Advice needed for new enclosure

[sunshineuk]

Hello,

I have recently rehomed a 12yo tortoise and have had this new enclosure made for him. Please can someone advise me on what heating and lights are needed and where/how to place them? I’m going round in circles with my research! Attached a pic of the tortoise too.

Thank you so much!

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Hello,

I have recently rehomed a 12yo tortoise and have had this new enclosure made for him. Please can someone advise me on what heating and lights are needed and where/how to place them? I’m going round in circles with my research! Attached a pic of the tortoise too.

Thank you so much! View attachment 383154

Hello and welcome!

What a beautiful table build and tortoise!

Here is the link to a post about general care and equipment (look for the word "breakdown" to go straight to the light and heating): https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/info-for-new-people-please-read-this-first.202363/

As you are in UK Swell Reptile online shop is ,probably, your way to go for equipment orders. What you'll need:
1. A basking lamp (flood incandescent lamp). Like Arcadia Solar Basking Floodlight or ProRep Flood Spot. For the open table, likely, it has to be 75-100W (or higher). You will need to place a thermometer under the lamp for 1-2 hours and check if get temperatures around 95F. Typical lamp mounting height is 11-14".
2. A UVB lamp. You will need a linear T5 lamp, like Arcadia ProT5 Desert 12%, ZooMed Reptisun 10.0 or Reptile Systems Fergusson Zone 3 Kit. Length 22-36" is sufficient. Typical installation height is 18-21" over substrate.
3. Bright LED lights (either several bulbs or LED bar, batten, ceiling light etc.). Cold or neutral daylight (color temperature 5500-6500K) are preferred. Also, you can use "full spectrum" grow lights like Arcadia Jungle Dawn or Sansi LED.
4. 2-3 timer sockets for the lights (12-14 hours for ambient and basking lamps and 4-6 hours for the UVB light).

If room temperatures drop below 60-65F at night, you might need a thermostat + ceramic heat emitters in wide lamp domes or radiant heat panel.

Feel free to ask more questions and we can also check equipment before ordering.

 

[sunshineuk]

Thank you so much this is so helpful. He already has a 100W Lotvic basking lamp - is this fine? In terms of placement, where would you suggest these things go and how would you do that - are there metal structures I can order online to fix to the table? With the ability to move things up and down as necessary? It won’t drop below 60° - he will actually be placed next to a radiator so it could be pretty warm. Is it worth turning that radiator off and just keeping the other ones in the room on?

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Thank you so much this is so helpful. He already has a 100W Lotvic basking lamp - is this fine? In terms of placement, where would you suggest these things go and how would you do that - are there metal structures I can order online to fix to the table? With the ability to move things up and down as necessary? It won’t drop below 60° - he will actually be placed next to a radiator so it could be pretty warm. Is it worth turning that radiator off and just keeping the other ones in the room on?

1. I've looked this lamp on Amazon. Unfortunately, the beam angle is not specified correctly. Just judging by lamp's look I would assume it's a flood lamp. If it has frosted glass - probably it's safe to use with tortoises. You can do some tests, though: with a flood lamp heated area diameter roughly equals (or larger) to lamp mounting height.
2. Optimal placement for the basking and UVB lamp is next to each other on one end of the enclosure (so heat and UVB are provided over the same area). It's not strictly necessary but works better this way. I've attached a rough sketch of how you can place the lightning.
3. For hanging lamps you can add Γ-shaped wooden supports and use metallic cords or chains.
4. You should check with a thermometer if you need to wind down or turn off the radiator. 60-65F are at the lower end of recommended range, but higher than that are fine too. 80F and higher is, of course, too warm for substrate in the cold end.

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

Thank you so much this is so helpful. He already has a 100W Lotvic basking lamp - is this fine? In terms of placement, where would you suggest these things go and how would you do that - are there metal structures I can order online to fix to the table? With the ability to move things up and down as necessary? It won’t drop below 60° - he will actually be placed next to a radiator so it could be pretty warm. Is it worth turning that radiator off and just keeping the other ones in the room on?

I’m going to include these links so you can look at the visuals on how folks mount the lighting(some of the placements may be off in the photos, this is more advice on how to attach them, follow Alex’s suggestions for placement)

This thread covers correct equipment, levels, sizing, appropriately maintaining the humidity, substrates, there’s lots of visual examples for everything and a really handy diet link to check out! You may need to consider installing a CHE(ceramic heat emitter) ran on a thermostat as the uk is dropping bitter cold, I’d place this in the middle

Housing adult Russian and Hermans indoors

Hello there! In this thread I’m going to include some information an example of an appropriate indoor set up for an older Herman/russian. As much as it’s encouraged to have tortoises in a safe outdoor enclosure, I understand being from the uk myself, that some climates make it difficult to...

tortoiseforum.org

This one might help with ideas too!

Enclosure inspiration

Howdy folks! Hope everyone is well! As you all know, I’m a big fan of making threads that cater more towards visual learners like myself, I’ve really been wanting to create a thread full of adult enclosure inspiration for a while now, I’ve managed to find some great references over time! I do...

tortoiseforum.org

Lastly, probably most important, this one can also really good to familiarise yourself with, it’ll help you avoid the wrong bulbs, substrates, housing etc, I always encourage double checking purchases on the forum too before buying

Common keeping errors

Hello everyone! I’d been a long time lurker on this site long before joining just under a year ago now, over that time I’ve seen these husbandry issues come up time and time again, sometimes with dire consequences☹️ I thought this thread might serve as a good visual guide for these common...

tortoiseforum.org

Hope they help! Welcome to the forum

 

[The_Four_Toed_Edward]

Welcome to the forum!

