Help with tortoise box heating!

Kooks_1776

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Hello!
so I just recently got my tortoise a table top box enclosure and I’m moving him from a terrarium to the box and I’m having trouble trying to adjust the temperature. For the hot side directly under the heat lamp it’s around 80 F and on the cool side it’s around 68 F. I use a 100W CRE and I’m not sure what else I can use.
Any help or advice is greatly appreciated so thank you!
image.jpgThis is the box. It’s 4ft X 2.5ft
 

wellington

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What kind of tortoise and how big? Those boxes are pretty much worthless s they are too small for anything bigger then say a year old and anything a year old and younger needs a closed chamber.
 

Kooks_1776

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What kind of tortoise and how big? Those boxes are pretty much worthless s they are too small for anything bigger then say a year old and anything a year old and younger needs a closed chamber.
He’s about a year old. Turned one in may. He’s also a sulcata tortoise.
 

wellington

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Post pic of the tortoise.
A sulcata should be in a closed chamber with high humidity 80% and high temps, 80 day and night and 95-100 basking, for a year or two. Once 10 inches is reached it can live outside depending on weather outside.
A lot of sulcata babies at 1 year should/would be too big for this box.
 

Kooks_1776

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Post pic of the tortoise.
A sulcata should be in a closed chamber with high humidity 80% and high temps, 80 day and night and 95-100 basking, for a year or two. Once 10 inches is reached it can live outside depending on weather outside.
A lot of sulcata babies at 1 year should/would be too big for this box.
 

Kooks_1776

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Post pic of the tortoise.
A sulcata should be in a closed chamber with high humidity 80% and high temps, 80 day and night and 95-100 basking, for a year or two. Once 10 inches is reached it can live outside depending on weather outside.
A lot of sulcata babies at 1 year should/would be too big for this box.
Here’s a better picture, sorry if I responded twice I’m still not very familiar with forums.
 

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Kooks_1776

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As Wellington said those commercial tort tables are no good. Should be in an enclosed enclosure to keep heat and humidity in. Heres a good thread to read thru and come back with any questions

Thread 'The Best Way To Raise A Sulcata, Leopard, Or Star Tortoise'
https://www.tortoiseforum.org/threa...se-a-sulcata-leopard-or-star-tortoise.181503/
Thanks! I have actually read that thread before when I first got my tortoise, but I’ve been in a financial pickle and I’m trying to make the best of it with what I have, the box I just got was on sale at our local pet store for only 25 dollars so I thought it’d be good to give him more space you know? What I’m getting at is if it’s possible to make it work for now?
 

wellington

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He is way too big for that box. He needs to have room to roam or he eventually will not be able to walk. A minimum of a 4x6 or 4x8 is better and should be a closed chamber.
Read the thread link for you above.
 

wellington

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Thanks! I have actually read that thread before when I first got my tortoise, but I’ve been in a financial pickle and I’m trying to make the best of it with what I have, the box I just got was on sale at our local pet store for only 25 dollars so I thought it’d be good to give him more space you know? What I’m getting at is if it’s possible to make it work for now?
No, it's too small. If you can figure out a way to add more space to it then it can work.
Otherwise return it and look online for poo up portable green houses. Some are under 50 bucks. Look for a 3x6 3x8 or even a 2x8.
Too small of enclosures can cause all kinds of health problems.
 

Swiechdawn

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Don't listen to the nay-sayers. I have no idea how big your tortoise is or how quickly he will grow but do what you need to do for now and work to make it better when you can. If your tortoises' needs become greater than you can support, please look to place him with someone who is able to give him the best life possible. Anyway, here's my 2-cents on how to best use your cage. I have a similar enclosure for my cherry-head redfoot that is about 6.5 months old. Here's what I do to make it a great environment. First of all put a mix of coco coir and organic soil as the substrate. Buy species safe plants plant them in enclosure. I also grow my own tortoise grass/weeds in a tray and put a fresh strip in there every few days (but this is not required). For lighting and UVA/UVB rays, I have a reptile basking light & a zoo med T5-Ho terrarium light for extra UVB. For night-time heat, I turn off the two light sources and use a ceramic bulb. The basking light and ceramic bulb are in a dual lamp fixture and they are on a thermostat to keep the basking temperature around 95 degrees. For humidity I water down the plants and various areas of the substrate every day. I also have a mini- humidifier in there. that I refill every morning. I monitor the humidity with a humidity guage. In order to keep the heat and humidity inside the cage, you can use foil over the grates or else plexi-glass. I have recently switched from foil to thin plexi-glass and it works great. I have links below to what I am using. Note: the strength of your heat lamp and ceramic bulb need to be based on your environment so you made need more or less wattage than I have purchased.

