New Enclosure - Feedback

[John84]

Hi every one! I just built a new enclosure for Theo the Sulcata Tort. I was wondering if I could get some feedback on balancing the temps. I have two ceramic heat emitters; one is 250 watts and the other is 60. They are both set up on the same zilla thermostat. It's set to 83F, but the thermostat next to it says 77. Is there an issue with the zilla thermostat? Also on the far left it's about 80 then it gets hotter towards the bulb (I'm assuming it gets over 100 under the 250 emitter but haven't tested it since the red seams ok) and then "83" in the middle and 78 all the way to the right. Is this ok?

 

[John84]

Oh and the vents are closed off.

 

[Paul M Jones]

Nice looking setup!

 

[John84]

Nice looking setup!

Thank you

 

[Markw84]

John - great job on building the enclosure. Looks like @Tom design from his thread, and I love those!

I find many of the less expensive pet shop thermostats are sometimes off on the temperature reading, but that doesn't matter as long as it holds your setting. Check out all your temps and get them where you want. With a few good digital thermometers (and I'm always checking with a gun), get the temperature you want, even if the thermostat may read some degrees off what you are seeing with other readings. I always use 2 or 3 thermometers especially at first to check actual temperatures because I don't really trust what any one thermometer says.

How is your humidity doing?

I know its new, and probably just haven't started yet, but would really suggest you add a lot of interest to the enclosure with sight barriers and plants. I love the Prayer plants and spider plants. They do great indoors in lower light, and are great tortoise food as well. That will give your tortoise the feeling of a lot of bushes to hide under, and places to enjoy with all kinds of light gradients.

Again, congrats on a great build!!!

 

[Markw84]

in rereading your questions, keep in mind with this enclosure that I assume you insulated, as Tom shows, when the basking lights are on, my ceramic emitters do not come on at all - the basking light heats the entire enclosure, and I even have to adjust the wattage of the basking light to ensure it doesn't overheat. At might the Ceramic emitters will kick in and keep the temps where you want, so I found I had to check temps with my setup both after the basking light was on for several hours, and at night, after the basking light has been off for several hours and when its only the ceramic heat emitters heating.

Also, really recommend a darker hide for the tortoise not the open ended log half. I believe they benefit from being able to get into a really dark retreat to rest more like a burrow would provide. So an overturned, very opaque container with just an entrance hole cut in, or one of the premade dark hides like I use. Just for ideas on hide and plants, here's a photo of my enclosure. It's smaller than yours - only about 4 foot wide, but you get the idea.

 

[Markw84]

OH, yeah, I really found the coco coir holds and helps the humidity really well, but gets so messy especially with sulcatas. So I now use a layer of orchid bark over the top, and actually, next time I change, just go to orchid bark completely.

 

[Yvonne G]

I don't think I would have the two CHEs on the same thermostat.

 

[John84]

Thank you for the compliment and all the ideas. yes it's a knock off of @Tom enclosure. I didn't insulate it, but I with I had, only because my emitters run off and on all day. My temps are pretty stable though, I'm using the same thermometers Tome uses. As for the humidity it stays in the 80 in the cool zone and flexuates from 66-77 in the hot zone just depending on the area.

There is an additional humid hide in the middle(shown in the pic), it's more burrow like does that work?

 

[Markw84]

I don't think I would have the two CHEs on the same thermostat.

I actually like that, but wouldn't use a 250 watt as one. I balance them maybe two 100 watt. In a larger enclosure that is in a garage or very cool room, I find at night it provides a better way to control a more even heat, otherwise, unless you are using a proportional thermostat, you end up with a pretty hot spot under the one CHE as it kicks on and reheats the enclosure. Especially with a single glass pane over the entire front. But with this design, I'm sure one would be fine. But electrically, safety wise, multiple CHE's are fine and even provides redundancy incase one goes out. I just always stay well below the wattage rating of the thermostat.

 

[Markw84]

Thank you for the compliment and all the ideas. yes it's a knock off of @Tom enclosure. I didn't insulate it, but I with I had, only because my emitters run off and on all day. My temps are pretty stable though, I'm using the same thermometers Tome uses. As for the humidity it stays in the 80 in the cool zone and flexuates from 66-77 in the hot zone just depending on the area.

There is an additional humid hide in the middle(shown in the pic), it's more burrow like does that work?

I see your 'burrow' now. Yes, that is much better, but I always try to put mine in the darkest section of the enclosure. A personal opinion, but I have theorized that since in the wild, and in my outdoor enclosures, happy sulcatas retreat to their burrows especially through the mid day when there's plenty of sunshine and maybe their instincts tell them its going to get too hot. So I like a place that in mid day with all my lights on, its still as dark a retreat as I can offer.

Without insulation, in a cold garage, and the windows, you might fight that humidity under a 250 watt CHE. Maybe try two 100's or 150's and see it they heat more evenly and then there won't be a big one having to stay on as long to get back to temp. You could also go to a proportional thermostat, which I love. Otherwise you will always have you CHE kicking on full bore until the heat sensor tells it to turn off again when enough heat reaches the sensor's location. They're a bit pricy but I love them, and in a incubator, wouldn't use anything else.

 

[John84]

Thanks everyone, you have been so helpful

 

[John84]

I see your 'burrow' now. Yes, that is much better, but I always try to put mine in the darkest section of the enclosure. A personal opinion, but I have theorized that since in the wild, and in my outdoor enclosures, happy sulcatas retreat to their burrows especially through the mid day when there's plenty of sunshine and maybe their instincts tell them its going to get too hot. So I like a place that in mid day with all my lights on, its still as dark a retreat as I can offer.

Without insulation, in a cold garage, and the windows, you might fight that humidity under a 250 watt CHE. Maybe try two 100's or 150's and see it they heat more evenly and then there won't be a big one having to stay on as long to get back to temp. You could also go to a proportional thermostat, which I love. Otherwise you will always have you CHE kicking on full bore until the heat sensor tells it to turn off again when enough heat reaches the sensor's location. They're a bit pricy but I love them, and in a incubator, wouldn't use anything else.

So I moved his burrow, but he still isn't using it. He decided to choose a corner in the enclosure and dig a deep hole and sit in there in the exposed hole. Is that normal?

 

[Markw84]

That's pretty normal. Many times I will have to put them in their hide every night until they learn to treat it as their own burrow. Usually only takes a few weeks. Just keep putting him in every night after lights go out

 

[John84]

That's pretty normal. Many times I will have to put them in their hide every night until they learn to treat it as their own burrow. Usually only takes a few weeks. Just keep putting him in every night after lights go out

Ok thank you

 

[John84]

Would anyone on this post be able to tell me how hot the sulcata can tolerate? This enclosure is in the garage and I'm worried about it getting to hot.

 

[Paul M Jones]

80-90 degrees and a basking temp of 100-110