Thermostat

[Randy]

Can I hook up a cheap room thermostat that you get at Lowes to a heat lamp. Want to use it in a dog house. I was told that would not work.

Any advice?

[Glenn]

Only if it is a 120V one. Most of them are not cheap. The regular house version is usually around 24V.

They do make 120V switches that are 24V activated but they are NOT cheap. [g]

[PeterD]

Get a thermostat designed for electric baseboard heat. These are simple, and will handle the load without any problems.

There are other solutions as well... Thermostats designed for just the purpose that you describe (rugged, and simple). Check with a supplier who specializes in agriculture products.

[Big_Jake]

$18 is pretty cheap. This is one of the most common ones that I have seen.

I think it is more correct to say "A few of them are not cheap" - like this:

And this isn't even that bad at $65. Might be a little pricey for a doghouse.

JK

[v8z]

Or, for $29 get a complete 120v ceramic space heater with thermostat, fan, and safety shut-off

[Andy Energy]

The first step would be to superinsulate the dog house. The amount of insulation woudl depend on the climate your in. If done properly the body heat from the dog should be plenty, if not then add a heating device. I would recomend a double flap over

I do agree with the comment on the heat lamp as they are fragile and may break, also the light may keep your dog awake. One might try looking at farming supply sales as operation like chickens etc may have safe heating devices with thermostats.

And the above statements of needing a thermostat that will operate on

120V is needed or you will need a transformer and a relay (this gets complicated for us non electronic people). Go to Google.com and look for "line voltage thermostat" (without the quotes) and you will find many models.

Look in google for "poultry heater electric"

Whole House Performance is the right thing to do. Whole "Dog" House Performance is the right thing to do.

[Craig M]

[ransley]

Craig ms idea is good, once I put a bulb in the doghouse the dog would not go in, plus a heat lamp might burn a dog and a pad heats from underneath

[PeterD]

For many dogs this is not a good idea. They like to chew on things and eventually they'll chew the heating pad. As well, you'd need to regularly inspect the pad for damage to prevent electircal shock hazards... If Fido gets zapped he won't go back into that dog house ever again!

A slightly better solution would be roof heating tape with a built in thermostat, installed on the roof (less likely to get chewed) which would radiate heat downwards.

But, seriously...

A properly designed and sized (not too large!) dog house should not require heat at all, the dog's body heat will warm it up nicely. I've years of experience in this (in NH where it can get damned cold) with German Shepards who lived 100% outdoors year round. I used a dog house called a 'DogLoo' (that's probably badly spelled) made of plastic. Indestructable. Always had a bed of straw (renew the straw as needed, usually every fwe months).

A small 50 watt lightbulb would be sufficient for virtually any heat requirements as well, and there would be no reason to ever turn it off (in the winter) either.

BTW, electric dog water bowls are vital to allow the dog to have fresh water as needed, though most dogs will choose to eat snow if they can get it...

[Glenn]

I must agree on not heating the house. I was raised on a farm and as cows heat the barn, so did our dogs heat their own house. The secret is not having the house too big for his body to heat it. Back then 70 yrs ago, we never would have even thought of insulation but that should be sufficient to heat the (small) house.

[Craig M]

did not think about dogs that chew, the dog we had done this for, was not a chewer, like my 3 are now, labs will chew on most anything, they love cutoffs from the power miter saw. sticks from the yard, all the money my wife spends on chew toys, they go for a stick.

[Dioclese]

Built a dog house in the side of hill. 6'X6'X3.5' high. Cinder block construction on a 6" deep slab. Cinder blocks are concrete filled with rebar to boot inside to the slab. Painted inside and out with basement type paint to block water intrusion. Front opening cover is a rubber mat cut just a hair smaller than the opening. 2x4 frame, slanted roof, steel roof covering, with insulation between rafters.

Seen the 2 dogs in it twice. Been over a year. Tried all kinds of floor coverings. Nothing works. They sleep outside on the porch.

Considering moving all my flammables from the garage to the dog house...

[PeterD]

Way too big if you expect it to be warmed by the dog's body heat. I've never seen a dog that would be big enough for this sized dog house--even two dogs are not going to work. Just plain too large.

Alternate bomb shelter, too?

Dogs vary in what they want, and like. Straw works well for me, and the dogs like it.

Probably the best use for it.

There are formulas for dog house sizing, and maybe consult one when you build the next one?

[Glenn]

Based on your description, I can't imagine what an out house you would build would look like. [g]

[PeterD]

Would have to be two stories, right?

I'm reminded of that Discovery Channel show where they built the 'ultimate' doghouse. It was amazing what they did, but I doubt the dogs gave a rat's ass when it was done.

We tend to apply our (human) values to animals, and sometimes that doesn't work well. One of the first things I learned was that dog houses were seldom too small, but were often too large.

[Glenn]

That's OK as long as I get to use the top one.

[Dioclese]

Was definitely a learning process doing the project. Never worked with cinder block before, or steel roofing. Surprised I found the paint for the cinder block. No basements to speak of in S. central Texas.

Lot of annual rye on the place. Might try that.

[Glenn]

May I suggest you drink some of that rye before the next try?