Outside heat enclosure

[Mikki]

I am in Florida(Tampa Bay area). I have built Scooter a new home which is 48x48. The one CHE that I had last year for winter time was perfect for his little home but now he has a much bigger home and it is not keeping his house warm! I have the CHE at 12 inches from the top of his shell but he is at an angle from the CHE in his corner, he is not directly under it by any means nor does he lay under it unless he sitting in his door way but then it is warm enough to be outside and I turn down the temp. I have ANOTHER CHE I can put in there to see if that does the trick but the thermostat I have is a inkbird 306T which has two heating plugs but I don't know if it will run both CHE's at the same time on the one probe and one setting so it does not flip one off and one on. I need them to run simultaneously. Also should I put the 2nd CHE in the home OR get a wall heating panel instead? One last question, should I put anything in the house to get humidity up since the humidity is very low now in Florida this time of year OR since he is 3 years old and 35 lbs I don't need to worry about the humidity? I know many are against CHE's however, he is only in the home at night and does come out during the day once the sun is shining. Thank you all soooo much for your input, it means a lot to me.. I have been setting my alarm and running outside to check his temps every 2 hours, getting no sleep, and stressing over this now that his house is bigger. I will go get thermometers that go in house and one in my house so I can keep an eye on the temps. YES I could of gotten a wifi thermostat BUT last year his home was to far away and the wifi wouldn't reach, now that I moved and he has a bigger home the thermometer will reach so I will be getting that instead of buying another thermostat unless I have to in order to run both CHE's.

 

[SuzanneZ]

I am in Florida(Tampa Bay area). I have built Scooter a new home which is 48x48. The one CHE that I had last year for winter time was perfect for his little home but now he has a much bigger home and it is not keeping his house warm! I have the CHE at 12 inches from the top of his shell but he is at an angle from the CHE in his corner, he is not directly under it by any means nor does he lay under it unless he sitting in his door way but then it is warm enough to be outside and I turn down the temp. I have ANOTHER CHE I can put in there to see if that does the trick but the thermostat I have is a inkbird 306T which has two heating plugs but I don't know if it will run both CHE's at the same time on the one probe and one setting so it does not flip one off and one on. I need them to run simultaneously. Also should I put the 2nd CHE in the home OR get a wall heating panel instead? One last question, should I put anything in the house to get humidity up since the humidity is very low now in Florida this time of year OR since he is 3 years old and 35 lbs I don't need to worry about the humidity? I know many are against CHE's however, he is only in the home at night and does come out during the day once the sun is shining. Thank you all soooo much for your input, it means a lot to me.. I have been setting my alarm and running outside to check his temps every 2 hours, getting no sleep, and stressing over this now that his house is bigger. I will go get thermometers that go in house and one in my house so I can keep an eye on the temps. YES I could of gotten a wifi thermostat BUT last year his home was to far away and the wifi wouldn't reach, now that I moved and he has a bigger home the thermometer will reach so I will be getting that instead of buying another thermostat unless I have to in order to run both CHE's.

👍 For the joy of setting alarms.

 

[Tom]

I am in Florida(Tampa Bay area). I have built Scooter a new home which is 48x48. The one CHE that I had last year for winter time was perfect for his little home but now he has a much bigger home and it is not keeping his house warm! I have the CHE at 12 inches from the top of his shell but he is at an angle from the CHE in his corner, he is not directly under it by any means nor does he lay under it unless he sitting in his door way but then it is warm enough to be outside and I turn down the temp. I have ANOTHER CHE I can put in there to see if that does the trick but the thermostat I have is a inkbird 306T which has two heating plugs but I don't know if it will run both CHE's at the same time on the one probe and one setting so it does not flip one off and one on. I need them to run simultaneously. Also should I put the 2nd CHE in the home OR get a wall heating panel instead? One last question, should I put anything in the house to get humidity up since the humidity is very low now in Florida this time of year OR since he is 3 years old and 35 lbs I don't need to worry about the humidity? I know many are against CHE's however, he is only in the home at night and does come out during the day once the sun is shining. Thank you all soooo much for your input, it means a lot to me.. I have been setting my alarm and running outside to check his temps every 2 hours, getting no sleep, and stressing over this now that his house is bigger. I will go get thermometers that go in house and one in my house so I can keep an eye on the temps. YES I could of gotten a wifi thermostat BUT last year his home was to far away and the wifi wouldn't reach, now that I moved and he has a bigger home the thermometer will reach so I will be getting that instead of buying another thermostat unless I have to in order to run both CHE's.

