Closed chamber cord exiting questions

[PA2019]

I just put an order in for a 90x30x18" 1/2 PVC closed chamber with sliding glass doors from a local snake builder. He starts the build next week, and in the meantime I am trying to figure out how to organize the wiring exiting the chamber.

If anyone has a PVC closed chamber, could you please post pictures of how you have your light and heat wiring exiting the enclosure?

I plan on ordering a ready-made UVB fixture with a 6ft cord, several fluorescent screw-in fixtures with 6ft cords, and a 45" LED light bar for ambient lighting with a 6ft cord.

Any thoughts on the best way to have the wires exit the back of the cage without ruining the "closed" purpose of a closed chamber? I would rather not have the wires exit out the top in case I want to create a stack of them in the future.

Here is one idea I had. Drilling a 1" circle, installing a black desk grommet you see in office desks, and have the wires exit through the opening.

 

[Wright78]

On my enclosure I unscrewed the top where I wanted the cables, and used a round file to make a small slot in the back wall to fit the cords through. It works really well and there isn't much room for heat and humidity to exit.

 

[Tom]

I drilled. They hold in heat and humidity so well, that you might discover that you actually need more ventilation. Especially in FL.

Your desk grommet idea will look nice and should work well.

 

[Stoneman]

If you want to seal it off really well, one thing you could use is aquarium safe sealant. It is my understanding based on things I have read that if it has this then it is truly non toxic.

 

[jsheffield]

I had to drill a bit to get a cord out of my new DIY cages critter condo ... I didn't worry about choosing the hole back down, as the airflow is probably useful.

J

 

[Sterant]

I just drilled a hole. Like @Tom says, ventilation will likely be needed anyway. If you do want to seal it up, you can get rubber plugs with a small hole in the center and a slit so you can get a cord into it - they come in diameters big enough for a hole that would allow a 3 prong plug through - 1" or 1.5".

 

[Stoneman]

Another thing I was thinking, to prevent not only the passage of air, and humidity, but also heat, would be to seal it off with mylar tape. From what others have told me rubber can be toxic. I am not sure if it would be significant if it was just a plug though. Another potential alternative would be aquarium safe sealant.

 

[Stoneman]

Sorry, I just got off work, I am tired and did not re read that I wrote that in my first response...

 

[PA2019]

Quick update

The tank is ready for pickup! So excited to pick this beast up on Saturday. I chose sliding glass doors instead of swinging acrylic, hope I won't regret it.

 

[Wright78]

Quick update

The tank is ready for pickup! So excited to pick this beast up on Saturday. I chose sliding glass doors instead of swinging acrylic, hope I won't regret it.

I love my sliding glass doors. I got 1/4 glass. It looks like you have polycarbonate doors. I had those at first and didn’t like them. The poly would stick to each other with all the humidity that built up and made it tough to open. Plus they scratched each other for the week that I had them.

 

[PA2019]

I love my sliding glass doors. I got 1/4 glass. It looks like you have polycarbonate doors. I had those at first and didn’t like them. The poly would stick to each other with all the humidity that built up and made it tough to open. Plus they scratched each other for the week that I had them.

Great point about the poly. He was going to charge me extra for the glass so I said install the free poly. I was going to try it out for a while and see, but it sounds like I should just get the glass. How bad is the condensation buildup with the glass you put in?

 

[Wright78]

Great point about the poly. He was going to charge me extra for the glass so I said install the free poly. I was going to try it out for a while and see, but it sounds like I should just get the glass. How bad is the condensation buildup with the glass you put in?

It’s always full of condensation. I know the glass for mine was close to $200. My tank is 4 x 8. It depends what the extra charge is it will be worth getting it.

 

[Stoneman]

Is the glass single or double paned in any of your enclosures? I want to make mine energy efficient so I am hoping to get some sealed double paned glass.

 

[Stoneman]

I read somewhere that the oxygen to co2 conversion is much closer to humans than I would have imagined it to be. It said something like a rate of 20% of ours, per gram of bodyweight. Which was really surprising to me because how would a closed chamber not suffocate them with co2 poisoning? Does anyone know of how often the air would have to be exchanged in order to prevent co2 poisoning?

 

[Wright78]

Is the glass single or double paned in any of your enclosures? I want to make mine energy efficient so I am hoping to get some sealed double paned glass.

It’s single pane glass.

 

[jsheffield]

Closed chambers aren't airtight ... at least mine isn't.

The daily fluctuations in temperature (and in my case a small fan) inside encourage air movement within the enclosure, but also with the outside world through gaps in the glass, light fixtures, and cord/vent holes in the framework of the enclosure.

In addition, opening the sliders once or twice a day to feed or soak the tortoise allows for a significant exchange of air with the world outside.

My tortoise is volumetrically 0.13% of his enclosure, which allows for a fair amount of cushion.

I've also got live plantings in the enclosure, which probably offsets some small amount of CO2.

I think in the end, the answer is that unless you've got a big tortoise in a small enclosure that is kept closed all the time, and is designed to be airtight, you don't need to worry about CO2 levels in the enclosure.

Jmho, ymmv.

Jamie

 

[Wright78]

I read somewhere that the oxygen to co2 conversion is much closer to humans than I would have imagined it to be. It said something like a rate of 20% of ours, per gram of bodyweight. Which was really surprising to me because how would a closed chamber not suffocate them with co2 poisoning? Does anyone know of how often the air would have to be exchanged in order to prevent co2 poisoning?

The enclosure is not 100% air tight. The biggest place for air infiltration is where the 2 pieces of glass overlap there is a gap there and air does exchange, a small amount. I thought about using something to close the gap but I want some air movement. My enclosure is holding 85% - 95% all the time, with dry substrate. When I wet the substrate it stays at 100% for days.

 

[Stoneman]

The enclosure is not 100% air tight. The biggest place for air infiltration is where the 2 pieces of glass overlap there is a gap there and air does exchange, a small amount. I thought about using something to close the gap but I want some air movement. My enclosure is holding 85% - 95% all the time, with dry substrate. When I wet the substrate it stays at 100% for days.

That's good to know, thank you. When you wet the substrate do you spray water from a bottle or do you do something else?

 

[Wright78]

I spray/ soak the substrate 1 per week and it keeps the humidity 85%-95% the whole time.
I use one of these.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Project-Source-0-396-Gallon-Plastic-Tank-Sprayer/3711310

 

[Stoneman]

Closed chambers aren't airtight ... at least mine isn't.

The daily fluctuations in temperature (and in my case a small fan) inside encourage air movement within the enclosure, but also with the outside world through gaps in the glass, light fixtures, and cord/vent holes in the framework of the enclosure.

In addition, opening the sliders once or twice a day to feed or soak the tortoise allows for a significant exchange of air with the world outside.

My tortoise is volumetrically 0.13% of his enclosure, which allows for a fair amount of cushion.

I've also got live plantings in the enclosure, which probably offsets some small amount of CO2.

I think in the end, the answer is that unless you've got a big tortoise in a small enclosure that is kept closed all the time, and is designed to be airtight, you don't need to worry about CO2 levels in the enclosure.

Jmho, ymmv.

Jamie

Thank you. I have thought about adding plants that have a high conversion rate for the same purpose. I like how you converted the volume, your tortoise has a lot of space!

When I move I won't have to worry about humidity as much, temperature regulation will be a greater concern. But I know all it takes is a small hole to lose almost everything so that's why I have been wanting to seal it off. My biggest concern is something happening like an accident where I can't access then for a couple days and coming back to see them dead. :-(