First winter need help with enclosure heating

Fireflyfarm

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5 Year Member
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Jul 14, 2013
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46
Hi! this is the first winter we will have our RF's. Hatched in January. I've read everything and am more confused now than I was when I started my research. Hoping for some guidance.
If we build a 5'x5', high sided wooden enclosure that will be in an area that receives lots of natural light with day/night temps never going below 60 degrees, high humidity and good air circulation....what do we need to keep the little guys warm. (going in a sunny spot in our greenhouse). Their substrate will be cypress mulch/coir. They will have a couple hides - sometimes they like to sleep together - sometimes not.
1)I know we need a CHE...but just one? Is there a particular brand that is better than others? I've also seen different wattage - what should we get and how many?
2)What about heat lamps? They will have direct sunlight to bask - is the CHE enough since they have natural light?
3) Do they need heat mats under the substrate so they have toasty bellies at night when they burrow into their hides? If so, can you recommend a good brand/option?
4) What am I not thinking about? Have I missed anything they will need to stay healthy and happy over winter?
 

Mgridgaway

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5 Year Member
Joined
Sep 9, 2011
Messages
842
Location (City and/or State)
Maryland
A few thoughts:

1) I love CHE's, I really do, but they suck the humidity out of the air. But careful about keeping an eye on the humidity if you plan on using many. I like the basic 100W just fine in my 3x5, but you may need the 160W.
2) You'll probably still need some source of UVB. I would imagine a greenhouse would filter out any UVB benefits of direct sunlight. You should have a basking area around 90 farenheit.
3) I like toasty bellies in the form of heat ropes. I recommend Big Apple Herp heat ropes (http://www.bigappleherp.com/Big-Apple-Flexible-Heat-Ropes). They're easy to regulate and they're waterproof. I suggest getting the longest available. I got the smallest thinking 3 meters sounded like more than enough and it only covers about 25% of my cage.
4) As mentioned before, UVB and humidity are the two main things you have to worry about in the winter. In the Northeast, it gets very dry and too cold to put any reptile outside.

Hope this helps.
 

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