For the part of the habitat that is closed on all sides, I hung a heat reptile heat matt on the side of the container to give some warmth to that area. Do not put it so the tortoise can lay on it as they can get burned and they absorb heat from the top (so I'm told).

The picture below is from when I had foil on top and one light fixture that I switched bulbs day and night (from basking light to ceramic bulb).

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00M9ONY1W/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B083XR7SHM/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07DN9K7PH/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CWKXYPP/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08ML1STTH/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B084MK8D4Z/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0823MGXXD/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07WPSL955/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06XY3X7P9/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20
 

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Tom

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Don't listen to the nay-sayers. I have no idea how big your tortoise is or how quickly he will grow but do what you need to do for now and work to make it better when you can. If your tortoises' needs become greater than you can support, please look to place him with someone who is able to give him the best life possible. Anyway, here's my 2-cents on how to best use your cage. I have a similar enclosure for my cherry-head redfoot that is about 6.5 months old. Here's what I do to make it a great environment. First of all put a mix of coco coir and organic soil as the substrate. Buy species safe plants plant them in enclosure. I also grow my own tortoise grass/weeds in a tray and put a fresh strip in there every few days (but this is not required). For lighting and UVA/UVB rays, I have a reptile basking light & a zoo med T5-Ho terrarium light for extra UVB. For night-time heat, I turn off the two light sources and use a ceramic bulb. The basking light and ceramic bulb are in a dual lamp fixture and they are on a thermostat to keep the basking temperature around 95 degrees. For humidity I water down the plants and various areas of the substrate every day. I also have a mini- humidifier in there. that I refill every morning. I monitor the humidity with a humidity guage. In order to keep the heat and humidity inside the cage, you can use foil over the grates or else plexi-glass. I have recently switched from foil to thin plexi-glass and it works great. I have links below to what I am using. Note: the strength of your heat lamp and ceramic bulb need to be based on your environment so you made need more or less wattage than I have purchased.

For the part of the habitat that is closed on all sides, I hung a heat reptile heat matt on the side of the container to give some warmth to that area. Do not put it so the tortoise can lay on it as they can get burned and they absorb heat from the top (so I'm told).

The picture below is from when I had foil on top and one light fixture that I switched bulbs day and night (from basking light to ceramic bulb).

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00M9ONY1W/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B083XR7SHM/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07DN9K7PH/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CWKXYPP/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08ML1STTH/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B084MK8D4Z/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0823MGXXD/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07WPSL955/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06XY3X7P9/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20
Nay-sayers? I don't know you or what your level of tortoise experience is, but you are giving some terrible advice to someone that has a completely different species than you, with completely different care needs. This helps no one, and it hurts tortoises. You are making a bunch of mistakes with your own tortoise.

Coco coir is safe for sulcatas, but too messy. Soil should not be used as a substrate for any tortoise.

A sulcata will trample and/or eat any plant in its enclosure, and store ought plants are full of toxic pesticides. Systemic pesticides that can't be rinsed off. Your tray suggestion is a great one, assuming the correct perlite and chemical free soil is used for that.

Tortoise don't need UVA, and in fact it only desiccates their carapace and causes more severe pyramiding. Most reptile branded basking lamps are spot bulbs, and these should never be used over tortoises. Flood bulbs are the better way to go. Red foots don't even need basking lamps and should simply have an over head heat source set on a thermostat. If you are going to use a basking lamp, it should be set on a thermostat because the "sun" shouldn't be going on and off all day, and the "sun" shouldn't be on at night. Both species need warm nights. A basking lamp for a sulcata should be of the correct wattage to maintain the right temperature and set on a timer. Ambient heat, the CHE, should be set on the thermostat to keep the temperature above the set point.

The T-5 UV tube is a good way to go, but those are strong bulbs and a tortoise house like what the OP has would require some sort of overhead mounting system to keep the bulb at least 18-20 inches above the tortoise.

Humidifiers shouldn't be used with tortoises. Its not a good idea to have them breathing little droplets of water. That fine mist produced by a humidifier is not the same thing as high humidity air.

Covering a wooden enclosure with damp substrate to hold in humidity is going to result in some rot pretty quickly. The wooden ones also tend to leak and seep at the joints. Covering one to hold in some humidity is better than nothing, but I don't think its a good idea to discourage a new tortoise keeper from investing in and acquiring the correct enclosure for their tortoise. And the covering is going to block the UV tube you've suggested.

I understand you are trying to be helpful, but the above advice wasn't. And I'm not a nay-sayer. I'm more of a do-it-the-right-way-er. I've raised a few sulcatas in quite a few ways, and over the decades, I learned what works and what doesn't and why. The whole point of a forum like this is so that people can learn the easy way, and not have to follow in the footsteps (and make the same mistakes) of those who came before them.
 
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