You have to get rid of the CHEs now. Like don't use them tonight. At 12 inches it is going to slow burn and permanently damage the carapace, and it is not effective at warming the core of the tortoise anyway. Please believe me. I've seen this SOOOOOOOO many times. No CHEs and no heat lamps once they get over 10-15 pounds.

Here are two alternatives that are both safe and effective:

Single Tortoise Night Box

I like my larger tortoises to live outside full time. My climate permits this year round with a little help. For people who live where it snows all winter, this type of box is still good for warmer weather, getting them out earlier in Spring, and keeping them out a bit later into fall. You'll...

tortoiseforum.org

Double Door Night Box

As the years have gone by and I build more of these boxes, I learn more and more each time. This one is the latest and I incorporated everything I've learned over the years. I also tried to take lots of pics so I can explain in more detail some of what is going on. It will take multiple posts to...

tortoiseforum.org

It won't hurt anything to add humidity to the warm night box, but it probably isn't necessary in your climate.

 

[Mikki]

You have to get rid of the CHEs now. Like don't use them tonight. At 12 inches it is going to slow burn and permanently damage the carapace, and it is not effective at warming the core of the tortoise anyway. Please believe me. I've seen this SOOOOOOOO many times. No CHEs and no heat lamps once they get over 10-15 pounds.

Here are two alternatives that are both safe and effective:

Single Tortoise Night Box

I like my larger tortoises to live outside full time. My climate permits this year round with a little help. For people who live where it snows all winter, this type of box is still good for warmer weather, getting them out earlier in Spring, and keeping them out a bit later into fall. You'll...

tortoiseforum.org

Double Door Night Box

As the years have gone by and I build more of these boxes, I learn more and more each time. This one is the latest and I incorporated everything I've learned over the years. I also tried to take lots of pics so I can explain in more detail some of what is going on. It will take multiple posts to...

tortoiseforum.org

It won't hurt anything to add humidity to the warm night box, but it probably isn't necessary in your climate.

Tom, since I just literally built this house and spent a lot of money building it. It is fully insulated and it is a nice home for him, I can not possibly rebuild another home right now. At this point, I have to figure out another way for heating. Soooo, the house has a wood floor, insulation under it, and then another wood floor, and it is up on a slab. I am wondering if I pick up the house, is there a way I could heat under the floor and if so, what can I use that I could have it on a thermostat. I can use a radiator heater that someone mentioned to me, but I don't know much about those either. Please if you can give me some suggestions on heating the house as the house is I would love that.. It is suppose to be 50 degrees tonight, I have to use the CHE tonight, but I will order whatever I need to OR go buy what I have to at a pet store tomorrow and get it fixed. Please let me know.. Scooter is not directly under the CHE, he is in the corner and is at an angle from it. I saw on this forum where 12 inches was suggested so that is what I went with. I could go try to get it higher tonight, but I don't want to mess with it out in the dark and possibly hurt him while he is in his house trying to mess with it.

 

[Mikki]

You have to get rid of the CHEs now. Like don't use them tonight. At 12 inches it is going to slow burn and permanently damage the carapace, and it is not effective at warming the core of the tortoise anyway. Please believe me. I've seen this SOOOOOOOO many times. No CHEs and no heat lamps once they get over 10-15 pounds.

Here are two alternatives that are both safe and effective:

Single Tortoise Night Box

I like my larger tortoises to live outside full time. My climate permits this year round with a little help. For people who live where it snows all winter, this type of box is still good for warmer weather, getting them out earlier in Spring, and keeping them out a bit later into fall. You'll...

tortoiseforum.org

Double Door Night Box

As the years have gone by and I build more of these boxes, I learn more and more each time. This one is the latest and I incorporated everything I've learned over the years. I also tried to take lots of pics so I can explain in more detail some of what is going on. It will take multiple posts to...

tortoiseforum.org

It won't hurt anything to add humidity to the warm night box, but it probably isn't necessary in your climate.

Below are the photo's of Scooters house

 

[Mikki]

Tom, I can not build a new home, This home was just built and a lot of money went into it.. The home is on a slab, is there anything I could use for under floor heating? Scooter has hay inside his house, I can use a kane mat on the wall but not on the floor.. Scooter will not go in his house if there is no hay, he likes to burrow in it.

