The only other thing that you may want to check is the method that the mat uses to heat. Some electric heating elements i have seen are set to heat up at full bore in waves to keep temp, if this happens you may melt the foam insulation. Try it out but if you smell something funny turn it off =)
Radiant Tank Heating?
- Thread starter johnnymax
- Start date
That was my concern also. It says the wires heat up to 149 °F. Polyethylene's melting point 248 to 356 °F..
Styrofoam is made of polystyrene beads. Styrofoam's melting point is 464 °F.
But I will definitly test it out.
Not sure if this would be helpful, but Tractor Supply Stores and similar places sell an item called a "pig blanket". It's a heavy-duty heating pad used to keep...yep, you guessed it: pigs...warm in harsh weather. I have used these things to provide radiant floor warmth in doghouses with excellent success. If I recall correctly they don't have an adjustable thermostat, just a pre-set temperature. You'd have to cobble up some sort of control circuitry, but these items are safe, effective and cheap.
I looked for it at Tractor Supply's site, but could not find it. I have a temp controller I could plug it into. Does it have a different name?
It's been a number of years since I used them, but I still have a couple in the barn. I'll see if I can locate them tomorrow and try to get some info off them.
