Thermostat for Oil Radiator Heater

[TinkleTurkey]

I'm turning a 42 sq ft closet into a walk-in incubator
Planning to use my kenwood oil radiator as the heat source, wondering what type of thermostat I need to regulate that? What is the best thermostat for the money? How much re-wiring will I have to do?

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

How many watts is the heater?

 

[TinkleTurkey]

1500

 

[al6517]

Wow !!! a big project for sure, Let me stew on it for a bit and see if I can be of some assistance.

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

Ok the simple way is to cut the power wire going to the wall an run it threw a wafer thermostat. If my math is right a wafer can handle up to about 3200 watts. The electronic options usually cant hold over 500 watts without using relays.

 

[TinkleTurkey]

Nifty, Thanks. I used this heater in my brooder room over the winter and it did a great job of keeping it evenly heated 75-80 degrees- so I suspect in a much smaller space it will have no problem maintaining the temperatures needed to incubate eggs.

I have no experience with electrical stuff, but my table-top incubators just aren't cutting it - and I have big plans to expand my flock. I have this closet in my workshop that used to be part of a recording studio - so its already pretty solid but I'm going to insulate it and seal up all the cracks.
Also, any idea what to do for ventilation, or is that much of a concern in a space of this size?

 

[TinkleTurkey]

Quote:
Great, can I buy this at a regular hardware store such as home depot? Do you know of any picture tutorials that might demonstrate how this is done?

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

No you would have to buy it online. Google wafer thermostat.

It would wire the same as the water heater thermostat in the first video on this page. http://cmfarm.us/WHTincubator.html

 

[eggbuster]

I use this heater in my bathroom to keep it warm for the incubators. My house currently doesn't have the best insulation, but on max. it could only get the bathroom to 85 degrees. Also, something to bear in mind, I have burned out 2 of these oil radiators so you need to keep an eye on them if you are counting on them for incubation. Over time, they get less efficient, so maybe its a problem with their built in thermostats. Just giving you a heads up for trouble shooting. Also slow to heat up and slow to cool down like an electric stove.

 

[TinkleTurkey]

Quote:
That's amazing! I was worried that installing a thermostat might be a challenge for me, but your video makes it simple. I'm sure I'll be able to do that. Thanks for sharing your expertise.