Heated pet bowl question

Depends...if the bowl has an internal thermostat AND you use an electronic dimmer, when the thermostat opens, it MAY open the circuit of the dimmer and it won't turn back on. It should work with at least some dimmers, the older analog, reostat controlled jobs will probably work.

they remind me of toasters too. Those old rheostats probably just took all the power that wasn't going to the light bulb and then turned it into heat. Along with a little vibration and noise.

So they will give you the right kind of current wave to run a pet bowl (hot water) heater. Varying the power so you get your variable output you were looking for. Warmer or less warmer water.

david

It is apparent that many folks have ideas on how to properly warm this pet dish full (or not so full) of water.

Obviously the only way to resolve the issue and develop a consensus solution is to conduct laboratory and field study of all suggested solutions in order to objectively determine the proper solution.

My group proposes a study in three parts:

1) Literature review and alternate solution proposals
In this phase of the study all proposed solutions will be researched for cost and feasibility. Additional alternate solutions may be discovered and added to the possible solution matrix. The proposed solutions will be ranked in terms of life cycle cost (30%), practicality (50%), and ease of application (20%)

2) Laboratory investigation
The top three ranked proposed solutions will be identified and tested in laboratory environment

3) Field testing
The best solution identified by laboratory testing will be field tested and any required modifications will be identified.

Timeline & Cost: It is anticipated that this study will require 3 years and a budget of approximately 120,000 $/year to complete. Annual progress reports will be generated along with a final report which details all findings.

Ok, who's in for funding?

Right. Very funny...
No funding here...but I will donate the services of my 2 pitbulls to test out the prototype.




OCCAMS RAZOR says:

"entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem”

which translates to:

“entities should not be multiplied beyond necessity.”


IOW- "All things being equal, the simplest solution tends to be the right one.."


In any event it appears that Majus is missing in action.
Can't say I blame him. lol

M.

What about just setting a normal bowl on say a heating pad set on low? they have a thermostat and you can play with it to get just the right temp. You might find them trying to sleep on it in the winter.

just to be sure we got this right:

1.) A heater is a resistive load. There is no motor in it. So there is no inductive load.

2.) A dimmer handles resistive loads. A dimmer made for lights.

3.) The thermostat in the heater probably is triggered by heat, so power being reduced has no impact on the thermostat, and does not interfere with the thermostat operation.

4.) any dimmer -- made for light bulbs -- will work here.


Please confirm or refute. Electrical sages and less than sages too


David

Some electronic dimmers won't turn back on again by themselves if the load is switched off; some will. So, you need to be careful of the type you choose...one with a rheostat is more likely to work well than one that uses a rocker switch to adjust the level.

It's amazing how you folks tend to over complicate stuff. Plug the bowl into a $4.00 timer and set it to cycle 4-5 times a day. Sheesh!

I brew my own beer, and have the need to keep the "wort" (the fermenting malt liquid) at a constant temperature.

I use a temperature controller like this one. Even though your pets aren't making beer, it would keep the water at a constant temperature.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/temp-control.html

Analog

Backglass said:

I use a temperature controller like this one. Even though your pets aren't making beer, it would keep the water at a constant temperature.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/temp-control.html

Click to expand...

Until they chew the wire!

Right. Absolutely not--That's not pet safe---bad application.

Majus said:

I don't want to serve her _hot_ water, I want to serve slightly warm water since she prefers that. I keep my house quite cold and after the water bowl has been out for a while the water gets too cold and she won't drink it.

George

Click to expand...

Maybe you need to turn the heat up in your house.

Or maybe you need to get a pet who is not so darn fussy!

There is another solution. Put the water bowl right where the heating vent is, it will blow on the bowl when it comes on.

Spam is what drudged this thread up, again.

My dog makes me sign a non-compete contract every time I take him for a walk. Times a changin!

Get a 2 dollar crock pot from the thrift shop.