Do infrared heat lamps disturb sleeping?

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HollyH8

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I have an infrared heat bulb that I have on 24/7 but I was curious if this is too bright for my sulcatas to sleep with?
 

dmmj

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Infrared, CHE, and black lights don't disturb them.
 

Redstrike

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It's unlikely, but possible, tortoises could see wavelengths in this spectrum. I use 2 CHE's to heat the air temps in my enclosure and haven't seen any problems or changes in "normal" captive behavior. I can't think of many other reasonable options for night-time heating outside of infrared light and I'd be willing to bet they don't disturb torts (i.e. they can't visualize infrared light), but who knows!?
 

Texastort

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Redstrike said:
It's unlikely, but possible, tortoises could see wavelengths in this spectrum. I use 2 CHE's to heat the air temps in my enclosure and haven't seen any problems or changes in "normal" captive behavior. I can't think of many other reasonable options for night-time heating outside of infrared light and I'd be willing to bet they don't disturb torts (i.e. they can't visualize infrared light), but who knows!?

I use infrared and was worried about this as well. I have not noticed any changes in behavior, they sleep under the heat lights at night and come out when the sun us up. I have found IR bulbs to also be more powerful and cheaper than CHEs. I use two 250 watts in our outdoor enclosure and it was 30 degrees the other morning and my ambient air temp was right at 70.
 

HollyH8

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Laura said:
if you think they can see the light... make sure they have a good hide to go into...

They have a hide but some light shines through the opening. I'm using a plastic shoe box for their hide but since it was clear I covered it with some mud and let it dry.
 

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I think it would be more of a problem during the day, but I wouldn't like it at night either. Any of those "colored" bulbs disturb MY sleep and since torts can see a greater wavelength of light than we can, I'm sure they can see it too. I prefer it dark at night for mine. I use CHE's for night heat. During the day, that type of bulb can make it look like night. Sometimes torts eat things under colored lights during the day that they normally wouldn't. Like the substrate. Even if yours does not do this, it should be an indicator that things don't look "right" to a tortoise under those lights. I use regular incandescent flood lights for day time, if they are not outside.
 

ascott

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I use the night red lights for both of my RFs......they appear to not much care....head relaxed and extended...legs laid out....all but the snoring.....lol......however I can not tell you any scientific reference to if they are negatively affected by the night lights....
 

HollyH8

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ascott said:
I use the night red lights for both of my RFs......they appear to not much care....head relaxed and extended...legs laid out....all but the snoring.....lol......however I can not tell you any scientific reference to if they are negatively affected by the night lights....

That's exactly what my sulcata's do! They like to sleep under it. They don't seem affected by it I was just curious.
 

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Just some food for thought for you two: What you are seeing there is typical BASKING behavior. Basking- as in laying under a light (or the sun) and trying to get warm. None of my torts spread out under a CHE and "bask" at night. They find a corner, stick their face in it, and dig in for the long night ahead. What you describe is the behavior of a tortoise who is awake and seeking warmth.

If you just "listen" your torts will "tell" you everything... :D
 

ascott

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You are funny Tom....I understand where you are coming from....however, my torts are actually sleeping comfortably....without a doubt....they assume this position even during the day when they head for the dark spot in their enclosures....actually the CDTs assume this position while sleeping in their sleeping boxes as well in absolute darkness......I just think they are comfortable.....:D

But that was fun food for thought....
 

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Tom's advice is dead on, listen to the Torts.

Peanut my sulcata baby always slept in one corner, no matter how many times I put him in the hide. I mounted the heat lamp there since that was his preferred resting spot in the day. But I figured he must be trying to stay warm at night. So I moved the lamp over his hide and he stayed in the corner. I moved the slate in the corner, he slept on the substrate. No matter how things changed he slept in that corner.

So now I have a hide under the slate in the corner and he can go down there and sleep or sleep under the light.

The temps are the same and sometimes he sleeps in the hide sometimes he sleeps in the corner. I can't say for sure he's not looking for heat under that lamp, but I do know he won't follow it, he won't leave that corner to sleep anywhere else.

Sorry I got off topic, long night with the boy.


My hermanns all sleep in their hide out of the light so does my red foot.


I have insulation around my aquariums and the tops closed at night, our house temps are fairly hard to regulate, so the insulation and closeable tops help keep things the way I want them in there.

I had planned on going with CHE's, I grew up with Infrared and hated the goofy red. But they are available locally and when I use the dimmer I can tell how much I'm adjusting them by the light output. I do run fluorescents during the day and the heat gets cut down as the ambient temp goes up so you can't hardly see the red, but no telling what they see, my camera sees all red if I take a pic.


My Southern Painted have a water heater and a 60w incandescent.
 

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I always use a CHE for my Ch's and also my Box turtles. Two weeks ago the CHE in the hatchling vivarium went out. The only thing I had was a 75 wt. red bulb until I got a new CHE. So for the three days with the IR the hatchlings were up and about half the night, in the water dish, digging, etc. Usually they sleep through the whole night and come up when I put the lights on. I know this for a fact, because the hatchling viv is in my bedroom on my dresser. I don't know if this means anything or not, but that red light kept me up most of the night too.
 

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terryo said:
I always use a CHE for my Ch's and also my Box turtles. Two weeks ago the CHE in the hatchling vivarium went out. The only thing I had was a 75 wt. red bulb until I got a new CHE. So for the three days with the IR the hatchlings were up and about half the night, in the water dish, digging, etc. Usually they sleep through the whole night and come up when I put the lights on. I know this for a fact, because the hatchling viv is in my bedroom on my dresser. I don't know if this means anything or not, but that red light kept me up most of the night too.

I'm a CHE user and fan as well. My original post to this thread was in reference to CHE's and whether tortoises can see the infrared emitted from these units, but it seems very unlikely. No doubt they see the light emitted from the "red bulbs", I think Terry's observations are testament to that.
 

pk2610

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I used the infrared red heat bulb also. I also noticed that my little tort walking around under the bulb around 4 a.m. almost for a whole week or so. But eventually he got used to it and he was able to rest especially now that the weather gets colder. I always have to wake him up in the morning to give him his morning soak.

I would prefer the CHE lamps to the red heat bulb. But I don't have the right fixture for the CHE. Can I used the regular doom clamp lamp and set it on top of my tank over the screen cover?
 

ripper7777777

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Yea I think the little torts are a bit like people, I can sleep sitting up in a room full of people with the lights on, but my wife needs darkness and a fan going for sound. I'd recommend a warm hide that is dark so they can decide.
 

terryo

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pk2610 said:
I used the infrared red heat bulb also. I also noticed that my little tort walking around under the bulb around 4 a.m. almost for a whole week or so. But eventually he got used to it and he was able to rest especially now that the weather gets colder. I always have to wake him up in the morning to give him his morning soak.

I would prefer the CHE lamps to the red heat bulb. But I don't have the right fixture for the CHE. Can I used the regular doom clamp lamp and set it on top of my tank over the screen cover?

I have my CHE in a dome clamp and it is on top of the screen cover too. The dome clamp is a ceramic fixture.
 

WallieTheTortoise

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HollyH8 said:
I have an infrared heat bulb that I have on 24/7 but I was curious if this is too bright for my sulcatas to sleep with?

I'm assuming that a infrared heat bulb is the blue or red light. When my baby boxie buried all the way down into the substrate, it didn't disturb her, but last tank cleaning I didn't put enough substrate, so at night when I opened the red light, she would wake up.
 

Tom

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Any ceramic based fixture should work for a CHE.

CHE's do not emit any light, infrared or otherwise. They only emit radiant heat waves.
 
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