I agree that you don't need a warming mat. In fact, I misplaced mine so when the seed starting season came up, I had to improvise, too. Every time I use the clothes dryer (which is nearly every day)I sit covered seed containers on it. Works great and promotes quick germination.

am I alone here? from what I have seen in American in all be it only 10 months the heating come from the floor? I put a cage over the vent in rooms we don't use much such as sunroom, laundry, formal living, then I got cocky and used the main rooms, the cage was set above the heating and the cage was deflected into the room also, so we could still be roasty toasty, what I used, I am not sure I found them in the wood behind our house? it looked like they where used for holding many plants in tubs about 2 inches high and looked fairly flimsy but held up to seedling, although not a tubs...haha, scwished flat! loads of air holes in them and we closed off alot of vents in the rooms we don't use alot but the air still warmed them through the metal closer, was getting temps of 120 if I forgot to take the glass lid off, fried veggies anyone?

Hehehe. Using the vents crossed my mind, but the two that let out enough heat are in the kid's rooms, and putting seeds in there (or over any other vent, really) would end in disaster... I'm glad to hear the idea works tho! Maybe I'll try once the kids are bigger.

Watch yard sales for water bed heaters. They work great.

Ooohh. Good idea caavonldy.

I was thinking a warming rock for reptiles would probably work great... I've seen these at yard sales too.

I have an old fashioned oven that uses a gas pilot light. It keeps the inside of the oven a little too hot for starting seeds, but if I put some object between the oven door and the frame to hold it open slightly the temperature of the inside of the oven is just right for starting seeds that need warmth. I just have to be careful to check them often so I can take them out as soon as they start sprouting because its dark in the oven and the seedlings need light.

I start my seeds in a spare bedroom and just turn the heat up in the room and put the seeds up high where the heat accumulates. You could do the same thing using a small space heater in a closet or bathroom. Another option, if you have the stuff, is to take a submergable aquarium heater and put it in a large jar of water (not touching the bottom of the jar), place that in a covered aquarium with your seeds. The jar of water will act a mini space heater. Cover the top of the jar with foil to prevent the water from evaporating.