This is a project that I've been planning and designing for a long time. The addition of my new girls pushed me over the edge to finally get it done. My old shed was very drafty and used nothing but heat mats to warm my adult sulcatas during the cold winter nights. I was always worried about them. They were always warm enough, but the air in there was cold. They survived the old way for many years, but I see noticeable improvement in just the first few days of using the new box. I keep it around 80, and I just feel a lot better about them at night now. I, and they, will sleep much better on those occasional below freezing nights in the coming winter. I'm also very curious to see what this will do to my breeding success with Delores. Most people get multiple large clutches out of their adult female sulcatas every year. I've been getting just one small clutch out of my young female each year. I wonder if the usual cold winter temps have had anything to do with that. Time will tell.
I tried to keep the pic count down, but still tell the story, so here goes:
A little size reference.
That's one and a half inch thick insulation all the way around.
Here the floor insulation is in, but not covered yet. You can see the wall insulation is now covered/protected.
Here's the heat source on its raised shelf. The wheels sit in cut-outs so it can't move and its screwed to the floor with metal sash chain.
The door being fitted with its overlapping vinyl flaps.
I used foil backed, fire proof insulation for the top since it will rest right over the heater. I glued it in place with plain silicone sealant.
Here's the finished product next to the old one, and then by itself.
Here are all three girls partaking. You can see that Big Bertha has already anointed the new box. She did this within minutes of climbing in. They've been using it for around a week now and its well broken in. You can see the power cord coming in and my thermostat and temp probe hanging against the back wall. I've also installed an inline electricity meter and I'm going to compare the electricity usage of this 600 watt heater that's rarely on verses the three 72 watt heat mats that were almost always on. I've installed the heat mats because that is what they are used to sleeping on and I want them to feel as comfortable in the new box as possible, but they aren't plugged in. As a side benefit, they protect my wood floor from the always destructive sulcata feet and poo.
Here is a pic from tonight, after the sun went down. They are all going in and out on their own. Words cannot express what a relief that is. Try carrying a 66 pound, unhappy, struggling sulcata for 50 yards sometime. Try doing it every night. No fun. For those deciding whether or not to delve into the wonderful world of sulcatas, that's only about three days of sh** on my brand new floor there, just so you know. I'm assuming the loose stuff is from the recent pumpkin influx. Good times.
I tried to keep the pic count down, but still tell the story, so here goes:
A little size reference.
That's one and a half inch thick insulation all the way around.
Here the floor insulation is in, but not covered yet. You can see the wall insulation is now covered/protected.
Here's the heat source on its raised shelf. The wheels sit in cut-outs so it can't move and its screwed to the floor with metal sash chain.
The door being fitted with its overlapping vinyl flaps.
I used foil backed, fire proof insulation for the top since it will rest right over the heater. I glued it in place with plain silicone sealant.
Here's the finished product next to the old one, and then by itself.
Here are all three girls partaking. You can see that Big Bertha has already anointed the new box. She did this within minutes of climbing in. They've been using it for around a week now and its well broken in. You can see the power cord coming in and my thermostat and temp probe hanging against the back wall. I've also installed an inline electricity meter and I'm going to compare the electricity usage of this 600 watt heater that's rarely on verses the three 72 watt heat mats that were almost always on. I've installed the heat mats because that is what they are used to sleeping on and I want them to feel as comfortable in the new box as possible, but they aren't plugged in. As a side benefit, they protect my wood floor from the always destructive sulcata feet and poo.
Here is a pic from tonight, after the sun went down. They are all going in and out on their own. Words cannot express what a relief that is. Try carrying a 66 pound, unhappy, struggling sulcata for 50 yards sometime. Try doing it every night. No fun. For those deciding whether or not to delve into the wonderful world of sulcatas, that's only about three days of sh** on my brand new floor there, just so you know. I'm assuming the loose stuff is from the recent pumpkin influx. Good times.