Guess today's just a bad day..

[ilovemysnake]

1. not even 2 month old hide broke in half while soaking.
2. brand new digital thermometer is crap. can't even explain how angry i am. doesn't know if it wants to be Celsius or Fahrenheit. cant touch it or it turns off.
3. thermostat isn't even working. need to order a new one. shoulda just got the hydrofarm one.

point blank, never trusting Zilla again.

i was so happy i finally got all the shopping done too.
what sucks is that i bought two of everything.
neither thermometer works, and i mid as well just return the working thermostat, i'll probably have problems with that one too.

looks like i have to use the analog thermometers until i can get a new one. *sigh* :no:

[shaunyboy]

i use cheap dial guage thermometers,so i get an idea of the tank temps at a glance.....

i use a lazer temperature gun for more precise temp measurements

cheers shaun

[Terranaut]

i use cheap dial guage thermometers,so i get an idea of the tank temps at a glance.....

i use a lazer temperature gun for more precise temp measurements

cheers shaun

I do the same. Works great.

[ilovemysnake]

I do the same. Works great.

thanks!!!!

[sharthun]

I do the same. Works great.

Same here! Ditto;) love my 18 dollar temp gun!

[Aaron_S]

*81. not even 2 month old hide broke in half while soaking.
2. brand new digital thermometer is crap. can't even explain how angry i am. doesn't know if it wants to be Celsius or Fahrenheit. cant touch it or it turns off.
3. thermostat isn't even working. need to order a new one. shoulda just got the hydrofarm one.

point blank, never trusting Zilla again.

i was so happy i finally got all the shopping done too.
what sucks is that i bought two of everything.
neither thermometer works, and i mid as well just return the working thermostat, i'll probably have problems with that one too.

looks like i have to use the analog thermometers until i can get a new one. *sigh* :no:

Good thing you got a lot of cash for Xmas to re-buy it all!

This time shop smart. Shop "S" Mart.

[Pareeeee]

They sell Infrared Temp guns on ebay super cheap. Mine works great.

[mistersprinkles]

I don't understand why reptile supplies are always such low quality. It's always bothered me. Supplies made for aquariums have always been a much higher quality.

[Terranaut]

An ir temp gun doesn't have to have a specific application to be used for reptiles. 90° is 90° wether the temp gun says zilla or mastercraft or snap on.

[ilovemysnake]

*8

Good thing you got a lot of cash for Xmas to re-buy it all!

This time shop smart. Shop "S" Mart.

meh, plus i work haha! i'm getting hydrofarm thermostats, and thermometers they use at my local pet store. hoping to not fully break the bank.

[IW17]

Big apple herp makes a thermostat that's $40 and i have been using it for a while. Very basic but works great and is very accurate.

[KORBIN5895]

Big apple herp makes a thermostat that's $40 and i have been using it for a while. Very basic but works great and is very accurate.

Zilla, big apple, LLL and reptitherm are all basically the same t-stat with a different sticker.

[ilovemysnake]

Zilla, big apple, LLL and reptitherm are all basically the same t-stat with a different sticker.

im probably just gonna go with hydrofarm.

[LiL Zap]

I don't understand why reptile supplies are always such low quality. It's always bothered me. Supplies made for aquariums have always been a much higher quality.

I feel the same way. Can't tell you how many crappy things I see at pet stores for reptiles.

[drumcrush]

I was at the pet store getting a new tank for my brother(1$/gal. Sale) and I was looking through the reptiles and I saw a leopard gecko that was in terrible condition! I feel bad for not saving it :/

[MDT]

im probably just gonna go with hydrofarm.

Just curious....any reason you're going w Hydrofarm vs Herpstat or Vivarium Electronics?

[Aaron_S]

I was at the pet store getting a new tank for my brother(1$/gal. Sale) and I was looking through the reptiles and I saw a leopard gecko that was in terrible condition! I feel bad for not saving it :/

Don't.

Feel bad for the lizard that's okay but don't feel bad for putting more money into the stores pockets to do it to even more lizards. You'd likely kill 5 more for saving the one.

Then I would have to call you "Killer".

[Aaron_S]

Just curious....any reason you're going w Hydrofarm vs Herpstat or Vivarium Electronics?

I can answer this. Cheapest available.

[MDT]

Ya know...I did the Zilla/Eco Earth/That Pet Place type stuff early on...I found that I had to spend two or three times the original amount. It may be a little more up front, but quality products are def worth the extra $$$.

