Tortoise Supplies I got for my birthday

Qwertyuiopgsggs

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My father got me a bunch of tortoise supplies for my birthday and we are planning to buy another tortoise as our baby sulcata has unfortunately died because of Austwickia, we are planning on getting either a leopard or a eastern herman. It is starting to get chilly here in New England so instead of getting something else for birthday I asked my parents for supplies, are these lamps adequate? If not he still has the receipt and we could return it. Also which UVB tube is the better one? Unfortunately we lost the receipt for the tube because it was purchased separately.
Thank you
 

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Yvonne G

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The tube light is the right thing, you just need a fixture to hold it. But I don't like the deep dome fixtures for CHE or other bulbs because the deep dome holds in heat. You want one with a 10" or 12" dome. That tends to allow the heat to radiate out and down.
 

wellington

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I agree with Yvonne. Usually you can find the wider dome ones at hardware stores or big box home improvement stores like a home depot or menards. Not sure what you have there.
 

Qwertyuiopgsggs

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The tube light is the right thing, you just need a fixture to hold it. But I don't like the deep dome fixtures for CHE or other bulbs because the deep dome holds in heat. You want one with a 10" or 12" dome. That tends to allow the heat to radiate out and down.
Do you think it is a better idea to have something without the dome? I have this other dome that I used for my older tortoise that I stepped on it accidentally, it still works but the aluminum part was broken so I removed it because it was very sharp, I kept it either way as it was still working, but I never used afraid it could be dangerous in some way. I will include a picture.
 

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Qwertyuiopgsggs

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I agree with Yvonne. Usually you can find the wider dome ones at hardware stores or big box home improvement stores like a home depot or menards. Not sure what you have there.
Ive never seen anything similar for sale outside pet stores. Even in electrical section.
 

Qwertyuiopgsggs

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I agree with Yvonne. Usually you can find the wider dome ones at hardware stores or big box home improvement stores like a home depot or menards. Not sure what you have there.
Here is the other sides of the box, this might help you make sure what it is. As you can see the brand is Zoo Med.
 

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Qwertyuiopgsggs

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The tube light is the right thing, you just need a fixture to hold it. But I don't like the deep dome fixtures for CHE or other bulbs because the deep dome holds in heat. You want one with a 10" or 12" dome. That tends to allow the heat to radiate out and down.
I also already have a fixture for the tubes. I will include a picture.
 

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wellington

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Here are two kinds. Notice how they are wider not so deep. Also make sure they have ceramic socket and wattage is big enough.
20220906_151206.jpgScreenshot_20220906-150659_Chrome.jpg
 

Ink

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What a nice birthday gift. I am sorry about your tortoise passing. Please post pictures of your new tortoise.
 

jaizei

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Ive never seen anything similar for sale outside pet stores. Even in electrical section.

The wider domes are called 'brooder lights/lamps,' because they're often used for chickens. Search for that and you can see if a Home Depot/Lowes near you has them.
 

Lyn W

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They are available online. They come with clamps but it is safer to hang them because clamps have been known to fail and cause fires. Deep domes tend to make the bulb overheat and burn out more quickly. I use then for my che and the flood basking bulb. Double domes also tend not to be recommended.
1662500730208.png
I've never used Reptisun tubes but I like Arcadia - they are well known brand and reliable.
 

Qwertyuiopgsggs

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What a nice birthday gift. I am sorry about your tortoise passing. Please post pictures of your new tortoise.
I still have not purchased it yet, Im trying to find somewhere that guarantees heath of the tortoise and offer healthy babies.
 

Qwertyuiopgsggs

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They are available online. They come with clamps but it is safer to hang them because clamps have been known to fail and cause fires. Deep domes tend to make the bulb overheat and burn out more quickly. I use then for my che and the flood basking bulb. Double domes also tend not to be recommended.
View attachment 349632
I've never used Reptisun tubes but I like Arcadia - they are well known brand and reliable

So can I use for my Ceramic heat emitter?
These look good, but it will take some time until I can buy it.
I couldnt find that one in the picture, but I did find this:https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petco...6ftL7pO11bN_a6J3f5YaAvEVEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

Zoo med looks like a very reliable brand, but if you think Arcadia is more reliable I will use that tube then.
 

