Just wanted to bring to everyone's attention about the proper use of heating tape know as Flexwatt.
There must be an adequate space for air flow to move.
Too tight of a space and the heat will build up causing the flexwatt to melt and burn any combustibles within reach.
You'll end up with something like this:



In this instance, a dimmer was used to regulate the temps.
However, a dimmer won't shut it off if it starts to overheat.
A thermostat won't do any good either unless the probe happens to be where the tape is overheating.
Make sure your heat tape is installed correctly.
Leave an adequate air space and do not use it on anything combustible.
Do not use inside of an enclosure either.
This was someone who could have easily lost their home and possibly family.
Good luck trying to get house insurance to cover something like this.
It's important not to "cheap out" on your enclosure when it comes to using electricity and heating elements.

Do it properly, and if you don't know how--please ask.

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Mike
"Never worry about numbers. Help one person at a time, and always start with the person nearest you." - Mother Teresa

Wow! That could have been a scary situation!

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Wow. Ouch. Thanks for the warning!

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"Let's eat, Grandpa!"
"Let's eat Grandpa!"

Punctuation. It saves lives.