My indoor enclosure, comments please!!

[alice_s]

Here is my new enclosure, I haven't bought my tort yet as I want to make sure it is all ok first (it will be a Russian tort).

The enclosure is 2ft by 4ft by 16 inches deep, so I gave a good 6 inches of the coco coir substrate. The basking spot sits at between 98-102 degrees with a hide under it which is at 70 degrees and 50% humidity during the day. The cool end sits at 65 degrees with a second hide. I have a MVB heat lamp and also a separate UV tube. The lights are on 7am to 9pm, and at night the temp drops down to about 60 degrees.

Any comments would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Jacqui]

How old is this Russian going to be? In the second (I think it was) picture, it looks like the light is really hanging down low, is it?

 

[alice_s]

It's hanging about 8 inches above the rock to get the temperature. The Russian will not be a baby, the one I've got my eye on is about 5 inches long so they reckon it's at least 5 years old.

 

[Grandpa Turtle 144]

Hello Alice welcome to the TFO from AZ . Nice looking tort enclosure but 60 degree nights I feel that's cold for any tort isn't it ?

 

[alice_s]

Hi, from what I've read around this forum it seems that 60 is ok for an adult Russian at night, but this is why I'm asking for advice! Thanks for your comment I'm working with limited plug sockets and I don't want to overload them but if I need to I'll have to figure out a CHE heater for the night.

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Alice, and welcome to the Forum!

I can see that you've put a lot of thought into your habitat, and it looks pretty darned good. I'm a little worried it may not be big enough, but you'll have to wait and see how the tortoise acts in there.

There's a product called a 'surge protecter' or 'power strip' that has six outlets for you to plug in multiple appliances. So all you really need is the one socket you're now using, then plug in the power strip for all the other things you'll need. I do think that 60 might be stretching it a bit.

http://www.amazon.com/b?node=495314

 

[julietteq]

First of all, let me say that I think you did a great job, I really love how you made the basking rock in such a way that it also works as a hide is great ! I would take out the log and plant some more plants with big leaves like spiderplants and or ferns in the middle area so the totoise can hide underneath the foliage. They appear to like that. I am a bit worried about the light, 6 inches is very very close. If you have problems with the temperature in your enclosure overall I would add a ceramic heat lamp to it. Key is to observe your tortoise and see how it behaves.

 

[alice_s]

Hi and thanks for the comments, I will look into getting a CHE set up. Can you recommend any particular ferns that are safe? I've read that they are generally toxic.

 

[Tom]

It really does look nice, but I also think its too small for an adult. Great for a hatchling though. I recommend 3x6' as a minimum for adult russians and 4x8' or bigger is preferable.

I'm not a fan of the gravel, and I think your coir will need to be dampened and hand packed down a bit more.

You keep your house at 60 at night? Man that is cold. Brrrr... You will have to see how he does, and be ready to add night heat if needed.

 

[alice_s]

Hi tom, thanks for the advice. I would love a bigger enclosure but unfortunately floor space restricts me at the moment. The gravel is large, I've made sure there are no bits small enough for the tort to eat, is there a particular reason you are not a fan of it?

My house always seems cold, we just moved in before Xmas and struggle to get it above 70, that's what I get for falling in love with an old Victorian place.

I'll take the comments on board, thanks

 

[lismar79]

If floor space in an issue you can always go up in the future & add a ramp to a second floor To give your Russian more room. Put a little fence around the ramp so he can not fall off. There are some wonderful pics on this forum of set ups like that.