# sulcata "house"?



## DAC8671 (Mar 7, 2010)

I will be upgrading Ralph's "house" the beginning of next month. Currently he's in a dogloo with a heat lamp affixed to one side of the inside. I am going to get a garden shed (similar to this one http://www.sears.com/shc/s/s_10153_...or Storage_Garden Sheds?sbf=Brand&sbv=Suncast). I think it's going to be easier to clean and get into than the dogloo.

This will allow a better gradient of heat inside. My questions about heat, though, are: 1) should I use a CHE or continue to use my red heat lamp? 2) Should I put the heat in the farthest corner or in the middle of the inside ceiling? 3) How should I insulate, if at all? What would be a safe way to do this?

I will be cutting a door into it and putting up a 'half wall' inside so when he's sleeping or getting away from the cold the half wall will be blocking the door so wind/rain/elements won't be able to get in. 

Right now I am only using Timothy Hay as a substrate. I plan on putting soil and hay in the new shed.

Thanks in advance!


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## N2TORTS (Mar 7, 2010)

Heres " Harley's House " " in action" ...Timiothy hay is fine for substrate ( they can eat it too!) . This was built similar to a real house. I insulated the walls with R19 insulation. Then it was drywalled with 5/8 greenboard ( its moister resistant). Heating is supplied central cieling. And two different doors were built to accomidate his size as he grows.
















AND THE BEST ONE YET !!!!!!






JD~
This was 3 years ago ... his married now ...so its a his and hers Place,,,,He made me take down the wetbar and make it a sewing room!


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## ChiKat (Mar 7, 2010)

haha JD too funny...


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## N2TORTS (Mar 7, 2010)

Tee hee hee =:>)~


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## Tom (Mar 7, 2010)

What part of the country are you in?



DAC8671 said:


> I will be upgrading Ralph's "house" the beginning of next month. Currently he's in a dogloo with a heat lamp affixed to one side of the inside. I am going to get a garden shed (similar to this one http://www.sears.com/shc/s/s_10153_...or Storage_Garden Sheds?sbf=Brand&sbv=Suncast). I think it's going to be easier to clean and get into than the dogloo.
> 
> This will allow a better gradient of heat inside. My questions about heat, though, are: 1) should I use a CHE or continue to use my red heat lamp? 2) Should I put the heat in the farthest corner or in the middle of the inside ceiling? 3) How should I insulate, if at all? What would be a safe way to do this?
> 
> ...


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## Yvonne G (Mar 8, 2010)

I built mine like JD's however they are taller so I can walk in to scoop poop. I used the styrofoam insulation sheets because it was easier for me to handle. They come in 4'x8' sheets just like plywood. Then I put another sheet of plywood over them to protect them from the tortoises.


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## kimber_lee_314 (Mar 8, 2010)

This is great! Did he marry the cat? They look very happy together!


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## Tom (Mar 8, 2010)

DAC8671 said:


> I will be upgrading Ralph's "house" the beginning of next month. Currently he's in a dogloo with a heat lamp affixed to one side of the inside. I am going to get a garden shed (similar to this one http://www.sears.com/shc/s/s_10153_...or Storage_Garden Sheds?sbf=Brand&sbv=Suncast). I think it's going to be easier to clean and get into than the dogloo.
> 
> This will allow a better gradient of heat inside. My questions about heat, though, are: 1) should I use a CHE or continue to use my red heat lamp? 2) Should I put the heat in the farthest corner or in the middle of the inside ceiling? 3) How should I insulate, if at all? What would be a safe way to do this?
> 
> ...



1. I don't think it really matters but, I prefer CHE. They are supposed to emit long wane radiation, versus the short wave radiation from an incandescent bulb. It supposedly penetrates deeper into the animals body. This may be marketing hype, but they've worked well for me.

2. I like to put it to one side, farthest away from the door. I use them for night time/cold day basking, not to heat the entire airspace. How you do it will depend, at least to some degree, on the climate where you live.

3. There are a million ways to do this. There have been some posts with pics, but I'm not good at finding old posts. I think Chad has an insulated shed. And N2TORTS just show some great pics recently of building and insulating a shed. Maggies got a great big one too. Hope this helps.


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## DAC8671 (Mar 8, 2010)

I'm in San Diego CA for now. Normally the low temps in the winter will hover in the 50's, but there are occasions that it will go to the 40's and sometimes the 30's. Daytime winter will be anywhere from the 60's-70's. Summer, Fall, Spring of course, will be MUCH warmer.

I hadn't planned on building a shed out of wood for a few reasons. 1) when we move it will be easier to move just the rubbermaid type shed. 2) we are in military housing and do not have control over our yard sprinklers, so the shed will be getting wet, a lot. I know I could seal it, but we have had some problems with our wooden holiday lawn decorations and the water. So I'd just prefer to take the easy route and buy one.

I definately need one that will be easier for me to clean out. My husband is the one to take the dogloo apart and put it back together, but when he deploys it won't get done. So I think something like this shed would work for me. It's bigger than a deck box, so I'm thinking I could probably get another 4-5 yrs out of it, HOPEFULLY.

Thanks for the suggestions and JD, the shed you built is GREAT!


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## Yvonne G (Mar 8, 2010)

Sorry, Debbie. The link you provided doesn't show the item anymore, so I didn't realize you were interested in a plastic shed.

There was a thread a while back about one of those plastic sheds for young aldabran tortoises and Chipdog showed us how he insulated it. I'll try to find it and post the link for you.


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## DAC8671 (Mar 8, 2010)

Hmmm, wonder why it doesn't work. Here's a picture of it...







It's a bit bigger than a deck box. It's 4x3 1/2 feet. While we are in San Diego that will be big enough for his "house" as he has an enclosure when we aren't home and the full backyard when we are home. But since I'll be here at least until summer of 2011, possibly summer of 2012, I'm hoping it will work.


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## Yvonne G (Mar 8, 2010)

I don't know why I can't find that thread. I looked at every single Chipdog post and could only find this picture:






In the thread I was looking for he shows step-by-step how he insulated the Rubbermaid box.


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## Stephanie Logan (Mar 8, 2010)

I am just so impressed by the photos of the artistic tortoise condos J.D. builds. I could tell Harley was also impressed, as was evidenced by the photo of him "supervising" the construction process.


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## N2TORTS (Mar 8, 2010)

<G> Steph ..... thank you for the comps. =:>) 
They are fun to build!
JD~


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