(enclosure temperature)Help needed

[Paul73]

Hi there,
We have recently purchased a tortoise (spur thigh turkish) . We also got a table ,ceramic holder ,dual bulb,and thermostat.
I've set it up as advised with the sensor off the side close to ground near bulb. I have it set at 31 and I have 2 thermometers stuck to wall at both ends. One says 20 and the other 25 this doesn't get warmer than that. My wife has got concerned that it wasn't warm enough so she purchased a thermometer with a sensor attached and placed this direct on ground under bulb and this reads up to 45. So now we are panicking and don't know what to do as different advice is very confusing.
Please if any one can help
Many thanks
Paul and Helen

 

[katieandiggy]

Hi Paul, some pictures of your bulbs and set up would be good... I had the same trouble when I set up my table. I measured the temperate under the bulb and it was a comfortable 97f when I came back 2 hours later it was 124f the way to control it is to lower or raise your light until you get the correct temperature. I notice you said dual bulb.. do you mean a MVB? If so they cannot run on a thermostat so you will need to move he bulb up and down until you get the right temp.

I use a normally cheap basking bulb that I set on a thermostat which works really well.

 

[Maro2Bear]

Hi there,
We have recently purchased a tortoise (spur thigh turkish) . We also got a table ,ceramic holder ,dual bulb,and thermostat.
I've set it up as advised with the sensor off the side close to ground near bulb. I have it set at 31 and I have 2 thermometers stuck to wall at both ends. One says 20 and the other 25 this doesn't get warmer than that. My wife has got concerned that it wasn't warm enough so she purchased a thermometer with a sensor attached and placed this direct on ground under bulb and this reads up to 45. So now we are panicking and don't know what to do as different advice is very confusing.
Please if any one can help
Many thanks
Paul and Helen

Greetings...

One thing to keep in mind is that those “stick on” thermometers are notoriously innaccurate and are usually stuck on some place where your tort never sits (side of the wall) - so actual ambient and/shell temp is way different.

The thermometer with the remote sensor was a great addition. Probably much more accurate.

Some pix of your enclosure would be great. Good luck.

 

[Paul73]

Hi Paul, some pictures of your bulbs and set up would be good... I had the same trouble when I set up my table. I measured the temperate under the bulb and it was a comfortable 97f when I came back 2 hours later it was 124f the way to control it is to lower or raise your light until you get the correct temperature. I notice you said dual bulb.. do you mean a MVB? If so they cannot run on a thermostat so you will need to move he bulb up and down until you get the right temp.

I use a normally cheap basking bulb that I set on a thermostat which works really well.

 

[Paul73]

Hi Paul, some pictures of your bulbs and set up would be good... I had the same trouble when I set up my table. I measured the temperate under the bulb and it was a comfortable 97f when I came back 2 hours later it was 124f the way to control it is to lower or raise your light until you get the correct temperature. I notice you said dual bulb.. do you mean a MVB? If so they cannot run on a thermostat so you will need to move he bulb up and down until you get the right temp.

I use a normally cheap basking bulb that I set on a thermostat which works really well.

 

[katieandiggy]

Ok, so you have the microclimate probe thermostat which is great. The problem you got is you have an MVB I believe you said (heat,light, UVB) which can’t be controlled on a thermostat. You can’t raise your light any higher.
You could buy a basking bulb for about £5 and run it on the thermostat, put the probe in the basking area and set it to 35, I bury the wire under the substrate and just pile the probe up at the basking spot.
But then you would need to invest in a tube UVB light.....
Also a nice flat piece of slate under the basking lamp works well.

 

[katieandiggy]

Can you show a picture of the bulb box just to clarify it’s an MVB...

 

[Tom]

Hi there,
We have recently purchased a tortoise (spur thigh turkish) . We also got a table ,ceramic holder ,dual bulb,and thermostat.
I've set it up as advised with the sensor off the side close to ground near bulb. I have it set at 31 and I have 2 thermometers stuck to wall at both ends. One says 20 and the other 25 this doesn't get warmer than that. My wife has got concerned that it wasn't warm enough so she purchased a thermometer with a sensor attached and placed this direct on ground under bulb and this reads up to 45. So now we are panicking and don't know what to do as different advice is very confusing.
Please if any one can help
Many thanks
Paul and Helen

There are four temperatures to be concerned with: Warm side, cool side, basking area and overnight low. There are many ways to generate an maintain the correct temperatures and lighting, with with an open top in a cool room, it will be difficult.

