Winterizing tortoise help please

[kale315]

My two sulcatas have become too large for indoor house so this will be the first year outside in Florida. I have bought a wooden dog house to house them the next few years and was looking for some suggestions on heating. I'm would like to not use lamps and would like something somewhat efficient as cost is a factor. Any links to examples would be greatly appreciated. I'm posting a link to the dog house and recent pics of the tortes.

http://www.bonanza.com/listings/Woo...-EfwH54jNHzf1S16c2by3T9K4Pjjjpy9s0BoC_ubw_wcB



Thank you for any thoughts and suggestions.

 

[Maggie Cummings]

Can't get much cheaper then a $10 clamp light and a $3 sixty watt black light bulb. That's what I use in all my habitats. Why don't you want to use lamps? You could get an oil filled radiator type heater. A good one is about $40 at the big box stores and cheap to use. Mine is a DeLonghi...

 

[wellington]

I agree, an oiled filled portable heater is what I use here in Chicago.

 

[kale315]

I was thinking of using heat rope. Anyone opposed?

 

[Blakem]

I've seen member use heat rope. But some aren't familiar with it. I use a oil heater in my insulated wooden house. My sulcata can go in and out as she pleases. I just set the thermostat to 90 and it turns on as needed.


———-------------------------
(This is my signature)
Here's some great plant identification websites I use.

http://www.tlady.clara.net/TortGuide/diet.htm#plantlist

http://africantortoise.com/edible_landscaping.htm

http://m.thetortoisetable.org.uk/m/plants_19.asp

 

[Cowboy_Ken]

I'm old school and feel that tortoises are not designed to maintain their body heat by the use of plastron heat sources. Like others, here in Oregon, I use an oil filled electric heater on a thermostat to radiate the heat, heat the entire enclosure they retire in at night and on inclement weather days.

 

[Cowboy_Ken]

We had a gloomy, rainy day today. Weather wise I was happy. But no outside tortoises were out and about to greet me when I came home, (insert frown face here). I like seeing them and had yet to realize how much I'd be missing them this fall/winter.

 

[Tom]

Here is what I do:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/another-night-box-thread.88966/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/my-best-night-box-design-yet.66867/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/daisys-new-enclosure.28662/

I would also suggest you separate them. They don't do well in pairs and you are likely headed for problems.

 

[teachertort]

We have a 25 pound Sulcata outside in the desert of Southern California, it gets below freezing at times. We use a large plastic storage bin with a "pig blanket" and an infrared heater on a thermostat so it never gets too hot for him and he seems very happy. He still comes out on all but the coldest days. A pig blanket is a heated mat that is usually used for livestock but works equally well for tortoises. It is only half the size of the container so he can easily move on or off as he chooses. We cut a hole in the door so he can walk out if he wants.

 

[Len B]

I use Stanfield heat mats, self regulating heat tape, and I make heated tiles using flexwatt. These are my main heat scorces for my 5 sulcatas who all stay outside all year. I am located a little southeast of Wash DC. It gets cold here at times. In the biggest house (8x8 ft) I have a small oil filled heater in the back if needed. The smaller houses I have light sockets with black lights in them if a little extra heat is needed.This time of year I use insulated crocks as hides and I have a converted plastic rain barrel that is heated with heat tape and a homemade heated tile. These will surfice until it gets colder and stays cold during the day, and then they will all use their houses. What I like about using these systems is the very low wattage needed to keep the temps in the proper range. The largest crocks I have are 16 inches diameter and I have 43 watts max going to them, and after setting them up I found that I only need about half that to keep a good temp for the tortoises. Insulation is the most important factor in setting up a heated area of any kind for tortoises in cold climates. If you loose power you don't want the temps inside to go down fast, you may need a little time to get the power back on. I try not to use any hot heat, like CHE's or incandesant bulbs directly above my tortoises.

 

[teachertort]

My pig blanket is a Stanfield mat. It seems to be very reliable so far. The thermostat from Stanfield holds a very constant temp.