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Disaster

elgecko

I've got a magic window!
Went to feed the baby, and hold backs (one's I thought I may want to keep for myself for future breeding projects) Leopard Geckos and could tell right away something was seriously wrong.
I opened up the cabinet doors and felt the heat just rolling out of the cabinet. Somehow the thermostat must have reset and had the heating tape at 165 degrees.
Had 7 cooked Leos.
Thank God the Snows (Leopard Gecko morph) are still alive. I was hoping to breed them next year.
Worst disaster I ever had with any lizards. Only 5 survived in the cabinet. :cry:
 
Ohhh that's so sad
Well at least you'll have only super strong genes in your breeding program
 
Oh man, so sorry to hear that bro! I just had another cooler failure in my small g/h and lost more of my HL neps... And that's WITH a system that emails my phone when the temps get out of range!
truly sucks! :cry:
 
Aww. Poor geckos. :( I hope you gave them little funerals. Poor little guys.
 
That sucks very hardcore dude.. Im sorry....

If its any consolation, I had something similar happen with some very precious rare asian ratsnakes... I managed to find an adult TRIO of elaphe moellendorffi, that had been breeding all season long with the previous owner... They were my pride and joy... I put them in the bottom 3 tubs of my biggest tub rack, where it was the coolest(as they require very cool temps).. At some point the thermostat probe came loose from where it was afixed over the heat tape.. I walked into the room to the smell of hot death... ran to the tubs going "ohnoohnoohnoohno!!!!".. but it was too late.. all 3 were dead as a doornail.. *sigh* ugh. It totally sucks when this crap happens.
 
Thats truly awful! :ohno:
 
Ahh that's terrible, sorry to hear. I had that happen once with an incubator. I now run two thermostats in line with one of them a degree warmer so if one kicks the bucket and defaults full on the other takes over. A second $200 dollar thermostat is well worth the peace of mind.
 
That's a real bummer man. I had a heater stick on and boil my tank full of Bolivian Ram Cichlids and Banjo Catfish, I never used a heater again for anything. I just don't trust 'em anymore.
 
I don't know about reptile.. but isn't it a "trick" for fish tanks to use one that is under rated.. so even if it sticks on, it can't cook the water? Maybe there is an equivalent to that fail safe for reptiles?
 
  • #10
Sorry to hear this; it really sucks to lose a pet. Especially to something like faulty equipment.
 
  • #11
Worst disaster I ever had with any lizards. Only 5 survived in the cabinet. :cry:

Let me make a guess: It was a mechanical thermostat?
Or was it a fully electronical thermostat?

It is always the same with mechanical thermostats: They last for a certain amount of switching operations, then they hang and don't shut off the heating after some years of operation.
 
  • #12
Sucks, real bummer. Sorry for your loss
 
  • #13
Thanks for the support.

Just hate killing animals that are in my care with something like this.

@jesse it was an electronic one. I've had the power go out many times since I've had it set up with no problems.
I was camping last weekend and my wife did tell me the power went out. Thought nothing of it. The thermostat instead of 96 degrees was set to 220 degrees.

May have to look into a backup that is set higher in case the first fails again... May be a mechanical one so it can not get the setting messed up...
 
  • #14
Sorry to hear that, I had the heat tape on one of my snake racks short out and catch fire last week. I moved the thermostat I have over to a radiant heater I have and I think it works pretty good. Maybe you could try that?
 
  • #15
aww. Sorry man. By far my favorite of the geckos. I feel your pain.
 
  • #16
Oh man :( poor little lizards RIP

..and adnedarn: not the helis i hope!
 
  • #17
AW MAN IM sorry for your loss.. I know what it feels liek to lose a pet...... :( Im glad some survived though. Hope you feel better soon.....

---------- Post added at 01:44 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:41 PM ----------

BTW Cant you hook up a couple thermostats to the same temp and put them on the power strip or something so youhave a couple failures allowed befdore anything bad happens? JW I only use light bulbs on my geckos in tanks.... i only have a 30 gal with rare leos a 10 g with an albino leo and a 55 with a bearded dragon.. I also have a heat mat on my rare leo one and am getting one for my albino soon if i can get a small enough one to keep one side cool and one hot liek the 30g...... Ive always avoided heat rocks for the same reason. THings can fail and then you feel horrible... :(
 
  • #18
Wow, can't believe so many of you have had this happen, too. Very disturbing.
 
  • #19
Man that majorly blows. Had a buddy who had something similar happen with his saltwater tank years back. He had an incredibly cute dwarf lionfish and snowflake eel, among other things, that he had had since they were wee ones. Over Christmas break while he was visiting family, his tank heater malfunction. Cooked everything.



 
  • #20
I used to keep saltwater tanks but my 130 gallon reef tank full of corals was my pride and joy. We went to Jamaica for a week and came back to find out the pet sitter had cooked every single tank :cry: Actually one blue velvet damsel and one yellow tang survived somehow but we found them suitable homes the very day we got home with local hobbyists so they wouldn't be in danger from the massive die offs. One of my tanks had a wonderful, big snowflake eel the kids named Chomper. He was trying to hang in there when we got home but went into these terrible, knotting himself up convulsions and died before he could be rehomed.

I know how bad it sucks. I haven't tried to keep a single saltwater tank since then. I'm so sorry for your loss.
Jenn
 
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