Frustrated and could use help pls.

[DawnH]

Our 4.5 week old Sulcata is due to arrive tomorrow and I am trying to get all set up for his/her arrival but our "small" town is not helping me. Right now we have a 40gallon (36" by 18" by 17") enclose we will be using as well as a large area outside for daytime romps. This indoor habitat will only be used at night and when our weather is bad (we live in TX.) Anyways... I went to four hardware stores, and Wal*Mart and finally found two 5.5" ceramic hardware clamp lamps at the Petstore. All the other stores had the cheap plastic housing.

The two I bought have a 75 watt maximum (the only ones they had.) The bulbs are not giving it enough heat (as shown by the thermometer.) I have the covered closed off, still after a few hours it is puny. I am not comfortable putting in some type of rod and lowing the light into the tank. Given that, should I ORDER two 8.5" lamps instead? They are only 11$ each, free shipping and at this point I need to order a CHE since everyone looks at me like I am a flippin' alien when I ask if they carry them. Even the Petstore. That way the bigger "clamp lamp" (just set on the screen) will be able to handle a bulb will more wattage, thus letting off more heat. Right?

*sigh*

 

[laney]

Your enclosure is looking great!!
Yes the bigger clamp lamps have a higher wattage.
Congratulations for when your new arrival comes

 

[DawnH]

Laney - you are a rock star. I ASSUMED bigger would be better but you know what happens when you assume. Thank you SO much!! I appreciate the help.

 

[Levi the Leopard]

I have the same tank as you. I converted it into a closed chamber for baby leopards (same care). Here is what I did.

The lights sit on the screen top.

I covered the screen top with clear plastic taped with clear masking tape. I used aluminum foil in the past but wanted to have it see through. There are holes cut out in the plastic where the lights sit and a 2" rim of aluminum foil lines the holes.

The 2 small domes are 8" diameter and the center is 10" diameter.

The small domes are on a timer for on/off 12 hours. One houses a small 15watt bulb for extra lighting and the other has a 60watt bulb for basking. My basking temp is 100-105F.
The large center dome has a 75watt CHE set to a thermostat for 80F. It only clicks on when the temperature drops below that. The temp probe is in the far corner so I know that no where is cooler than 80F. It maybe clicks on a few times a night.


I hope any of this helps you

 

[wellington]

Looks really nice. Just be sure to cut the screen, UVB won't go through it. If your not using UVB , because your little one will get outside most days, then you won't have to cut the screen. Congrats on the near arrival. Also, if you need refreshing, Toms threads are below in my post.

 

[DawnH]

Heather - can I ask why you put aluminum foil around the edge? Does it act like a buffer between the heat and screen to prevent it from getting too hot? Thanks for the visual! It helps a LOT!!

 

[Levi the Leopard]

Re: RE: Frustrated and could use help pls.

Heather - can I ask why you put aluminum foil around the edge? Does it act like a buffer between the heat and screen to prevent it from getting too hot? Thanks for the visual! It helps a LOT!!

The ring of aluminum foil keeps the light dome from touching the plastic. I'm not worried about the screen...I don't want a fire hazard or melting issue with the clear plastic.

The plastic hole is cut larger than the dome itself. Then, the aluminum foil ring extends under the dome 1" and outside the dome 1".
I have no openings and the dome (should it get hot enough to do damage) has no contact with the clear plastic.
Make sense??

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[DawnH]

TOTALLY! Thank you my dear!

 

[Levi the Leopard]

Re: RE: Frustrated and could use help pls.

TOTALLY! Thank you my dear!

Glad to help

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[mainey34]

The only issue you have is the fact of the lights being placed on the screen. You can not use this set up for your tort. It will not get the full effects of your uva/uvb lighting. They have holders for the lights or you can make one. You can get some plexiglass cut two holes in it that are larger then your domes to hold heat and humidity. But this is not a good idea. If you go to the link under my signature the tortoise library. There are good suggestions there...sorry to burst your bubble...

 

[Levi the Leopard]

Is there a UV light? Or are those heat/ basking bulbs?

Dawn, remember if your tort gets a few hours of sun in a week then indoor UV isn't necessary. I have never used artificial UV indoors because of this.
Since I know you plan to use the kiddie pool outdoors regularly, you don't need to be concerned with the UV light on the screen. And IMO I wouldn't even bother replacing the UV bulb because you don't need it for "UV"purposes. When the UV light finally kicks the bucket just use a regular light for any additional lighting.

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[DawnH]

Those are just heat/basking bulbs. One is the basic flood bulb for heat, the other is the CHE bulb for nighttime heat. Tom said early on that the UV isn't necessary (spot on Heather) since our little one will be outdoors regularly. So, no bubble burst here!

 

[Levi the Leopard]

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