[ilovemysnake]

Just curious....any reason you're going w Hydrofarm vs Herpstat or Vivarium Electronics?

i actually haven't seen many bad reviews on it compared to other ones. and i heard some people on here use it too.

aaron, stop. there's cheaper out there, esp on ebay.

[EL Ziggy]

Inexpensive doesn't necessarily mean ineffective. I use hydrofarm t-stats also and haven't had any issues. I would definitely recommend them to others.

[KORBIN5895]

Inexpensive doesn't necessarily mean ineffective. I use hydrofarm t-stats also and haven't had any issues. I would definitely recommend them to others.

A customer of mine has had two go that were only two years old.

[Aaron_S]

Ya know...I did the Zilla/Eco Earth/That Pet Place type stuff early on...I found that I had to spend two or three times the original amount. It may be a little more up front, but quality products are def worth the extra $$$.

I agree. I exclusively use Herpstat.

I am not going to cheap out for 2 reasons.

1. I love my animals and hobby. They deserve the best and I don't want them to die because I was cheap.

2. I have a lot of money in my animals and not only that, there can be a lot of money in the eggs incubating. Last thing I need is to lose either of those things because I was cheap.

[MDT]

Exactly....I really know nothing about Hydrofarm, they may be awesome and I'm not dogging on anyone who owns them. However, the options on the VE or HS (pulse, night drop, alarms, etc) give me much more peace of mind with my snakes (which are also a little on the $$$$ side)....
As far as thermometers, I only use a small handheld IR (laser? can't remember) temp gun from Pro-Exotics (old school :))...It was only like $20 way back when, but still works like a champ. IDK what the right answer is, I just know I've spent a ton of cash on the Zilla/Zoo-Med type stuff...with fairly disappointing outcomes.

[Terranaut]

I have only used Herpstat and Hydrafarm and got to say I love the Hydrafarms. Yes the Herpstat is better made with better features and I use it on my incubator but as far as bang for your buck I have found nothing as good as Hydrafarm. I spent my cash on my snake room itself so having a failure would be harmless for the short time it would take me to discover it. I also use RHPs which even left on wide open would be fine for a bit and not burn the snake. These IMHO are great for the money and help people who find out after the pet store sells them all the wrong junk that they have to spend money they dont have. $30 is easier to swallow than $200 and people are less likely to do anything dumb like run uncontrolled heat sources knowing they have a $30 option.
Again just my opinion.

[MDT]

T-naut...good to know. Thanks for the first hand review..

[sharthun]

I have 3 hydrofarms and they have functioned very well for me the past few months.


I have only used Herpstat and Hydrafarm and got to say I love the Hydrafarms. Yes the Herpstat is better made with better features and I use it on my incubator but as far as bang for your buck I have found nothing as good as Hydrafarm. I spent my cash on my snake room itself so having a failure would be harmless for the short time it would take me to discover it. I also use RHPs which even left on wide open would be fine for a bit and not burn the snake. These IMHO are great for the money and help people who find out after the pet store sells them all the wrong junk that they have to spend money they dont have. $30 is easier to swallow than $200 and people are less likely to do anything dumb like run uncontrolled heat sources knowing they have a $30 option.
Again just my opinion.

[IW17]

Zilla, big apple, LLL and reptitherm are all basically the same t-stat with a different sticker.

Wow didn't know this. I have concluded to never buy anything Zilla again due to the cheap quality. But I've always been fairly impressed with most of the supplies I have from big apple. Thanks for the info.

[KORBIN5895]

Wow didn't know this. I have concluded to never buy anything Zilla again due to the cheap quality. But I've always been fairly impressed with most of the supplies I have from big apple. Thanks for the info.

I flip a lot of things related to reptiles. I bought a guys whole collection once and all of his gear. He had a big apple, and a zilla that were broken. I tore them apart to fix them and they were almost identical inside.

[smy_749]

I have the hydrofarm or whatever its called. I also have a herpstat. If your using a heatpad on one enclosure, I don't see an issue with the hydrofarm stat, just the annoying clicks and variance of a few degrees. Why I like the herpstat better? I can use it on lighting and as an incubator thermometer if I need to. Husbandry wise for most species, a few degrees up and down on the hot side isn't a huge deal though. Both are fine for what they are designed to do.