 

[Tom]

Tom, since I just literally built this house and spent a lot of money building it. It is fully insulated and it is a nice home for him, I can not possibly rebuild another home right now. At this point, I have to figure out another way for heating. Soooo, the house has a wood floor, insulation under it, and then another wood floor, and it is up on a slab. I am wondering if I pick up the house, is there a way I could heat under the floor and if so, what can I use that I could have it on a thermostat. I can use a radiator heater that someone mentioned to me, but I don't know much about those either. Please if you can give me some suggestions on heating the house as the house is I would love that.. It is suppose to be 50 degrees tonight, I have to use the CHE tonight, but I will order whatever I need to OR go buy what I have to at a pet store tomorrow and get it fixed. Please let me know.. Scooter is not directly under the CHE, he is in the corner and is at an angle from it. I saw on this forum where 12 inches was suggested so that is what I went with. I could go try to get it higher tonight, but I don't want to mess with it out in the dark and possibly hurt him while he is in his house trying to mess with it.

The house will work just fine. No need to rebuild. You just need to heat it differently. That's why I linked those two threads. Each one shows a different heating method that is safe and effective.

You can pop either of these into your existing house fairly easily:

Method 1: Radiant heat panel overhead and a 18x28 Kane mat on the floor, both set on the same thermostat. Looking at the pictures, whoever built the house can easily make a drop down frame of some sort to mount the RHP too. In the case of an 80 watt RHP, 12 inches is just about the right height over the carapace, and 8-10 inches will do no harm. Don't use any substrate with a Kane mat. I just throw in plain dry dirt to make clean up easier. RHPs coir around $100, Kane Mats are about $120, plus a thermostat.

Method 2: Mini radiant oil heater. These only cost about $50. Run this on a thermostat, but use the built in thermostat on the unit as a back up fail safe. Someone will have to build a sturdy wall around it to keep the tortoise from knocking it over and destroying it. You may not realize it yet at 35 pounds, but sulcatas destroy everything around them. The bigger they are the worse it gets. You'll see.

There are pictures in each of those threads showing all of this. Questions are welcome.

 

[Mikki]

The house will work just fine. No need to rebuild. You just need to heat it differently. That's why I linked those two threads. Each one shows a different heating method that is safe and effective.

You can pop either of these into your existing house fairly easily:

Method 1: Radiant heat panel overhead and a 18x28 Kane mat on the floor, both set on the same thermostat. Looking at the pictures, whoever built the house can easily make a drop down frame of some sort to mount the RHP too. In the case of an 80 watt RHP, 12 inches is just about the right height over the carapace, and 8-10 inches will do no harm. Don't use any substrate with a Kane mat. I just throw in plain dry dirt to make clean up easier. RHPs coir around $100, Kane Mats are about $120, plus a thermostat.

Method 2: Mini radiant oil heater. These only cost about $50. Run this on a thermostat, but use the built in thermostat on the unit as a back up fail safe. Someone will have to build a sturdy wall around it to keep the tortoise from knocking it over and destroying it. You may not realize it yet at 35 pounds, but sulcatas destroy everything around them. The bigger they are the worse it gets. You'll see.

There are pictures in each of those threads showing all of this. Questions are welcome.

Thank you! I like both options and YES I can make a drop down for the radiant heat panel OR do the mini radiant oil heater... I will be getting this done tomorrow! I really appreciate your input... I know the CHE's are not good to use and thank goodness it is off to the side so he is not under it, I can't allow him to get to cold tonight, but cross my heart, this will be fixed tomorrow... Thank you again..

 

[Tom]

Scooter has hay inside his house, I can use a kane mat on the wall but not on the floor.. Scooter will not go in his house if there is no hay, he likes to burrow in it.

Scooter will go in his house with no hay. I've done it both ways and switched too. It won't be a problem. Have the hay outside the house for consumption.

Kane mats won't work on the wall very well. The tortoise needs to be able to rest on top of it for it to work its magic.

 

[Mikki]

Thank you! I like both options and YES I can make a drop down for the radiant heat panel OR do the mini radiant oil heater... I will be getting this done tomorrow! I really appreciate your input... I know the CHE's are not good to use and thank goodness it is off to the side so he is not under it, I can't allow him to get to cold tonight, but cross my heart, this will be fixed tomorrow... Thank you again..

Tom I do have one more question. If i use the mat, of course I'll have to take it the hay and he will just have to get use to it, but since the house is so big will that radiant panel and mat keep an ambient heat through out the whole house or is it basically heat for Scooter at night time when it's cold? I'm afraid the enclosure will be freezing and he will be stuck on that mat constantly if it doesn't hold ambient heat through out. Also what temp do i set it at for Scooter? If i use the oil radiator I think it would heat the whole house better for ambient heat and hopefully where it needs to be since the home is so big. Maybe i should do both? I know building the drop down ceiling for mat I was going to just build it in the corner where he sleeps so that's why I'm afraid it won't heat it well. Unless you think I should build the ceiling out across the whole home but still will that heat the whole home?

