Vivarium set up

[Patience&Wisdom]

Hey all, would love some help to get things right as I have purchased the the wrong lights before for my baby tortoise and I want to get it right this time.

I have a tunisian spur tighed who is around 8 months old, I have attached an image of the vivarium, its 115cm x 49w x 49h. With coco coir soil to the ceiling of the vivarium it's about 47cm. So with lighting I am looking to get arcadia pro t5 12% desert 24w to attach to the ceiling of the vivarium and a flood light 75w I have attached images please let me know if this is correct or what to change and if I'm missing anything else. I also have microclimate B1 thermostat. Appreciate the help!

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

I think the 12% might be too strong for that height, but that’s definitely the right kind of bulb, let me call in @Alex and the Redfoot he should be able to help here!

Is the thermostat for your basking light? Ideally it’s works best if you find the right height and watt to create your desired basking temperature underneath without the need for one, it’s acting as your sun, so ideally don’t want it dimming on&off all day.

If you ever need to use a ceramic bulb for extra ambient heat though, they do need to be on a thermostat

 

[Patience&Wisdom]

Ok great thanks yes I wasn't sure so maybe it would be Arcadia D3 Reptile T5 Lamp 6% UVB 24w. And thanks in that case i wont use the thermostat for the basking lamp. I will see what Alex says before purchasing. Thanks

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Hello!
2 cm of substrate is too little. You'll want to add more - 6-10 cm. This leaves us with ~40cm distance which is definitely too low for Desert lamp. So, in you situation I would get a Forest lamp.

By the way, you don't need a cage for the basking lamp. But it can be helpful in really rare cases when basking lamp blows up.

 

[Tom]

Hey all, would love some help to get things right as I have purchased the the wrong lights before for my baby tortoise and I want to get it right this time.

I have a tunisian spur tighed who is around 8 months old, I have attached an image of the vivarium, its 115cm x 49w x 49h. With coco coir soil to the ceiling of the vivarium it's about 47cm. So with lighting I am looking to get arcadia pro t5 12% desert 24w to attach to the ceiling of the vivarium and a flood light 75w I have attached images please let me know if this is correct or what to change and if I'm missing anything else. I also have microclimate B1 thermostat. Appreciate the help!

I see two of the lighting elements represented. I see the basking flood lamp and the UV tube. What is the thermostat going to be attached to to control ambient temperature? You need a CHE or a RHP for that. I also don't see any ambient lighting. You UV tube should only be on for a few hours mid day, and UV tubes aren't all that bright anyway. Ambient lighting can be on the same timer as the basking lamp all day, and it will make it look bright and "sunny" for your tortoise.

In addition to tripling your amount of substrate, be sure to hand pack it firmly to reduce the mess and make it easier for the tortoise to walk on.

I agree that you don't need the cage for the heat lamp. Those are to protect lizards and snakes that might climb on the bulb.

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.

 

[Patience&Wisdom]

Thanks both for the help! I won't get the cages for the flood light. So the Ambient heat will be on a thermostat I have attached the aracdia ceramic heater 100w would this be placed near the flood light? For the LED I have attached an image let me know please if it will be fine? And for UV as I will add more substrate I'll have 40cm left so pro5 forest 24w? On the aracdia site it does say you can use pro t5 12% from 40cm but do you think the forest would be better regardless? I have attached just to be sure these are right. Again thanks lighting has felt overwhelming but I want to get it right

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

At 40cm Arcadia Desert kit gives UVI (UV index) around 5.5. This is higher than recommended UV index for tortoises (3.5-4). This could work in larger enclosure when tortoise have plenty of space without UV but in 115x49cm vivarium 22" UVB lamp covers too large area.

LED light looks fine (perhaps, you will need to do some wiring - this one might come without a plug).

CHE should be installed in the middle to keep the whole encllosure warm. I would prefer to have 2 CHEs of smaller wattage for more even heating.

 

[Patience&Wisdom]

Ok thanks I will get the forest and I will use 2 CHE's thanks again