Qwertyuiopgsggs

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They are available online. They come with clamps but it is safer to hang them because clamps have been known to fail and cause fires. Deep domes tend to make the bulb overheat and burn out more quickly. I use then for my che and the flood basking bulb. Double domes also tend not to be recommended.
View attachment 349632
I've never used Reptisun tubes but I like Arcadia - they are well known brand and reliable

So can I use for my Ceramic heat emitter?
These look good, but it will take some time until I can buy it.
I couldnt find that one in the picture, but I did find this:https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petco...6ftL7pO11bN_a6J3f5YaAvEVEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds
The wider domes are called 'brooder lights/lamps,' because they're often used for chickens. Search for that and you can see if a Home Depot/Lowes near you has them.
I will take a look at my Home Depot, Lowes near me are not that big so my biggest guess will be Home Depot. I will check that, but if I do not find anything I will have to look online.
 

Qwertyuiopgsggs

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The tube light is the right thing, you just need a fixture to hold it. But I don't like the deep dome fixtures for CHE or other bulbs because the deep dome holds in heat. You want one with a 10" or 12" dome. That tends to allow the heat to radiate out and down.
I am also doing some experiments with the 75w spot lamp on a 42 by 36 black container that my guess is used for concrete mixing with open top, I turned it on for about 10 minutes and you are absolutely right, the lamp was 17 inches away from what would be the substrate and temperature in what would be the basking spot is 35C around 6 inches from that is 32, but then if you skip around 4 more it drops all the way to 24, it spread so unevenly, I will try to do it again tomorrow but with the ceramic heat emitter. Hopefully I receive better results. I also have a question, what if I used that heat lamp in an open fixture, would that spread the heat more evenly?
 

Krista S

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I think it’s important to figure out what species you’re going to get in order to know how to help guide you. The care for Leopards and Eastern Hermann’s are quite different. I don’t think the open fixture would improve your results. The fixtures usually have a reflective property in them that direct the heat down and out. If there isn’t a fixture, the heat won’t be directed in any one direction making the setup much less efficient. Depending on the size of your enclosure, it is possible that you will need more than one heat source. My enclosure had 3 heat sources in it. In the fall and winter, all 3 are going. In the warmer months I only need 2 heat sources. I have a pretty much full grown Eastern Hermann’s tortoise in an open top enclosure, however in the coldest months, I do cover the enclosure to keep the heat in. It works for my environment, but it isn’t effective or efficient for most people And tortoise species. I have included a picture below to show the 3 heating elements. On the left is a regular BR30 65 watt incandescent flood light bulb. There’s a big piece of slate under it for basking. In the middle is a ceramic heat emitter that is on a thermostat. This is only needed in the winter. Then in the right is another BR30 65 watt incandescent flood bulb and the UV fixture. There’s also a piece of slate under the bulbs.

1FD3A47C-2149-4869-8219-62DA66C5E08F.jpeg

It takes a lot of trial and error and monitoring to get things finely tuned. What works for someone, may not work for another, because there’s just too many factors. Such as the temperature your house is kept at, the species of tortoise you have, the size of the enclosure, the types of bulbs being used, etc. it’s endless. The main thing is, don’t let this discourage you. Make all of the experiments you’re doing, a fun part of the process. Take notes of your results when testing temperatures incase you need to compare or think of modifications to how you are testing (like making the fixture higher or lower or using a bulb with different wattage). Make sure you’re using a good quality temperature gun and digital thermometers. Don’t trust the ones that are just a little dial. They aren’t usually very active. In my enclosure I have digital thermometers on both ends and in the middle of the enclosure and I still use my temp gun to double check. I’m so glad you didn’t get discouraged by the loss of your sulcata. There’s nothing you could have done and I’m so sorry you had to go through that. Also, good for you, for doing all this research and wanting to get things right before bringing your new buddy home. You’ve come to the right place for help, that’s for sure!
 

