Any Cheaper Thermostats for Heat Mats?

greenthumbomaha · December 10, 2014

My Amazon order from Nov. 2010 shows a hydrofarm thermostat was $18.94. Now it cost $32.84 I need another but can't believe the increase. Any cheaper options so as not to overheat the seedlings?

-Lisa

heirloomtomaguy · December 10, 2014

Thats how much i got it for from the local hydroponic store. Seems expensive for what it does.

Salsacharley · December 10, 2014

Here's a real economic a.k.a. cheap way to go.

http://www.tomatoville.com/showthrea...ain+thermostat

greenthumbomaha · December 10, 2014

I thought about using a dimmer I have but mine only have a few on/off settings, not enough to regulate the heat. Sometimes I forget to put the prong back in after taking a peek under the dome and in a few short minutes the temp changes very quickly. Not something I want to be running and checking all the time.

-L.

loulac · December 12, 2014

I suggest you visit http://www.tomatoville.com/showthrea...ain+thermostat
There may be a few different threads, use the search engine to find them !

biscuitridge · December 13, 2014

Amazon has a very nice one,do a search for Docooler thermostat, it's about 14.00$ I've bought 7 of these and they work great,have questions email me ☺

greenthumbomaha · December 14, 2014

Many set ups, but he Docooler is along the lines of what I was looking for. Price is great. Just to be sure before I hit the check out button, is there any electrical wiring I have to hook up, or can I plug the heat mat in directly to the unit? People are grumbling about the instructions, so thanks in advance for your offer to help getting it set up.

loulac · December 14, 2014

I quite agree with greenthumbomaha's suggestion. T've been using the recommended thermostats for 2 years , they work perfectly. A drawback : the directions for use are either written in Chinese or the manufacturer's English is rather difficult to undertand, so I'll paste the last two lines of one of my threads :

They should have directions for use written in English. If it is not the case all is not lost, see a demo on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mGT4av5n3o and directions for use translated into English on http://www.e-bookspdf.org/download/wh7016-manual.html free loading of documents.

You won't have any trouble using it.

biscuitridge · December 14, 2014

Yes you do have to do a little wiring,I'd be glad to post a photo but I'm on vacation and won't be able to for a few weeks, are really a slick unit

biscuitridge · December 14, 2014

I use this thermostat for my automatic cold frame and my greenhouse and food storage cottage and of course for all my heat mats. Most of these thermostats are in celcius but make sure that the one you get is in farenheit,it also has setable differential which is nice and for the money I don't think you can beat it.

lavanta · December 17, 2014

Search eBay for PID Controller, there are many of them around 15 bucks. I know a lot of people use them for their Sous Vide cooking setup. Needs a little wiring. For example:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/10A-110V-Dig...item1c3ee3f497

It looks like this is already mentioned in the other thread.

PA_Julia · December 27, 2014

I purchased a new heat mat back in June for this upcoming season.
I have already ordered the Hydrofarm thermostat from Amazon.

My next door neighbor has this same setup and it has works extremely well for him.
The overwhelming majority of reviews on Amazon for this unit are quite favorable as well.

luigiwu · December 28, 2014

I tried the dimmer setup last year. It worked well for one day and then it stopped. Meaning the heat mat was cold. Initially I thought the mat was dead, but once I took it off the dimmer it was fine/hot again.

luigiwu · December 28, 2014

Quote:

Originally Posted by loulac

I quite agree with greenthumbomaha's suggestion. T've been using the recommended thermostats for 2 years , they work perfectly. A drawback : the directions for use are either written in Chinese or the manufacturer's English is rather difficult to undertand, so I'll paste the last two lines of one of my threads :

They should have directions for use written in English. If it is not the case all is not lost, see a demo on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mGT4av5n3o and directions for use translated into English on http://www.e-bookspdf.org/download/wh7016-manual.html free loading of documents.

You won't have any trouble using it.

So in order to use the Docooler thermostat, you'll have to cut the plug off of the heat mat and then use pigtails to connect the wires to each other?

loulac · December 29, 2014

I never cut off the lead of the mat but I connect the lead out of the thermostat to what we call a female plug in French, and I connect the male plug of the mat to that female plug. I hope I have been clear enough, if not I think some helpful Tomatovilian will be kind enough to reword that post !

December 10, 2014	#1
greenthumbomaha Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Omaha Zone 5 Posts: 2,514	Any Cheaper Thermostats for Heat Mats? My Amazon order from Nov. 2010 shows a hydrofarm thermostat was $18.94. Now it cost $32.84 I need another but can't believe the increase. Any cheaper options so as not to overheat the seedlings? -Lisa

December 10, 2014	#2
heirloomtomaguy Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2013 Location: glendora ca Posts: 2,560	Thats how much i got it for from the local hydroponic store. Seems expensive for what it does. __________________ “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it."

December 17, 2014	#11
lavanta Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2013 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 68	Search eBay for PID Controller, there are many of them around 15 bucks. I know a lot of people use them for their Sous Vide cooking setup. Needs a little wiring. For example: http://www.ebay.com/itm/10A-110V-Dig...item1c3ee3f497 It looks like this is already mentioned in the other thread. Last edited by lavanta; December 17, 2014 at 01:54 PM.

December 27, 2014	#12
PA_Julia Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Princeton, Ky Zone 7A Posts: 2,208	I purchased a new heat mat back in June for this upcoming season. I have already ordered the Hydrofarm thermostat from Amazon. My next door neighbor has this same setup and it has works extremely well for him. The overwhelming majority of reviews on Amazon for this unit are quite favorable as well. __________________ Personal Best- 4.46 LB Big Zac 2013

December 10, 2014	#3
Salsacharley Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2013 Location: New Mexico Posts: 2,052	Here's a real economic a.k.a. cheap way to go. http://www.tomatoville.com/showthrea...ain+thermostat

December 12, 2014	#5
loulac Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: France Posts: 554	I suggest you visit http://www.tomatoville.com/showthrea...ain+thermostat There may be a few different threads, use the search engine to find them !

December 13, 2014	#6
biscuitridge Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: washington Posts: 498	Amazon has a very nice one,do a search for Docooler thermostat, it's about 14.00$ I've bought 7 of these and they work great,have questions email me ☺

December 14, 2014	#7
greenthumbomaha Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Omaha Zone 5 Posts: 2,514	Many set ups, but he Docooler is along the lines of what I was looking for. Price is great. Just to be sure before I hit the check out button, is there any electrical wiring I have to hook up, or can I plug the heat mat in directly to the unit? People are grumbling about the instructions, so thanks in advance for your offer to help getting it set up.

December 28, 2014	#13
luigiwu Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: ny Posts: 1,219	I tried the dimmer setup last year. It worked well for one day and then it stopped. Meaning the heat mat was cold. Initially I thought the mat was dead, but once I took it off the dimmer it was fine/hot again.

December 29, 2014	#15
loulac Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: France Posts: 554	I never cut off the lead of the mat but I connect the lead out of the thermostat to what we call a female plug in French, and I connect the male plug of the mat to that female plug. I hope I have been clear enough, if not I think some helpful Tomatovilian will be kind enough to reword that post !