Recent content by jpfieber

Since all the pieces are one-offs, it would be hard to exactly replicate, but hopefully you can make something work based off the same principals. The key is to use a bearing to make it turn easy enough, and a large enough shaft that things aren't going to flex and rub. I collect odd-ball...

Here's the original post that has some build details

We've posted in the past about dealing with Fungus Gnats, those pesky little flies that come with having a damp enclosure. We tried a lot of the suggestions, and only had limited success until recently. Let me run through what we've tried and what we've finally settled on. Note the Amazon links...

I did as you suggested. In the middle of the basking area, the meter reads 3.1 at the surface, and 3.5 at the height of Boris' shell. Directly under the UVB bulb it reads 3.9 at the surface and 4.3 at the height of his shell. Best I can tell those are good readings, yes?

The recommendation I saw for the Powersun was that it provides UVA, which none of the other sources really address. I do have a Solarmeter 6.5, but I'm not sure how to use it. It seems like you have to stand it up underneath the light, but then you're measuring the UVB ~3" above your target...

We measure temp with a gun (our nephews and nieces love taking the temperature of everything in sight (except eyeballs!) with that thing!). The recommendations I was referring to are for temperature, which was the only goal with that lamp (I shared the chart I found in case others might find it...

He's been hanging out there on occasion, sometimes just chilling, other times pawing at the glass. Here he is right now, just chillin' and keeping his butt warm:

Our formal living room was converted to a 'Bird Room', where 5 parrots fly around (accordion doors keep them from taking over the entire house). We also have two dogs and two cats, and nearly every surface has a blanket on it so they can be comfortable (my wife drives this effort), so we're...

It's called 'Spot' but I've seen many recommendations for it, and it seems to be doing the job well. We have ours hanging about 10" above the substrate, and it's providing ~95 degrees on Boris shell when he's under it. Here's some tech info about it:

Here's some of the main materials that went into the build: 1 4x8 sheet of 1/2" MDF (@$45ea) for the sides 2 4x8 sheets of 1/4" HDPE (@$87ea) for the table lining (the black and white bottom and sides) A bunch of Aspen boards for the legs (~$150) Some 1x3 pine boards for the lattice that...

I knew from past projects that the glass could be a major expense, so I looked for a cheap source of precut pieces and designed the tables around what I found instead of having custom glass cut to fit my design. I found this glass on Amazon for much cheaper than going custom would have been. I...

Sure, thanks!

In the fall of 2024 my wife ( @Wilbur1111 ) and I began caring for a Russian Tortoise we named Boris. He came in a 10-20 gallon aquarium full of sand and rocks with a tiny light on it; it didn't appear he'd had a good life for quite a while. We decided to create a much better environment for...

Thanks for the feedback, this is great info. One thing I'm confused about, most posts here seem to suggest having some humidity, even for adult Russians, so I try to keep it over 50%, which requires the underlying coir to be quite wet (and I use the bark on top to try and hold that moisture in...

We have a 32 sq ft tortoise table for our Russian. It has a 3-4" base of coconut coir that is kept wet/damp, and a 1" cap of orchid bark. Unfortunately, we have a growing population of Fungus Gnats. We tried a 'Katchy' device to attract and suck them up, but it didn't do much. We have a few of...