Advice on under tank heaters - outdoor habitat use

[Clementine]

I've read the posts on building a outdoor box for Igloo (thank you!). What I need to know is, what is the brand of heating "pad" that is being used? Are some better than others for outdoor use? The type of pad used in the posts looks to be larger and of a better quality than what I'm seeing in Petsmart/Petco....any help is appreciated!

 

[Tom]

I use Kane heat mats. Love them. Very safe and effective. I also like to have a Radiant Heat Panel (RHP) over head. Check this out:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/another-night-box-thread.88966/

The combo of the two in a properly insulated and sealed box will keep your tortoise at tropical temps on a freezing night.

 

[Yvonne G]

The current trend is away from pig blankets (still my choice and I'll give more info in a minute) and towards the infra red heat panels. I have a night box that my tortoise partner built for me, and he mounted the infra red panels inside it:



This will be the first winter I've used them. I had similar panels before, but the couldn't withstand the roughness of the tortoises bumping up against them, and they literally fell apart. These were panels I bought off a bird site.

My favorite are the pig blankets:



These, at least mine are, are made out of fiberglass and are very strong. I have two of them in the Aldabra tortoise shed on the floor, and the 200lb tortoises sit on them over night. Mine have a 'controller' that I can dial up or down to reach the temperature I'm looking for.

Something like this is a personal choice. Whatever works for you. Trouble is, they're both pretty expensive to buy just to try to figure out which you want to use. My pad cost around $80 and the controller around $60.

When I bought the bird infra red panels they were $80 apiece.

 

[Tom]

I have a night box that my tortoise partner built for me, and he mounted the infra red panels inside it:

OH!!! C'MON!!!!!!!!!!!

Where is the thread on this awesome new box??? It looks great. I want details and more pics!

 

[ZEROPILOT]

It does look pretty fantastic.