Heating a bin of roaches

[Inkie14]

I have a big 30 gallon rubber bin out in the garage full of Giant Lobster Roaches. They cannot be moved to another room, and it's getting colder in the garage every night. I think it drops to about 55-60 degrees Fahrenheit. I want to heat the bin somehow, but I think putting a heat pad or something on the rubber would be a bad idea. Any suggestions?

 

[Ralph]

Rubber bin... like a Sterilite tub or something?

A space heater might be safe, especially if the container's lid retains heat well, but not energy-efficient.

 

[RomanBuck]

Low wattage heat pad. I also use a baseboard heater along with heat pads. For the higher wattage pads I stick glass in between the base and the bin. I haven't had any problems. If you use the reptile heat pads, use the rubber feet to let air pass through

 

[Doc]

I'd recommend the heat pads from reptilebasics.com if you go that route. I've had nothing but trouble from the sticky ones sold in most pet stores. However, I have some reptilebasics pads that I've used for over 5 years. You can use those on a plastic storage bin without worrying about the heat. I don't use the spacers on plastic totes. They aren't needed in my opinion. I only use them for glass enclosures.

 

[Loosey]

find a piece of slate or thin square tile, attach the sticky side of a replite heat mat to the rock and then turn it upside down so the rock is facing up, then you can put your bin right on the heated rock.

 

[Inkie14]

Thanks for the ideas everyone!

Loosey: That is an excellent idea, since I actually have a heated rock! That way I won't have to buy a heat pad! I just found a small tile, and I'm putting the heat rock on it now to see how hot the tile gets.