wellington

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So can I use for my Ceramic heat emitter?
These look good, but it will take some time until I can buy it.
I couldnt find that one in the picture, but I did find this:https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petco...6ftL7pO11bN_a6J3f5YaAvEVEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

Zoo med looks like a very reliable brand, but if you think Arcadia is more reliable I will use that tube then.
Flukers is fine for the dome.
Zoo med is fine. Not many if anyone carry arcadia. I have only found them on line. If you can get one locally and want to do the bulb return if possible, many places won't take bulbs back unless defective, then make the change. Otherwise when you need to replace, replace with arcadia.
 

Lyn W

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So can I use for my Ceramic heat emitter?
These look good, but it will take some time until I can buy it.
I couldnt find that one in the picture, but I did find this:https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/flukers-clamp-lamp-796115?store_code=3765&mr:device=m&mr:adType=local&cm_mmc=PSH|GGL|CAL|SBU05|SH13|0|pbH4NxwLFqWjH9GAxdXDh1|58700007475749897|PRODUCT_GROUP|0|0|pla-1458089774388|126000475621|15108900623&gclid=Cj0KCQjw39uYBhCLARIsAD_SzMTCGWx8LalUS_KcsAh4Df9mIks3abg2OPKR6ftL7pO11bN_a6J3f5YaAvEVEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

Zoo med looks like a very reliable brand, but if you think Arcadia is more reliable I will use that tube then.
I use the wide domes for my flood bulb and che, not the deep dome - sorry if my last post was a bit confusing. Always run the che through a thermostat so that it will turn off and on and not overheat your tort.

I've never used Reptisun tubes so can't really say how reliable they are, I've always used Arcadia.
 

Qwertyuiopgsggs

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I think it’s important to figure out what species you’re going to get in order to know how to help guide you. The care for Leopards and Eastern Hermann’s are quite different. I don’t think the open fixture would improve your results. The fixtures usually have a reflective property in them that direct the heat down and out. If there isn’t a fixture, the heat won’t be directed in any one direction making the setup much less efficient. Depending on the size of your enclosure, it is possible that you will need more than one heat source. My enclosure had 3 heat sources in it. In the fall and winter, all 3 are going. In the warmer months I only need 2 heat sources. I have a pretty much full grown Eastern Hermann’s tortoise in an open top enclosure, however in the coldest months, I do cover the enclosure to keep the heat in. It works for my environment, but it isn’t effective or efficient for most people And tortoise species. I have included a picture below to show the 3 heating elements. On the left is a regular BR30 65 watt incandescent flood light bulb. There’s a big piece of slate under it for basking. In the middle is a ceramic heat emitter that is on a thermostat. This is only needed in the winter. Then in the right is another BR30 65 watt incandescent flood bulb and the UV fixture. There’s also a piece of slate under the bulbs.

