THERMOSTAT INSTALlATION HELP

[Rbl4life]

I have a home made incubator where the lights is through the top, and want to wire in a thermostat. where would the best place to put a thermostat be? and whats the best kind i can buy from a hardware store for fairly cheap

 

[GeoKan]

Quote:
Greetings Rbl4life. I've also constructed a homemade incubator. I used the single pole hot-water heater thermostat. I placed it about 1.5 inches from the bulb. Make sure you mount the thermostat so that the back metal side is facing the bulb or heat source. I've also heard that the wafer thermostats are very reliable. I'm not sure many hardware stores carry them anymore, so you may have to order them online. I know eBay has them for about $24.

Here's a couple of photos of what I have done. You can view the whole process -----> here.

Here's how I wired it. The bottom wire goes to the thermostat and the top wire goes to the plug.

Here's how I placed my thermostat.

Hope this helps.

 

[Rbl4life]

mine is made from a styrofoam cooler, and the light buld comes through the top, so would i just screw the thermostat to the wall as close to the bulb as possible? Nice incubator by the way!!

 

[GeoKan]

Quote:
Thanks for the compliment.

I guess I need to know what kind of thermostat you're using. If it's a water-heater thermostat, then it needs to be close to the bulb. The radiant heat from the bulb is the trigger for these thermostats. Accuracy depends on the intensity of heating and cooling. So, if you can somehow mount it close with the circular metal side facing the bulb, I think you would be more successful stabilizing the temperature. You also control the temperature somewhat with the location of the thermostat. The closer it is, the faster it will shut on and off. I hope this helps.

Are you using a PC fan as well?

 

[Rbl4life]

yes i am using a fan. I guess i could mount it on the lid beside the light buld