The Mother of All Tortoise Boxes

[solstitialis]

Can you give me some info on the oil heater you use? What brand? Are they really a low fire risk?

I currently keep my tortoise in a rubbermaid storage shed like the one you have pictured but I would like to build him something a bit nicer and yours looks fairly simple to duplicate. Thanks for posting!

 

[Tom]

Your daughter is so cute!!! how many animals do you have??

Oh good lord... a whole bunch. I'm an animal trainer by trade, so all I do is mess with animals all day every day.

Thanks for complimenting my little girl. Every father thinks their little one is the cutest. I bet your dad does too.

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Can you give me some info on the oil heater you use? What brand? Are they really a low fire risk?

I currently keep my tortoise in a rubbermaid storage shed like the one you have pictured but I would like to build him something a bit nicer and yours looks fairly simple to duplicate. Thanks for posting!

They are relatively safe. Most of them have a tip over shut off switch and if you keep them on low, they don't get hot enough to start a fire. I have a friend who used one in a plain, 3', plywood cube tort box. It rested up against the plywood inside the box and his tort would rest up against the heater with no problems. You can see I took lots of extra precautions with mine. Also, even though they draw a lot of power when they are on (600 watts on low), in a well insulated box they only come on two or three times a night. I'm using a watt meter right now to compare usage with this to a couple of heat mats that are always on, but using less electricity. Temps have been in the 40's here, but even with my thermostat set to 80, that heater rarely comes on...

... and I've got some happy torts.

 

[ChiKat]

It looks wonderful! Sounds like the torts are very happy
Your daughter is so adorable!

 

[REXANNismyprettygirl]

WOW!!! that is definately the mother of all tort houses!! I think I will share your handywork with my husband so he has an idea of what I am looking for in Rexann's new house!! hehehe

 

[DeanS]

THE GURU I SAY! Is there any doubt?!?!? Nice work Tom (but really...I expected nothing less)!

 

[solstitialis]

Your daughter is so cute!!! how many animals do you have??

Oh good lord... a whole bunch. I'm an animal trainer by trade, so all I do is mess with animals all day every day.

Thanks for complimenting my little girl. Every father thinks their little one is the cutest. I bet your dad does too.

---

Can you give me some info on the oil heater you use? What brand? Are they really a low fire risk?

I currently keep my tortoise in a rubbermaid storage shed like the one you have pictured but I would like to build him something a bit nicer and yours looks fairly simple to duplicate. Thanks for posting!

They are relatively safe. Most of them have a tip over shut off switch and if you keep them on low, they don't get hot enough to start a fire. I have a friend who used one in a plain, 3', plywood cube tort box. It rested up against the plywood inside the box and his tort would rest up against the heater with no problems. You can see I took lots of extra precautions with mine. Also, even though they draw a lot of power when they are on (600 watts on low), in a well insulated box they only come on two or three times a night. I'm using a watt meter right now to compare usage with this to a couple of heat mats that are always on, but using less electricity. Temps have been in the 40's here, but even with my thermostat set to 80, that heater rarely comes on...

... and I've got some happy torts.

---

What kind/brand thermostat are you using?

 

[tortoises101]

Extremely innovative and well designed. I like the idea of the build in heater; very smart design!!!

 

[Tom]

Your daughter is so cute!!! how many animals do you have??

Oh good lord... a whole bunch. I'm an animal trainer by trade, so all I do is mess with animals all day every day.

Thanks for complimenting my little girl. Every father thinks their little one is the cutest. I bet your dad does too.

---

Can you give me some info on the oil heater you use? What brand? Are they really a low fire risk?

I currently keep my tortoise in a rubbermaid storage shed like the one you have pictured but I would like to build him something a bit nicer and yours looks fairly simple to duplicate. Thanks for posting!

They are relatively safe. Most of them have a tip over shut off switch and if you keep them on low, they don't get hot enough to start a fire. I have a friend who used one in a plain, 3', plywood cube tort box. It rested up against the plywood inside the box and his tort would rest up against the heater with no problems. You can see I took lots of extra precautions with mine. Also, even though they draw a lot of power when they are on (600 watts on low), in a well insulated box they only come on two or three times a night. I'm using a watt meter right now to compare usage with this to a couple of heat mats that are always on, but using less electricity. Temps have been in the 40's here, but even with my thermostat set to 80, that heater rarely comes on...

... and I've got some happy torts.

---

What kind/brand thermostat are you using?

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Its called "A Life 1000 Watt Thermostat". I bought them from LLL Reptile. I've bought around 10 of them over the last couple of years and they all work great on a variety of electrical products.

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Extremely innovative and well designed. I like the idea of the build in heater; very smart design!!!

Thank you. I spent A LOT of time thinking about every aspect of it. Took me around two weeks to actually build and finish it.