 

[Tom]

Tom I do have one more question. If i use the mat, of course I'll have to take it the hay and he will just have to get use to it, but since the house is so big will that radiant panel and mat keep an ambient heat through out the whole house or is it basically heat for Scooter at night time when it's cold? I'm afraid the enclosure will be freezing and he will be stuck on that mat constantly if it doesn't hold ambient heat through out. Also what temp do i set it at for Scooter? If i use the oil radiator I think it would heat the whole house better for ambient heat and hopefully where it needs to be since the home is so big. Maybe i should do both? I know building the drop down ceiling for mat I was going to just build it in the corner where he sleeps so that's why I'm afraid it won't heat it well. Unless you think I should build the ceiling out across the whole home but still will that heat the whole home?

This one reason why it makes no sense to me to build a four foot tall, or taller, night house for a tortoise that will never get taller than 16-18 inches and is probably only around 9 or 10 inches tall now. You are heating 3 feet of vertical space that the tortoise can't use and heat rises. My tortoise boxes have walls that are around 21 inches inside, which makes it easy to get the heat in the right places, and minimizes the height of the air column that needs to be heated.

Only your thermometer can answer your question. If the box is insulated and sealed well enough and ambient isn't too cold, then the radiant heat panel/Kane mat combo should work just fine. It maintains 80 degree air temps inside my 4x4x2 boxes on 30F degree nights. Because your box is so tall inside, you might need higher wattage equipment to keep it warm enough. The only way to know is to run it and check your thermometer.

Normally I do this BEFORE I move the tortoise outside full time.

 

[Mikki]

This one reason why it makes no sense to me to build a four foot tall, or taller, night house for a tortoise that will never get taller than 16-18 inches and is probably only around 9 or 10 inches tall now. You are heating 3 feet of vertical space that the tortoise can't use and heat rises. My tortoise boxes have walls that are around 21 inches inside, which makes it easy to get the heat in the right places, and minimizes the height of the air column that needs to be heated.

Only your thermometer can answer your question. If the box is insulated and sealed well enough and ambient isn't too cold, then the radiant heat panel/Kane mat combo should work just fine. It maintains 80 degree air temps inside my 4x4x2 boxes on 30F degree nights. Because your box is so tall inside, you might need higher wattage equipment to keep it warm enough. The only way to know is to run it and check your thermometer.

Normally I do this BEFORE I move the tortoise outside full time.

Thank you for all your info and the knowledge you have.. It just really makes so confused when someone like you tells me the ambient heat should be at 80 but then I have had other breeders say their ambient heat is never above 73. I do believe what you say however because you have a prove record. Can you tell me what temp the kane mat should be set to please. I don't know much about them so I want to make sure I don't have it to hot for my tort to lay on

 

[Tom]

Thank you for all your info and the knowledge you have.. It just really makes so confused when someone like you tells me the ambient heat should be at 80 but then I have had other breeders say their ambient heat is never above 73. I do believe what you say however because you have a prove record. Can you tell me what temp the kane mat should be set to please. I don't know much about them so I want to make sure I don't have it to hot for my tort to lay on

It can't get too hot. It has built in safeties to prevent that. Just plug it directly into the thermostat. If the air temp where the thermostat probe sits drops below the set point, the Kane mat and RHP will be "on". If the air temp gets above the set point, the thermostat will turn the heating devices "off".

I don't buy the ones with the extra dial type rheostats. Just the regular plug in ones work best. If the tortoise is too warm, it can get off the mat and go to the other side and still be in the warm air at night.

Put the probe far away from any heat source on the far side of the box, and down low where its just out of reach of the tortoise.

Where sulcatas live in the wild the ground temps are always 80-85, year round. Why would anyone with any sense recommend low 70s? They can survive that in warm climates with warm sunny days, but its not "good" for them. I set mine to 80 in spring and fall when we have 80 degree sunny days, I set it to 86 in winter when the days are colder, and they spend summer underground in burrows to avoid the 100+ heat on the surface and enjoy the 80 degree ground temps, so the boxes are unplugged in summer.

There is all sorts of old wrong info out in the world. I tried to log at YT videos for how to care for sulcata. After about 12 consecutive videos that were all wrong and all full of the same old wrong info, I finally gave up. Its really sad. I'm happy for the tortoises whose owners find this forum.