 

[wellington]

What size is the enclosure? It looks too small for an adult. An adult Mediterranean species needs a minimum of a 4x8

 

[COmtnLady]

Welcome to The Tortoise Forum! Here has the most up-to-date info available.
Don't listen to pet shops, people at pet fairs, Social Media, the people down the street that keep a tortoise the "old ways", and even some Veterinarians - they all seem to be repeating the same out-dated ideas that can harm your tort. TF can help your tortoise thrive.



* * * Have you had a chance to look through the links posted above yet? I'm sure many of your questions will be answered in them, but also feel free to ask questions. We are here to help fellow tort keepers.


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[sunshineuk]

Hello, thank you all for the advice so far. The table was delivered today and it looks super. We have Arcadia Pro T5 Desert 12% lamp on order and I’m stuck on LED lights. Can someone recommend two spotlight options, one for each end of the enclosure? Or if I got Arcadia Jungle Dawn, what size should I get and where would I hang it in relation to the other lighting?

 

[The_Four_Toed_Edward]

I believe @Alex and the Redfoot has some experience with the Arcadia Jungle Dawn.

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Hello, thank you all for the advice so far. The table was delivered today and it looks super. We have Arcadia Pro T5 Desert 12% lamp on order and I’m stuck on LED lights. Can someone recommend two spotlight options, one for each end of the enclosure? Or if I got Arcadia Jungle Dawn, what size should I get and where would I hang it in relation to the other lighting?

You can get Sansi LED spotlight for the basking area (to make it brighter and more appealing to the rest of the enclosure). LED bars like Jungle Dawn should cover around 3/4 of the enclosure and I would place them in the middle, higher than other lights.

 

[sunshineuk]

You can get Sansi LED spotlight for the basking area (to make it brighter and more appealing to the rest of the enclosure). LED bars like Jungle Dawn should cover around 3/4 of the enclosure and I would place them in the middle, higher than other lights.

Thank you, do you recommend spotlight and Jungle Dawn or one or the other?

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Thank you, do you recommend spotlight and Jungle Dawn or one or the other?

Both JungleDawn or several spotlights, installed high enough (around 3' above substrate), will provide good ambient lightning over large area.

However, basking lamp light is barely visible under bright LEDs and you can add a dedicated (or more powerful) spotlight to make basking area brighter ("more sunny"). It's not absolutely necessary but looks more natural.

 

[sunshineuk]

Both JungleDawn or several spotlights, installed high enough (around 3' above substrate), will provide good ambient lightning over large area.

However, basking lamp light is barely visible under bright LEDs and you can add a dedicated (or more powerful) spotlight to make basking area brighter ("more sunny"). It's not absolutely necessary but looks more natural.

Hello, our lights have arrived - I have the Jungle Dawn 470mm and Pro T5 39W. I’m thinking of placement - both across the centre of the enclosure or Jungle Dawn at the basking end? I have a carpenter coming on Monday to add a hanging structure. I feel like it’s going to be easier to hang them both across the centre, but I don’t want that to discourage basking at the end of the enclosure. Any thoughts gratefully received!

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Hello, our lights have arrived - I have the Jungle Dawn 470mm and Pro T5 39W. I’m thinking of placement - both across the centre of the enclosure or Jungle Dawn at the basking end? I have a carpenter coming on Monday to add a hanging structure. I feel like it’s going to be easier to hang them both across the centre, but I don’t want that to discourage basking at the end of the enclosure. Any thoughts gratefully received!

Great news!
I would move both Jungle Dawn and UVB lamp towards the basking area. Basking zone, ideally, should be the brightest spot in the enclosure and UVB lamp works better in tandem with a heat lamp.

 

[sunshineuk]

Great news!
I would move both Jungle Dawn and UVB lamp towards the basking area. Basking zone, ideally, should be the brightest spot in the enclosure and UVB lamp works better in tandem with a heat lamp.

Ah ok so all lights basically down basking end, leaving the other end cooler and darker?

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Ah ok so all lights basically down basking end, leaving the other end cooler and darker?

Yes, right. However, you didn't mention the size of the table. If it's 8 feet long, one 470mm Jungle Dawn won't be enough, you'll have to add more ambient lightning (it could be less bright, like household LED bars or bulbs) or move Jungle Dawn to the middle and add brighter LED spotlight to the basking area.

 

[sunshineuk]

Heya it’s 2 metres so I’ll need to add another light. How am I securing the bars across the enclosure, I can’t see where to fix metal rings so they can be moved up and down?

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Heya it’s 2 metres so I’ll need to add another light. How am I securing the bars across the enclosure, I can’t see where to fix metal rings so they can be moved up and down?

You can add Sansi LED bulb over the basking zone and move Jungle Dawn to the middle (this should be cheaper than two Jungle Dawns).

Arcadia fixtures have metallic brackets for ceiling mounting. You can pull metallic cord under the bracket. Or use a wooden plank: screw the fixture mounting brackets to the plank from below and add screw-in loops on the top for chains or metallic cords.