Will an incandescent bulb overheat my vivarium for baby Russian Tortoise?

[UKTortellini]

Hi,

I have a vivarium for my baby Russian Tortoise who is about 6 months old. The dimensions are: L86.2cm x D37.5cm x H42.1cm

I plan to upgrade to a bigger viv as he grows in future.

I have a 100w CHE hooked up to a thermostat supplying heat, and an Arcadia t8 12% uvb D3+ light setup. After looking around on the forum, I have seen a lot about a basking light also being needed to create a basking zone.

My concern which I cannot seem to find an answer for is, what type of wattage and type of bulb would be suitable to create a safe basking spot in a viv the size of mine without overheating it?

Also in a viv the size of mine, where would be a suitable position to place the CHE if I find a suitable/safe basking light to install?

Winter is coming and I would feel much more comfortable having the CHE in there as a precaution to maintain night time temps in the winter, so removing it is not something I really want to do.

Thanks.

 

[Tom]

Hi,

I have a vivarium for my baby Russian Tortoise who is about 6 months old. The dimensions are: L86.2cm x D37.5cm x H42.1cm

I plan to upgrade to a bigger viv as he grows in future.

I have a 100w CHE hooked up to a thermostat supplying heat, and an Arcadia t8 12% uvb D3+ light setup. After looking around on the forum, I have seen a lot about a basking light also being needed to create a basking zone.

My concern which I cannot seem to find an answer for is, what type of wattage and type of bulb would be suitable to create a safe basking spot in a viv the size of mine without overheating it?

Also in a viv the size of mine, where would be a suitable position to place the CHE if I find a suitable/safe basking light to install?

Winter is coming and I would feel much more comfortable having the CHE in there as a precaution to maintain night time temps in the winter, so removing it is not something I really want to do.

Thanks.

Only your thermometer can answer your question about basking bulb wattage. CHE is for ambient heat, so it should go over the middle and be controlled by a thermostat.

There are four elements to heating and lighting:

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. 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.
3. 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 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

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