 

[Mikki]

It can't get too hot. It has built in safeties to prevent that. Just plug it directly into the thermostat. If the air temp where the thermostat probe sits drops below the set point, the Kane mat and RHP will be "on". If the air temp gets above the set point, the thermostat will turn the heating devices "off".

I don't buy the ones with the extra dial type rheostats. Just the regular plug in ones work best. If the tortoise is too warm, it can get off the mat and go to the other side and still be in the warm air at night.

Put the probe far away from any heat source on the far side of the box, and down low where its just out of reach of the tortoise.

Where sulcatas live in the wild the ground temps are always 80-85, year round. Why would anyone with any sense recommend low 70s? They can survive that in warm climates with warm sunny days, but its not "good" for them. I set mine to 80 in spring and fall when we have 80 degree sunny days, I set it to 86 in winter when the days are colder, and they spend summer underground in burrows to avoid the 100+ heat on the surface and enjoy the 80 degree ground temps, so the boxes are unplugged in summer.

There is all sorts of old wrong info out in the world. I tried to log at YT videos for how to care for sulcata. After about 12 consecutive videos that were all wrong and all full of the same old wrong info, I finally gave up. Its really sad. I'm happy for the tortoises whose owners find this forum.

Can you possibly also recommend what mini radiator would be good in case I need one of those also. I will be building a drop down ceiling and getting the mat along with a different thermostat and a wireless thermometer so I can see the temps from inside my house. I don't want a wifi because where Iive it is spotty at times. I will probably get the Acurite Thermometer. I just needed a suggestion on a radiator, one that is the smallest but good to use.. Thank you again, his home will be nice for him once we get that drop down ceiling built and the devices in place. I can't thank you enough!!

 

[Tom]

Can you possibly also recommend what mini radiator would be good in case I need one of those also. I will be building a drop down ceiling and getting the mat along with a different thermostat and a wireless thermometer so I can see the temps from inside my house. I don't want a wifi because where Iive it is spotty at times. I will probably get the Acurite Thermometer. I just needed a suggestion on a radiator, one that is the smallest but good to use.. Thank you again, his home will be nice for him once we get that drop down ceiling built and the devices in place. I can't thank you enough!!

I've been using this one for more than 10 years. Long lasting and reliable. They used to be $30 all day long and I'd buy several at a time, but, well... you know how that goes.

I recommend getting two of them so you always have a spare on hand and ready. Just store the second one somewhere and leave it packed up in the box. You are not likely to ever need it, but better safe than sorry.

Optimus H-6003 Portable Mini 700W Oil Filled Radiator Space Heater w/ Thermostat - Walmart.com

Buy Optimus H-6003 Portable Mini 700W Oil Filled Radiator Space Heater w/ Thermostat at Walmart.com

www.walmart.com

 

[Donutsgranny]

Tom, since I just literally built this house and spent a lot of money building it. It is fully insulated and it is a nice home for him, I can not possibly rebuild another home right now. At this point, I have to figure out another way for heating. Soooo, the house has a wood floor, insulation under it, and then another wood floor, and it is up on a slab. I am wondering if I pick up the house, is there a way I could heat under the floor and if so, what can I use that I could have it on a thermostat. I can use a radiator heater that someone mentioned to me, but I don't know much about those either. Please if you can give me some suggestions on heating the house as the house is I would love that.. It is suppose to be 50 degrees tonight, I have to use the CHE tonight, but I will order whatever I need to OR go buy what I have to at a pet store tomorrow and get it fixed. Please let me know.. Scooter is not directly under the CHE, he is in the corner and is at an angle from it. I saw on this forum where 12 inches was suggested so that is what I went with. I could go try to get it higher tonight, but I don't want to mess with it out in the dark and possibly hurt him while he is in his house trying to mess with it.