There are four elements to heating and lighting:

1. Basking bulb. I use 65 watt floods from the hardware store. I run them on a timer and adjust the height to get the correct basking temp under them. You can use smaller or larger wattage bulbs to help you get the desired temperature under them too. Do not use "spot" type bulbs. These concentrate too much heat into too small of an area and desiccate the carapace which causes pyramiding.
2. Ambient heat maintenance. I use ceramic heating elements or radiant heat panels set on thermostats to maintain ambient above 80 degrees day and night for tropical species like sulcatas, but let the temp drop into the 60s at night for a Testudo species.
3. Light. I use florescent tubes for this purpose. Something in the 5000-6500K color range will look the best. Most tubes at the hardware store are in the 2500K range and they look yellowish. If the room where the enclosure sits if well lit, and the tortoises behavior is normal, you don't "need" this, but its usually beneficial.
4. UV. If you can get your tortoise outside for an hour 2 or 3 times a week, you won't need indoor UV. If you want it anyway, get one of the newer HO type fluorescent tubes. Which type will depend on mounting height. In addition to not being an effective UV source, the coil type cfl bulbs can sometimes damage reptile eyes, so I would not use those.

This might offer some tips too:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/

Same care for a russian and a greek:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/

 

[Gillian M]

A warm welcome to the forum!

 

[Maro2Bear]

Greetings..

Another issue that i don’t believe anyone highlighted is your substrate - it looks like pine/wood shavings, which is not recommended. See if you can replace with some coco coir or fine grade orchid bark or cypress mulch (a mix of all) instead of the shavings. Easier to maintain a moist environment (without mold/mildew).

Good luck!

 

[Paul73]

Thank you for all the help I have gone for a heat bulb with separate uve bulb and changed the substrate. Would it benefit from some damp moss because it is all very dry ?
Many thanks
Paul

 

[katieandiggy]

Hi Paul, I wouldn’t advise using moss, they tend to eat it and I can cause them to become impacted. Just dampen down your substrate regularly and soak for 30 mins per day.

 

[Wolfpackin]

There are four temperatures to be concerned with: Warm side, cool side, basking area and overnight low. There are many ways to generate an maintain the correct temperatures and lighting, with with an open top in a cool room, it will be difficult.

There are four elements to heating and lighting:

1. Basking bulb. I use 65 watt floods from the hardware store. I run them on a timer and adjust the height to get the correct basking temp under them. You can use smaller or larger wattage bulbs to help you get the desired temperature under them too. Do not use "spot" type bulbs. These concentrate too much heat into too small of an area and desiccate the carapace which causes pyramiding.
2. Ambient heat maintenance. I use ceramic heating elements or radiant heat panels set on thermostats to maintain ambient above 80 degrees day and night for tropical species like sulcatas, but let the temp drop into the 60s at night for a Testudo species.
3. Light. I use florescent tubes for this purpose. Something in the 5000-6500K color range will look the best. Most tubes at the hardware store are in the 2500K range and they look yellowish. If the room where the enclosure sits if well lit, and the tortoises behavior is normal, you don't "need" this, but its usually beneficial.
4. UV. If you can get your tortoise outside for an hour 2 or 3 times a week, you won't need indoor UV. If you want it anyway, get one of the newer HO type fluorescent tubes. Which type will depend on mounting height. In addition to not being an effective UV source, the coil type cfl bulbs can sometimes damage reptile eyes, so I would not use those.

This might offer some tips too:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/

Same care for a russian and a greek:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/

In addition to this outstanding post, as is typical from Tom...
If you don't have a lot of height adjustment on your basking bulbs you can use a dimmer to adjust brightness and temperature.
A dimmer will work on most flood type incandescent and halogen bulbs.