FrankiesMom
Member
Hi Y'all!
We built a night box for an outdoor enclosure for our 2-1/2-year-old leopard tortoise, Frankie. He is 18" and 18.5 pounds.
Up until now, he has been living in an indoor enclosure built by Mark K Wilson LLC and has grown and thrived in there for almost 3 years!
Anyone looking for an indoor closed chamber enclosure should definitely consider ordering from [email protected]. You will not be disappointed.
Frankie's outdoor enclosure is full of grass/weeds (no pesticides/fertilizer), edible plants, a small (very) shallow pond that he can safely climb in and out of, and plenty of shade bushes.
I used Tom's instructions to build the insulated night box; however, I cannot find specific instructions on how to install the heating elements. Many of the posts no longer have photos available so I'm not sure if there were photos of the electrical out there.
I think we have all of the items needed:
18x28 Kane mat
80-watt radiant heat panel (still working on obtaining one of these)
1000-watt digital temperature controller
Outdoor extension cord (and an outdoor receptacle to plug it into)
Small shoebox sized Rubbermaid tote (to store electrical cords, etc to keep dry)
Questions (some of these questions may seem like no-brainers -- but electrical stuff makes me very nervous so I'm trying to ask all questions):
1) How do I attach the Rubbermaid container to the inside of the night box?
2) Do I cut holes in the side of the Rubbermaid container to pull cords through?
3) What exactly goes in the Rubbermaid container?
4) I think the Kane mat just sits on the floor on one side of the night box and the tortoise sits on it directly - is that correct?
5) How do I attach the 80-watt radiant heat panel and where - ceiling or wall? On same side of the box as the Kane mat?
6) Do I drill a hole in the night box for the extension cord or just drape it out the top panel?
7) Do I need the heat on in the summer when it's 70+ degrees at night? Should I just leave it on and it goes on/off when needed depending on the settings?
8) What should the settings be? (I actually have Tom's suggested settings but the thread I have is from several years ago and I'm not sure if the thoughts on this subject have changed.)
9) Should I put him in his night box when there is heavy rain/wind - we do get our fair share of hurricanes in Florida! Or will he go in on his own if he needs to? If it gets really bad outside, I suspect I will be bringing him indoors for my own sanity!
10) Any additional information is greatly appreciated.
11) Unrelated question: Do I still need to soak Frankie at his size/weight? If so, how often? Currently I do this 3x week.
Thank you in advance for your help.
We built a night box for an outdoor enclosure for our 2-1/2-year-old leopard tortoise, Frankie. He is 18" and 18.5 pounds.
Up until now, he has been living in an indoor enclosure built by Mark K Wilson LLC and has grown and thrived in there for almost 3 years!
Anyone looking for an indoor closed chamber enclosure should definitely consider ordering from [email protected]. You will not be disappointed.
Frankie's outdoor enclosure is full of grass/weeds (no pesticides/fertilizer), edible plants, a small (very) shallow pond that he can safely climb in and out of, and plenty of shade bushes.
I used Tom's instructions to build the insulated night box; however, I cannot find specific instructions on how to install the heating elements. Many of the posts no longer have photos available so I'm not sure if there were photos of the electrical out there.
I think we have all of the items needed:
18x28 Kane mat
80-watt radiant heat panel (still working on obtaining one of these)
1000-watt digital temperature controller
Outdoor extension cord (and an outdoor receptacle to plug it into)
Small shoebox sized Rubbermaid tote (to store electrical cords, etc to keep dry)
Questions (some of these questions may seem like no-brainers -- but electrical stuff makes me very nervous so I'm trying to ask all questions):
1) How do I attach the Rubbermaid container to the inside of the night box?
2) Do I cut holes in the side of the Rubbermaid container to pull cords through?
3) What exactly goes in the Rubbermaid container?
4) I think the Kane mat just sits on the floor on one side of the night box and the tortoise sits on it directly - is that correct?
5) How do I attach the 80-watt radiant heat panel and where - ceiling or wall? On same side of the box as the Kane mat?
6) Do I drill a hole in the night box for the extension cord or just drape it out the top panel?
7) Do I need the heat on in the summer when it's 70+ degrees at night? Should I just leave it on and it goes on/off when needed depending on the settings?
8) What should the settings be? (I actually have Tom's suggested settings but the thread I have is from several years ago and I'm not sure if the thoughts on this subject have changed.)
9) Should I put him in his night box when there is heavy rain/wind - we do get our fair share of hurricanes in Florida! Or will he go in on his own if he needs to? If it gets really bad outside, I suspect I will be bringing him indoors for my own sanity!
10) Any additional information is greatly appreciated.
11) Unrelated question: Do I still need to soak Frankie at his size/weight? If so, how often? Currently I do this 3x week.
Thank you in advance for your help.