New member

[dotty]

I completely understand you. I was lucky enough to find this forum a year ago with clear concise care sheets from Tom and others (and later I've found discussions and reasoning behind every point), so I've decided to stick to it as a sole information source.

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On lamps:
1. Yes, the ProT5 Desert 12% is a correct type. If you place enclosures side by side, you can use one long lamp and fixture for both. If not - get the shortest ones (22W). Lamp should be placed approximately 18 inch high over tortoise shell, near the basking spot bulb. Place it on timer for 3-4 hours a day.
2. For basking spot 65-75W should be enough (150W is usually an overkill). And you can get incandescent lamp from a hardware store, it's not essential to have one from Arcadia

Thank you
yes our newly built large inclosure we are going to put a wooden divide down the middle so was looking at the middle of the range lenght one, can't remember measurements off the top of my head. And yes just need to get another basking lamp

 

[wellington]

Thank you..I'm looking online now for a t5 lamp...its a mind field, I don't want people thinking I didn't research and ask advice for tortoise owners, I did research for months before getting them but theirs so many mixed options etc... and yes all I want is the best for them totally

Unfortunately the info out there is old and out dated. On here it's not.

 

[zolasmum]

Thank you
yes our newly built large inclosure we are going to put a wooden divide down the middle so was looking at the middle of the range lenght one, can't remember measurements off the top of my head. And yes just need to get another basking lamp

That sounds like a very good plan. Please don't feel bad at all about anything people have said here - it's just that it is rather urgent to separate the two of them - then you can see how well Flash is doing, and make any changes tou need to later. This is a wonderful site for tortoise information and discussion, and I wish it had existed when Zola was a baby. It is best to always follow the advice given by people here like Tom and Yvonne, who are extremely experienced and knowledgable, and to completely ignore advice from friends, pet shops etc. Toortoise knowledge has moved on a lot over the years,.
Best wishes from Angie

 

[Tom]

Hi Tom
Does this look correct?
Your help is much appreciated and I will be separating them as soon as I can purchase 2x of the correct heat and light source

Yes. Those are great. Raise or lower the flood lamp to get the correct basking temperature under it.

Your thermometer will be your guide through all of this. We can suggest wattages and bulbs, but ultimately, your thermometer will tell when you have it right or wrong. And your tortoises behavior will tell you too.

You may need ambient heat, but that depends on your room temperature.

Additional ambient lighting is usually a necessary benefit too. The enclosure should look and feel like a sunny day.

 

[dotty]

Thank you
yes our newly built large inclosure we are going to put a wooden divide down the middle so was looking at the middle of the range lenght one, can't remember measurements off the top of my head. And yes just need to get another basking lamp

Hi do these look correct, I'm ordering today

 

[wellington]

Hi do these look correct, I'm ordering today

The bulbs are correct. The dome is too small. You want the largest dome available. Usually they can be bought at hardware stores cheaper. Just be sure the wattage aloud is big enough and that it's a ceramic socket.

 

[Tom]

Hi do these look correct, I'm ordering today

I would suggest getting multiple heat lamps. Until you run them, You don't know what wattage will work. Only your thermometer can tell you. If your room temperature isn't too cool, and you can adjust the height of those 75 watt bulbs, they will probably work. If your room temp is cool, you might need 100 watt or 150 watt bulbs. You may need a 150 in winter and a 75 in summer. Whenever you figure out which bulbs work for your set up, I'd order up a few extras to have on hand. They burn out at the most inconvenient times...

That fixture will work, but you can get a better one with a longer heavy duty cord and a wider dome for less money from the hardware store, as Barb suggested.

 

[dotty]

I would suggest getting multiple heat lamps. Until you run them, You don't know what wattage will work. Only your thermometer can tell you. If your room temperature isn't too cool, and you can adjust the height of those 75 watt bulbs, they will probably work. If your room temp is cool, you might need 100 watt or 150 watt bulbs. You may need a 150 in winter and a 75 in summer. Whenever you figure out which bulbs work for your set up, I'd order up a few extras to have on hand. They burn out at the most inconvenient times...

That fixture will work, but you can get a better one with a longer heavy duty cord and a wider dome for less money from the hardware store, as Barb suggested.

Thank you