Heat and lighting Info.

[Lex & Lou's Leopards]

Hello everyone, I'm a first time Tortoise parent to 4 month old Leo Tortoises.. I've been researching about proper lighting and heat for my enclosure. So far I've learned that the compact bulbs are a no go because of the risk of eye problems in torts. So tube like lighting is what I've decided on 10.00. I need to know Is there some sort of wattage×distant from tortoise chart to follow. I purchased 2 compact bulbs before I learned these are not good, one heat and one uvb but neither had instructions on the correct distance×wattage info to follow. All the research on this particular topic is cluttering my brain and I'm overwhelmed, please help!!

 

[KarenSoCal]

Hi, and welcome to the forum!

Please read this care sheet, and the info about lighting. They will answer most questions.

Then, if you need more help, come back and ask. We'll be happy to assist.

Am I understanding right? You have 2 leopard babies living together? If you do, that's an issue that will need to be addressed as well.

If you could post some pictures of your enclosure(s), tell us about your lighting and heating, we could help you if something needs changed.

The Best Way To Raise A Sulcata, Leopard, Or Star Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. Babies hatch during the...

tortoiseforum.org

4 elements of heating: By Tom
There are four elements to heating and lighting:

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. I also like to use a flat rock of some sort directly under the bulb.

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. You'd only need day heat for a temperate species like Testudo or DT.

Light. I use LEDs for this purpose. Something in the 5000-6500K color range will look the best. Most bulbs at the store are in the 2500K range and they look yellowish.

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. 5.0 bulbs make almost no UV. You need a meter to check this: https://www.solarmeter.com/model65.html

 

[Mark C]

Hi everyone we've got a protective grill for an arcadia basking lamp but we can't work out how it stays on as it keeps falling off. Can anyone show a video of how to put the mesh grill on?

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Hi everyone we've got a protective grill for an arcadia basking lamp but we can't work out how it stays on as it keeps falling off. Can anyone show a video of how to put the mesh grill on?

Just speaking for myself, I can't visualize that product.
Can you get a photo?
Maybe post the question on a fresh thread of your own for the most coverage.