Insulating Heaters

[Cumba]

I'm sure this question has been answered time and time again, and I apologize. But I have to insulate my UTH (on the side of the tank, obviously) and I was wondering how to do it safely. Does the UTH have to be a specific brand? I have a large sheet of styrofoam, do I just cut it to size and duct tape it over the heater to the side of the tank? Thanks!

[Crabby in NJ]

Wouldn’t styrofoam melt from that amount of constant heat? I mean, I know we use styrofoam for coffee cups but it eventually gets cold, doesn’t stay a specific hot temp. I’m just as curious to know if it’s doable! I have a Pangea heater on the side of my tank but don’t have the instructions for it. I am pretty sure I’ve seen ppl say here that certain brands of heaters cannot be safely insulated but I’m unsure which ones. Good luck with everything; someone with much more knowledge will be around soon no doubt about it!

[curlysister]

You can only insulate over the UTH's that you need to use tape to attach, not the ones that have a sticky side.
From the basics care sheet:

Under-Tank Heater (UTH)

These are the most popular option for warming crabitats. They are sold for reptiles for use underneath the tank, but in hermit crab enclosures the UTH should only be used on the side or back of the tank. Because of the need of thick substrate in crabitats, UTHs are not effective when used on the bottom and can possibly overheat and become a fire risk. Do not pay attention to the recommended tank size on the packaging - buy the largest sized heat mat that you can fit on the back of your tank as many store-bought UTH run too cool to heat a crabitat. Ultratherm brand UTH must be ordered online, but they are known to run the warmest and are capable of being insulated with styrofoam to boost the heat unlike many other brands. If the UTH runs too warm a plug-in lamp dimmer or thermostat can be used to adjust the temperature. Many crabbers prefer to use a pad that ends above the substrate line so that they do not have to worry about substrate drying out quickly. Also, UTH cannot be bent without damaging them.

[Motörcrab]

Here's Fleabags Guide for insulating a crabitat. He will walk you through a step by step process.

http://www.hermitcrabassociation.com/ph ... g#p1072369

[wodesorel]

Ultratherm and Fluker can for sure be safely insulated. I'm not sure about others, but if they are laminated with clear plastic and very flat they will probably be safe - they'll come with instructions (you can even usually find PDFs on the manufacturers website) that will tell you for sure.

[Cumba]

Thank you guys so much! I didn't know these resources existed! This was really helpful.