or small 10 gallon tanks with heating pads under them. A ratio of 3 females for every male is a good start. The females are live bearers, you will get about 30 nymphs a month from each adult female. I just sorted out one of my colonies and now have approx 5000+ babies, and they will all go into another bin. It's amazing how many fit in a rubbermaid tote. It's a lot of work if you plan on making money from them. I started breeding them to feed my beardies a few years ago. It is nice to always have feeders and not have to buy them. I also make a few hundred bucks a month selling them. My hisser colony just started to explode too, but I found it harder than I thought to sell them.

I have a 11x29 inch heating pad that can cover the bottom of the container fully in length. I put it diagonally so that it cover about 70% of the container, good chunk of it has no pad directly under it. It gets to 100 degree's on the bottom, I have a digital thermometer with the probe placed on the bottom of the container in the center (core? you could say, of the colony).

I bought a $10 24 hour lamp dimmer/timer. Every 30 minutes the heat pad goes off, and then back on. I'd like something more programmable... so I can have it at mid-high 90's all the time. I check on the temp frequently all day when I'm home, 84-100 all day from what I can tell.

I'm trying to think of ways that I can lessen the heat a little bit..? so that I can just keep the pad on all day without having to worry.. I might try placing the container inside another container so the heat has to pass through something first.

Anyone have any cheap and effective way regulate the temp of the heating pad better?

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