Outside enclosure?

[Perfetto18]

Hello,
I have two sulcata tortoise. I built them an open top tortoise table a while back but then I learned about close chambers. I tried to buy one online but the wait time is going to be at least two months so I built them a closed chamber out of a plastic bin that completely locks and I use electrical tape over the holes of the light fixtures where they hung above. The enclosure got really really humid in there and to the point where it was swampy and wet. Really hot as well. I'm wondering if it's OK to put their tortoise table on my screened in patio in Florida. They will have a shaded hut and a part of their cage that is closed off for total shade the top is empty and there's plenty a room for them to roam.. will they get enough sun this way? I won't need to include a UV or heat lamp this week correct? Also what is the best substrate for the enclosure to keep them outside? They will still be getting their daily soak and have a shallow water dish in their enclosure.

 

[wellington]

They won't get uvb through the screen. Also, will it get too hot out there and over heat them with it not being controlled?
Many uses cinder blocks to build sulcata enclosures or wood. Best not to use fencing they can see through as it will make tortoises want to get to the other side

 

[Perfetto18]

They won't get uvb through the screen. Also, will it get too hot out there and over heat them with it not being controlled?
Many uses cinder blocks to build sulcata enclosures or wood. Best not to use fencing they can see through as it will make tortoises want to get to the other side

They would be in partial sun and still have their shaded area until about 1-2 pm then I'd but them in a mostly shaded area. What's a good way to get uvb if they're living in the screen patio?

 

[wellington]

If they will have sun that doesn't go through screen then that's fine. If it's totally screened in, you will have to use a uvb light or put them outside for unfiltered natural sun.
If they are still young, at least 2 or under, they should stay in the closed chamber and you can put them outside for a 1/2 hour to an hour a day then they wouldn't need uvb from a light.

 

[Tom]

Babies don't do well outside full time regardless of the climate. Not even over in Africa where they come from.

Whenever you set up any new enclosure, there will need to be some tweaking and adjustments made, and this includes your new tub. As you've seen, a closed chamber will get really hot if you use the same bulb or wattage that was over an open topped enclosure. One of the advantages of a closed chamber is that you can use much lower wattage bulbs to get your temps correct, which saves a ton of money on electricity over the long term.

Likewise, if your humidity was too high, add some venting.

How hot did it get and how humid? I like my ambient temp to climb up into the low 90s for sulcata during the day and drop to 80 at night. Humidity is fine as long as its over 80%. I've never encountered a problem from it being too high, and I've never been able to get it too high with lights on the outside. What did your hygrometer say? Remember that you are trying to duplicate the hot, rainy, wet, humid monsoon season that wild baby sulcatas hatch in to.

 

[Tom]

They would be in partial sun and still have their shaded area until about 1-2 pm then I'd but them in a mostly shaded area. What's a good way to get uvb if they're living in the screen patio?

You would need a UV meter to know how much UV is getting through your screens on any given day. In your part of the world, it might still be enough, even though some will be filtered out by the screen.

 

[Perfetto18]

It would get to 100-110 and the humidity was always 90-100% when I would open the top water would pour from the top and the inside would be completely soaked! If that's okay I'll go back to that I wasn't sure if that was just too much for them and one of their shells is starting to get soft so I wanted to stop it before it gets worse!

 

[Tom]

It would get to 100-110 and the humidity was always 90-100% when I would open the top water would pour from the top and the inside would be completely soaked! If that's okay I'll go back to that I wasn't sure if that was just too much for them and one of their shells is starting to get soft so I wanted to stop it before it gets worse!

Where was it 100-110? Directly under the bulb, or the whole thing?

Sounds like the bulb needs to be lower wattage, or mounted a little higher.

The inside being soaked is a result of condensation collecting on the cooler walls of the enclosure. You will need to work on getting the moisture level right, but once you get it set, things are easy. If you make it too wet initially, you just need to let it dry out a bit. If its too dry initially (Not your issue…), the a person would need to add more water to the substrate.

Once your tortoises reach about 8-10", then living outside full time in your climate with the right housing will be great for them. As babies, they will fare better inside most of the time with excursions to an outdoor enclosure daily. My general rule of them is an hour of outside time per inch of tortoise per day.

 

[Perfetto18]

Where was it 100-110? Directly under the bulb, or the whole thing?

Sounds like the bulb needs to be lower wattage, or mounted a little higher.

The inside being soaked is a result of condensation collecting on the cooler walls of the enclosure. You will need to work on getting the moisture level right, but once you get it set, things are easy. If you make it too wet initially, you just need to let it dry out a bit. If its too dry initially (Not your issue…), the a person would need to add more water to the substrate.

Once your tortoises reach about 8-10", then living outside full time in your climate with the right housing will be great for them. As babies, they will fare better inside most of the time with excursions to an outdoor enclosure daily. My general rule of them is an hour of outside time per inch of tortoise per day.

Okay great! I'll be getting the CHE you recommended and using that instead of the bulb along with a UVB light inside and keeping it not as wet in there!

 

[Tom]

Okay great! I'll be getting the CHE you recommended and using that instead of the bulb along with a UVB light inside and keeping it not as wet in there!

You need 4 heating and lighting elements:
1. Basking bulb. I use 65 watt flood bulbs. Set it on a timer for 12 hours a day and adjust the mounting height so that the temp under it is about 100 degreesF.
2. CHE to maintain ambient heat day and night at no lower than 80F. Set this one on a thermostat so it controls the minimum temp 24/7.
3. UV tube. The newer HO tubes are strong, but must be mounted at the correct height. I use the Arcadia 12% HO tubes, but they must be mounted at least 18" from the tortoise and I run it only for 3 hours mid day. Other bulbs will work for closer mounting and can run longer because they don't make such strong UV.
4. Additional ambient lighting. I like to run another florescent tube in the 5000-6500K color range for additional lighting. This can run on the same timer as the basking bulb, or its own timer. I've started using LEDs for this, but fluorescents are what I used in the past.

In your climate you might not need the UV tube if you can get the tortoise into a safe outdoor enclosure for an hour or two a couple of times a week, or more, for most of the year.

All of this will work best in a large closed chamber. Having an open topped enclosure, even in your climate, makes things difficult.

The CHE on a thermostat is needed in addition to the basking bulb, not instead of. If the room where your enclosure sits never drops below 80, then you don't need the CHE and thermostat. If you get your tortoise out for regular sunning sessions most of the year, then you don't need the UV tube. If the room where your tortoise enclosure sits is very bright and sunny, then you don't have to use the additional florescent tube. For example, my babies get out for sun several times a week and my enclosures are in a heated reptile room that never drops below 80. I also have strong, but efficient, LED lighting in the room that I can leave on all day at almost no cost. Because of all of this, some of my enclosures only have a single 65 watt bulb hanging over them for basking because ambient temp, brightness, and UV are taken care of by other sources. If you don't have a brightly lit, heated reptile room, or if a person lives in a colder climate than you or I do, then they would need all four of the heating and lighting elements.

 

[Perfetto18]

Where would I be able to get that? They only have led flood bulbs at walmart

 

[JustLivingLife714]

Where would I be able to get that? They only have led flood bulbs at walmart

good question.