live in michigan need help asap

[schumacherl88]

we live in Michigan and need help with the basking area we had a 150 watt zoomed basking bulb but it seemed to be getting to hot measuring to be 107f so we as of right now switched it to the 100watt bulb which is measuring to be 85f ish so we were wondering what type of bulb we should use and wattage along with what type of hydrometer/ thermometer should we use that is reliable....

 

[TechnoCheese]

You should use a normal, 65 watt philips flood bulb. What species of tortoise is this?

Cheap temperature guns are great for measuring temperatures, and for humidity, just use any digital hygrometer from Walmart or Home Depot.

 

[Tim Carlisle]

When measuring for a proper wattage bulb, it would help to know the size of the enclosure (length, width, and height), as well as the type and size of its occupant. Once a proper wattage bulb can be calculated, then you can adjust the height of the bulb from the floor to fine tune it. This will be used to calculate the basking area temps. Afterwards, you can use a temperature gun to assess heating needs in other areas of the enclosure. Many folks will use ceramic heat emitters (CHE's) set up on a thermostat to adjust the ambient temps away from the basking area, itself.

 

[Yvonne G]

HANG the light fixture. Don't use the clamp feature. When you hang the fixture, you can then raise or lower it to reach the desired temperature at floor level

What species/age tortoise are we talking about here?