dry tortoise shell?

[Yingg]

I would place it at 22" then and lower after 1 year: there is not a lot of space to hide from UV rays. Technically, 18" is within safe range too but I would think how to move the lights to make a UV-free zone.

After some time plastic tape will degrade and crumble in high-UV areas (e.g. where lamp sits on supports). Maybe a year or two. Tube itself is not very hot, so no melting. At the same time, lamp should be properly fixed in place to avoid falling: if tube breaks you'll have to scrub out the whole enclosure to remove mercury residues.

will the tape release any harmful fumes or anything? or is it not a concern? unfortunately i can't really nail or screw anything together right now since I just don't have access to it.

I did cover the top part with a piece of blue painter's tape which is more paper (?) than plastic.

how do you suggest i properly fix the lamp, seeing as i have no way to screw or nail, etc? (something i can do by myself!)

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

I have a section of the enclosure which has the piece of wood over the top.

instead of moving the light higher (honestly it looks a bit precarious right now you're right) can i cover up some of the enclosure to make it dark? right now she already has a dark enclosure (behind the cardboard i taped up... )

You need a couple of "right-sized" hides, deep enough substrate to burrow and some moderate shade (think of a grass clump or a bush). For both heat and UV a gradient is better than "black-white".

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

will the tape release any harmful fumes or anything? or is it not a concern? unfortunately i can't really nail or screw anything together right now since I just don't have access to it.

I did cover the top part with a piece of blue painter's tape which is more paper (?) than plastic.

how do you suggest i properly fix the lamp, seeing as i have no way to screw or nail, etc? (something i can do by myself!)

I would not be concerned about fumes - under UV light polymers fall apart (if you have old plastic garden furniture - you can see the effect there).

If you can't put screws or nails, at least tie a metallic cord (like the one used for drying laundry outside) to the UV fixture: clip the metallic brackets that came with the lamp and pull a cord through them. And the tie a cord to a frame. It's just a safety measure to prevent lamp from falling down, it doesn't need to keep the lamp in the right position and at the proper height.

 

[Yingg]

I would not be concerned about fumes - under UV light polymers fall apart (if you have old plastic garden furniture - you can see the effect there).

If you can't put screws or nails, at least tie a metallic cord (like the one used for drying laundry outside) to the UV fixture: clip the metallic brackets that came with the lamp and pull a cord through them. And the tie a cord to a frame. It's just a safety measure to prevent lamp from falling down, it doesn't need to keep the lamp in the right position and at the proper height.

great idea! thank you. do you think securing it with some wire and tape will have a similar effect? struggling to find the brackets right now...

 

[Yingg]

my mom randomly just said that she seemed a bit yellow. i wonder if it's concerning?

 

[Yingg]

some of the small bugs are running over her food. i think they are scared by movement, so i hope they're deterred when she eats.

i washed the veggies again and gave them to her. is it an issue if she eats some bugs? or is it just some protein?

 

[Yingg]

i believe they are springtails. upon further investigation, when i put them in water, they go whoooop! and jump.

 

[The_Four_Toed_Edward]

my mom randomly just said that she seemed a bit yellow. i wonder if it's concerning?

Hard to say, do you have past photos for comparison?

 

[Yingg]

i seem to be very good at eyeballing, the light is 18 inches away from the ground.

 

[Yingg]

Hard to say, do you have past photos for comparison?

yes, i do. however the lighting isn't the same so i can't say anything about color accuracy.

i selected a whole bunch, going from most recent to oldest.

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

great idea! thank you. do you think securing it with some wire and tape will have a similar effect? struggling to find the brackets right now...

I don't think that sticky tape is as reliable as metallic brackets..

 

[The_Four_Toed_Edward]

yes, i do. however the lighting isn't the same so i can't say anything about color accuracy.

i selected a whole bunch, going from most recent to oldest.

As you say, due to the lighting it is hard to compare, in some photos she looks more yellow than others, bu it is hard to say whether it is just because of the lighting. Remind me, how is her puffy skin?

 

[Yingg]

I don't think that sticky tape is as reliable as metallic brackets..

I found the brackets! struggling to get them on.... i looked all over the instructions for a guide haha

 

[Yingg]

As you say, due to the lighting it is hard to compare, in some photos she looks more yellow than others, bu it is hard to say whether it is just because of the lighting. Remind me, how is her puffy skin?

She seems just as puffy as before! I wouldn't say there is a clear difference.

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

I found the brackets! struggling to get them on.... i looked all over the instructions for a guide haha

Just apply some pressure to snap them on the fixture. They hold pretty tight

 

[Yingg]

Just apply some pressure to snap them on the fixture. They hold pretty tight

i tried, and my partner also tried. safe to say we both failed. one end pops on, and the other stays off. it also scratches the fixture horribly which shouldn't be too much of an issue but definitely does get annoying. do you perhaps have a video?

I think the lighting is not too concerning at the moment since even though it looks precarious, it takes quite a bit to knock it off. I could shake the whole enclosure and it would stay put I positioned the wood beams in a way so that even if the lamp shifted, it would still stay on the wood one way or another. I can do some taping but for now can't get the clips on no matter how hard i try.

 

[Yingg]

As you say, due to the lighting it is hard to compare, in some photos she looks more yellow than others, bu it is hard to say whether it is just because of the lighting. Remind me, how is her puffy skin?

I forgot to say, she definitely is yellow though. I would not describe her as tan-colored. She's not TOO yellow, but again I wouldn't know since I've only seen one tortoise in real life- mine.

 

[Yingg]

going to ask again in case my other question got flooded: is it okay if she accidentally eats some springtails? they usually run away but i'm scared she accidentally eats some.

 

[COmtnLady]

If she was "out in the wild" she'd be eating bugs. Plus the springtails help clean up the missed bits of food. They are beneficial.

 

[Yingg]

If she was "out in the wild" she'd be eating bugs. Plus the springtails help clean up the missed bits of food. They are beneficial.

thank you!