View attachment 349635

It takes a lot of trial and error and monitoring to get things finely tuned. What works for someone, may not work for another, because there’s just too many factors. Such as the temperature your house is kept at, the species of tortoise you have, the size of the enclosure, the types of bulbs being used, etc. it’s endless. The main thing is, don’t let this discourage you. Make all of the experiments you’re doing, a fun part of the process. Take notes of your results when testing temperatures incase you need to compare or think of modifications to how you are testing (like making the fixture higher or lower or using a bulb with different wattage). Make sure you’re using a good quality temperature gun and digital thermometers. Don’t trust the ones that are just a little dial. They aren’t usually very active. In my enclosure I have digital thermometers on both ends and in the middle of the enclosure and I still use my temp gun to double check. I’m so glad you didn’t get discouraged by the loss of your sulcata. There’s nothing you could have done and I’m so sorry you had to go through that. Also, good for you, for doing all this research and wanting to get things right before bringing your new buddy home. You’ve come to the right place for help, that’s for sure!
For
I think it’s important to figure out what species you’re going to get in order to know how to help guide you. The care for Leopards and Eastern Hermann’s are quite different. I don’t think the open fixture would improve your results. The fixtures usually have a reflective property in them that direct the heat down and out. If there isn’t a fixture, the heat won’t be directed in any one direction making the setup much less efficient. Depending on the size of your enclosure, it is possible that you will need more than one heat source. My enclosure had 3 heat sources in it. In the fall and winter, all 3 are going. In the warmer months I only need 2 heat sources. I have a pretty much full grown Eastern Hermann’s tortoise in an open top enclosure, however in the coldest months, I do cover the enclosure to keep the heat in. It works for my environment, but it isn’t effective or efficient for most people And tortoise species. I have included a picture below to show the 3 heating elements. On the left is a regular BR30 65 watt incandescent flood light bulb. There’s a big piece of slate under it for basking. In the middle is a ceramic heat emitter that is on a thermostat. This is only needed in the winter. Then in the right is another BR30 65 watt incandescent flood bulb and the UV fixture. There’s also a piece of slate under the bulbs.

View attachment 349635

It takes a lot of trial and error and monitoring to get things finely tuned. What works for someone, may not work for another, because there’s just too many factors. Such as the temperature your house is kept at, the species of tortoise you have, the size of the enclosure, the types of bulbs being used, etc. it’s endless. The main thing is, don’t let this discourage you. Make all of the experiments you’re doing, a fun part of the process. Take notes of your results when testing temperatures incase you need to compare or think of modifications to how you are testing (like making the fixture higher or lower or using a bulb with different wattage). Make sure you’re using a good quality temperature gun and digital thermometers. Don’t trust the ones that are just a little dial. They aren’t usually very active. In my enclosure I have digital thermometers on both ends and in the middle of the enclosure and I still use my temp gun to double check. I’m so glad you didn’t get discouraged by the loss of your sulcata. There’s nothing you could have done and I’m so sorry you had to go through that. Also, good for you, for doing all this research and wanting to get things right before bringing your new buddy home. You’ve come to the right place for help, that’s for sure!
Thank you so much, I am using a temperature infrared gun from the brand Kizen, it seems to be very accurate. I used that same container again this afternoon after I arrived from school but with the CHE, and I have got so say I placed it about 15” from what would be substrate and my results were a lot better, right underneath it is 37 C and areas around it is 36 some inches away from the center is marked as 32 and the coldest part being the conner is sitting at 27, although when I sprayed water it quickly evaporated closer to the center, but it stayed in the conners, I had to throw it away myself. This bulb is so potent, I left it to cool on the dome itself for well over 20 mintues it was still even emmiting heat, this can be potent fire hazard so we must be careful with it.
We have been thinking about making our decision and although I personally do find the leopard tortoise to be prettier in terms of pattern, it just might be too big for us as we do live in a colder part of the country and cannot keep them yea round outside although we plan on moving south in a couple years, we originally were thinking to get a cherry head as they are smaller than red-foots but quite frankly I dont think I can keep up with the humidity demand for them even in a closed space. I could not get much past 80% on my last enclosure without making the substrate a complete swamp.
For those reasons I think we will be choosing a Eastern Herman's.
Because of our previous tortoise we would like to buy a tortoise that is around the yearling and above stage, but the issue that we have is that a lot of older tortoises are wild caught, and we abosultely do not want to beither contribute or allow inside our homes an animal that God knows where it has been and what kind of disease it might have.
We recently heard about a pet shop from Florida that guarantee the heath for their reptiles called Imperial Reptiles, they have all kinds of listing, including Hermanns, but they been marked as sold for months, I’ve been taking a look at their website for well over a year and the only time they add reptiles to their website is around May and June which my guess is when they hatch.
 
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