I've decided to go with CHEs for my tanks, and I was hoping you could help me figure out what wattage I should buy. I want to buy Big Apple Herps' Black Heat Infrared Ceramic Emitters(http://www.bigappleherp.com/bigapple...roducts/108110) and I plan to use them with thermostats, which I already have. I have three 20 gallon long tanks and one 30 gallon long. Do I need the 100 watt, 150 watt, or the 250 watt? Since I'm using thermostats, is it better to go with higher wattages, or is there still a danger of overheating somehow? I want to get something that will be strong enough to maintain the right temps even in the winter when our heat is turned down to 65 degrees Fahrenheit, and our glass tanks tend to lose a lot of heat. I had trouble this winter with the regular bulbs not keeping the temps high enough without swaddling the tanks in tin foil and fabric. I'm confused so any help would be appreciated. Thank you

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~Juliane~

Juliane the Ceramic Heat Emitter is going to put out a similar amount of heat to the same wattage light bulb. If you were having trouble maintaining the temps with the bulbs then you are going to need a higher wattage Ceramic Heat Emitter than the wattage of the bulbs you were using. I would play around with the house hold light bulbs to find the right wattage. I can tell you this. I use a 150 Zoomed Ceramic Heat Emitter to heat my 55 gallon ball python tank and a 250 Ceramic Heat Emitter in my big iguana enclosure.

I would go with the correct wattage to do the job. That way in the event of a thermostat malfunction you don't have to worry about frying your snake.

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Merlin,
What's Life Without A Little Magic!

So if you use those wattages for your big enclosures, then maybe I only need the 100 watt CHEs...

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~Juliane~

I wouldn't go any higher than the 100 watt. You may be able to get by with lower. Just depends on how warm the room stays. Like I said experiment with bulbs to find the necessary wattage.Then buy your Ceramic Heat Emitter. When you get it be sure that you have a surge protector strip on it. I fried my first one from a power surge.

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Merlin,
What's Life Without A Little Magic!

Thank you so much for your help, Merlin! I can't tell you how much I appreciate it!

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~Juliane~