Setting my enclosure up.

[Anyfoot]

Just in the process of setting up a vivarium for my radiated torts.
Its 2x2x6ft.
I'm using a 200w CHE for heat set in the middle of the enclosure, I've put a shield under the CHE so there can't be a hot spot. I gunned the enclosure under the CHE which is 16" away and it read 37deg c. When I put the shield there it read 29deg c. More importantly humidity went up from 52 to 65%. This is all without any substrate in. The reason I chose the higher 200w CHE is because I'm going to have a nighttime low temperature. The higher wattage should raise temps back up faster in the day time than let's say a 150w would.
I'm aiming for 30/31deg c during the day and 21/22deg c at night

Im using a 3ft fluorescent 10.0 tube for UVB and lighting. This will be set at 12" from substrate when I get the 4" of coir in there, set on for 14hrs a day.

Across the front of the viv on the Inside I added a piece of laminated wood so the substrate doesn't go on the window and window tracks. Then I've lined the inside with a tough waterproof plastic sheet.


Just waiting on my substrates arriving then I'll add some deco.

 

[Anyfoot]

6" of moist coir gone in. On the right hand side it tapers down to 2" deep. I've put a load of moist spagnhum moss and leaves in this 1x2ft area. The idea is they walk down the coir slope into the debris. I'll put some sort of canopy over this area too make it more inviting I'm attempting to force them to dig in at night to keep the carapace moist. We shall see.
I've put a layer of orchid bark in too, but mixed it in a bit so they get better traction.
Water dish is in. Need a slate for feeding on, that's going on left hand side under the uvb light. You'll notice my uvb light is hung up with a simple wire system. This is so I can easily raise and lower it by moving the knots to get the correct uv reading at substrate level. Not sure whether to put a good over the light yet. Still waiting for my day/night thermostat and solar meter to turn up in the post.

 

[Bambam1989]

This is a nice looking setup.
Will these be your first radiated torts or do you already have experience with them?

 

[Anyfoot]

First radiated.

 

[Anyfoot]

Had the 200w CHE on all night with out a stat and it's giving me an ambient temp of 84f to 92f. I'll probably control it at 82/90f in the day with the stat if it settles on these temps without s stat. Ideally I want 86/87f throughout in the day, apparently these are very hardy torts that undergo some drastic temperature changes in the wild. So I'm not concerned.
At least if the stat ever malfunctions it can't overheat my torts.

 

[Bambam1989]

They are from Madagascar correct?

 

[Anyfoot]

They are from Madagascar correct?

Yep. Although I'm only going to Germany for mine.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Cool
Is that an old display case or did you custom build it?

 

[Anyfoot]

Cool
Is that an old display case or did you custom build it?

It's an old display case, But you could easily make one out of a cheap flat packed cupboard.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

It's an old display case, But you could easily make one out of a cheap flat packed cupboard.

It looks like a good candidate for an enclosure.

 

[Anyfoot]

It looks like a good candidate for an enclosure.

I bought this for £80. I was going to build one but I haven't got the time to make one as I'm getting the torts far quicker than I expected.
This is literally fits together like a flat pack cupboard does.