UVB and Heat Bulbs

[Desiré_tortoise_mom]

Hi Everyone!

Now that I’m needing to set up a new enclosure for Harley, I’m questioning the UVB light and heat bulb that I use for Rosie too.

I will add pictures of the ones I use. Can anyone please give me advice, are they fine? Or not? Or do I need something more or different.

I switch the UVB light on for half and hour in the morning, and half an hour at night. During the day, Rosie is in her outdoor enclosure where she can choose between sun or shade.

The bulb I use for heat does not give off any light, is that fine or not okay? I’m specifically asking because Harley is a baby, and she cannot be outside all day.

I’ve read some of the threads on bulbs, but honestly it is confusing me so much.

So, are these two fine?

Thank you!

 

[wellington]

Yes those are good. However, you need a incandescent flood bulb for basking. Depending on where you live, one ceramic heat emitter may not be enough. Temps need to be never below 80 day and night, and basking temp of 95-100.

 

[Desiré_tortoise_mom]

Yes those are good. However, you need a incandescent flood bulb for basking. Depending on where you live, one ceramic heat emitter may not be enough. Temps need to be never below 80 day and night, and basking temp of 95-100.

Thanks for the speedy response. So, just to make sure, I need three things in there… the UVB light, the heat lamp, and a flood bulb?

I’ve put my tort’s basking plate under the heat lamp because it heats up quite nicely.

So I need to switch it and rather put the flood bulb over the basking plate, and the heat lamp in another area of the enclosure?

I’m sorry for asking so many questions. I just want to understand so that I can get this right.

 

[wellington]

If your tort uses the heat lamp(che) for basking then you can stick with that. Most won't use them for basking because they are expecting light, like from the sun. But there should be more light during the day then just the fluorescent.
Also, are you using a closed chamber and how big is the enclosure?
Should be a 2x4 closed chamber for a hatching and then expanded as he grows.
Post a pic of the enclosure, it would make it easier to understand what your doing and if you need more heat or light.

 

[Tom]

Thanks for the speedy response. So, just to make sure, I need three things in there… the UVB light, the heat lamp, and a flood bulb?

I’ve put my tort’s basking plate under the heat lamp because it heats up quite nicely.

So I need to switch it and rather put the flood bulb over the basking plate, and the heat lamp in another area of the enclosure?

I’m sorry for asking so many questions. I just want to understand so that I can get this right.

Is Rosie the tiny baby or your older one? Babies need to be housed primarily indoors. Outside all day is bad for babies, even in their native range, because our captive environments cannot meet their needs. Most of the babies in the wild don't survive either.

Your CHE (ceramic heating element, the one with heat but no light) needs to be set on a thermostat, and that one maintains ambient heat.

You have the old style T8 UV bulb. Those make very little UV and need to be mounted no more than about 25cm from the tortoise, but they also do not harm. UV should run for a few hours mid day only. Not early morning or late evening. A tortoise the is outside with access to direct sunshine on a regular basis does not need indoors UV, but that bulb will do no harm and can be used for ambient light indoors too, since you already have it.

The above gives you two of the four heating and lighting elements. You still need an incandescent flood bulb for basking, and some ambient light to keep it all looking bright and "sunny" indoors, both set on a timer for about 12 hours a day. This is all critically important as you move into winter there.

The baby should be set up in a large closed chamber with the heating and lighting inside.

This is from the care sheet linked previously:

Here is a breakdown of the four heating and lighting essentials:

1. Basking bulb. I use 65 watt incandescent floods from the hardware store. Some people will need bigger, or smaller wattage bulbs. Let your thermometer be your guide. I run them on a timer for about 12 hours and adjust the height to get the correct basking temp under them. I also like to use a flat rock of some sort directly under the bulb. You need to check the temp with a thermometer directly under the bulb and get it to around 95-100F (36-37C).
2. Ambient heat maintenance. I use ceramic heating elements or radiant heat panels set on thermostats to maintain ambient above 80 degrees day and night for tropical species. In most cases you'd only need day heat for a temperate species like Testudo or DT, as long as your house stays above 60F (15-16C) at night. Some people in colder climates or with larger enclosures will need multiple CHEs or RHPs to spread out enough heat.
3. Ambient light. I use LEDs for this purpose. Something in the 5000-6500K color range will look the best. Most bulbs at the store are in the 2500K range and they look yellowish. Strip or screw-in LED bulb types are both fine.
4. UV. If you can get your tortoise outside for an hour 2 or 3 times a week, you won't need indoor UV. In colder climates, get one of the newer HO type fluorescent tubes. Which type will depend on mounting height. 5.0 bulbs make almost no UV. I like the 12% HO bulbs from Arcadia. You need a meter to check this: https://www.solarmeter.com/model65.html A good UV bulb only needs to run for 2-3 hours mid day. You need the basking bulb and the ambient lighting to be on at least 12 hours a day.