Napping under the Basking Light - Problem?

[TisMary]

I have this 2 year old "pet rock" (WHT, Smidgen). He basks a lot more now that (he thinks) he's a big boy. A temperature probe, measuring at "shell height", shows the highest basking temp is 95°. There are lots of shady places where he moves to self-regulate. All good.

My concern is that he sometimes falls asleep under the basking light. Temps (measured with an infrared digital thermometer) on the top of his shell can go above 100° quickly (think: stone absorbing heat in the sun). Concerned that he could overheat and not know it, I manually monitor his shell temp, turning the basking light off when things (including Smidgen) heat up; then I turn it back on later - rinse, lather, repeat.

Curious to know how if others have similar concerns about "overheating while snoozing" under the basking light. If so, how do you manage it? If this isn't something you're concerned about, why are you not? Suggestions? Advice? Thanks much.

 

[wellington]

What exactly is the "all good" temps in the other areas?
Also what is the humidity as there is a lot of pyramiding.
How old and how big?
What type of basking bulb?

 

[Tom]

I have this 2 year old "pet rock" (WHT, Smidgen). He basks a lot more now that (he thinks) he's a big boy. A temperature probe, measuring at "shell height", shows the highest basking temp is 95°. There are lots of shady places where he moves to self-regulate. All good.

My concern is that he sometimes falls asleep under the basking light. Temps (measured with an infrared digital thermometer) on the top of his shell can go above 100° quickly (think: stone absorbing heat in the sun). Concerned that he could overheat and not know it, I manually monitor his shell temp, turning the basking light off when things (including Smidgen) heat up; then I turn it back on later - rinse, lather, repeat.

Curious to know how if others have similar concerns about "overheating while snoozing" under the basking light. If so, how do you manage it? If this isn't something you're concerned about, why are you not? Suggestions? Advice? Thanks much.

Excessive basking is definitely a problem. It desiccates the carapace and causes pyramiding.

If the shell is heating to over 100 degrees, then your basking temp is too hot at tortoise shell height. Measure the basking temp by laying a digital thermometer on its back directly under the bulb, at tortoise shell height, and letting it bake for an hour or more, like a rock in the "sun". If its over 100, raise the fixture a bit.

Be sure you are using a flood type bulb and not a spot, halogen, or mercury vapor bulb.

Also, is the enclosure open topped, or a closed chamber? Excessive basking can be caused by cool ambient temps. In an open table there is no way to warm up the ambient unless you heat the whole room. A tortoise has to bask a long time to warm from room temp up to operating temperatures. If you can warm the rest of the enclosure up into the 80s during the day, then your tortoise will bask a lot less. They will also bask more during the day when the overnight temps are lower, so sometimes adding some reasonable night heat, reduces basking too. I don't like temperate species to be in the 80s at night, but low 70s works for them.