Our guy has a house similar to yours. My daughter and I aren't too great at building. Ours also sits on a slab and because of all the wood we used we can't even move it. (ours is sort of 5ft x 5ft.) In the doorway I stapled strips of marine grade vinyl. I bought a sheet and cut it to fit. It help also with insulating the door and I can leave the door open most days. He has a reptile heat mat, I added strip and nail the strips down to hold in place. I have a light but rarely use it except when cleaning or an exceptionally cold night. The we added a shelf and we have an oil filled radiator. That really warms the house and has kept it even on the coldest of night at 74 degrees. The mat is set at 80. Not great but ok in combination with heat mat. My plan for this winter is to add a 2nd oil filled radiator. I am thinking of a larger one and perhaps building a small wall around it or a lower shelf to hold it. This is my daughter's sulfate and he is about 10 years old now or will be in Feb. I have no clue what he weighs but we can still lift him some. We have on the floor a piece of linoleum to help protect the floor but we have to replace it at least 1x a year and we use natural cypress mulch on top of it for his substrate. I wish I had seen Toms houses prior to building but I'm kinda stuck with what I have. I also need to find some new food sources for him. He now eats a lot. I've been buying store bought greens and bags of Timothy and was supplementing with grassland pellets. But I need a new source as it's too expensive and what I get is being used quickly. I do have buyers regret, but I didn't buy him my daughter did and living in a sub division is not a really good place. My daughter was hoping to live where he would have more area to roam but so far this hasn't happened. We are committed to him and are trying to keep him healthy and not so bored. I am also welcome to suggestions. Oh and we are in the New Orleans area so similar temps? And yes Donut will destroy anything, in fact his house sits inside a chain link dog pen, we built it in there because of the slab and thinking chain link would keep him safe from predators but now he just bulldozes right thru the chainlink so it has big holes in it and the gate is now gone as well.

 

[Mikki]

Our guy has a house similar to yours. My daughter and I aren't too great at building. Ours also sits on a slab and because of all the wood we used we can't even move it. (ours is sort of 5ft x 5ft.) In the doorway I stapled strips of marine grade vinyl. I bought a sheet and cut it to fit. It help also with insulating the door and I can leave the door open most days. He has a reptile heat mat, I added strip and nail the strips down to hold in place. I have a light but rarely use it except when cleaning or an exceptionally cold night. The we added a shelf and we have an oil filled radiator. That really warms the house and has kept it even on the coldest of night at 74 degrees. The mat is set at 80. Not great but ok in combination with heat mat. My plan for this winter is to add a 2nd oil filled radiator. I am thinking of a larger one and perhaps building a small wall around it or a lower shelf to hold it. This is my daughter's sulfate and he is about 10 years old now or will be in Feb. I have no clue what he weighs but we can still lift him some. We have on the floor a piece of linoleum to help protect the floor but we have to replace it at least 1x a year and we use natural cypress mulch on top of it for his substrate. I wish I had seen Toms houses prior to building but I'm kinda stuck with what I have. I also need to find some new food sources for him. He now eats a lot. I've been buying store bought greens and bags of Timothy and was supplementing with grassland pellets. But I need a new source as it's too expensive and what I get is being used quickly. I do have buyers regret, but I didn't buy him my daughter did and living in a sub division is not a really good place. My daughter was hoping to live where he would have more area to roam but so far this hasn't happened. We are committed to him and are trying to keep him healthy and not so bored. I am also welcome to suggestions. Oh and we are in the New Orleans area so similar temps? And yes Donut will destroy anything, in fact his house sits inside a chain link dog pen, we built it in there because of the slab and thinking chain link would keep him safe from predators but now he just bulldozes right thru the chainlink so it has big holes in it and the gate is now gone as well.

I also have the strips in the door way for my Scooters home. I do shut the door every night but they are open once the sun is shining. I got an acurite thermostat now so i can see the temps inside my house. It reaches 330ft so the sensor is in his home and the thermostat is in my home so i can see the temps at all times. This relived so much stress for me and it was only $26 at Lowe's. The mat i see everyone uses but I'm trying the oilfill heater first to see how that works. Scooter gets in his corner and scratches sometimes so I'm afraid of the mat honestly. Idk if he would or could damage it by doing that. I don't know much about these mats. I've heard of people screwing them down to the floor but do you cover it with anything or do they just lay on the actual mat? What kind of mat do you have?Thank you for commenting, I love to get other inputs. Also which heater do you use?

 

[Mikki]

Our guy has a house similar to yours. My daughter and I aren't too great at building. Ours also sits on a slab and because of all the wood we used we can't even move it. (ours is sort of 5ft x 5ft.) In the doorway I stapled strips of marine grade vinyl. I bought a sheet and cut it to fit. It help also with insulating the door and I can leave the door open most days. He has a reptile heat mat, I added strip and nail the strips down to hold in place. I have a light but rarely use it except when cleaning or an exceptionally cold night. The we added a shelf and we have an oil filled radiator. That really warms the house and has kept it even on the coldest of night at 74 degrees. The mat is set at 80. Not great but ok in combination with heat mat. My plan for this winter is to add a 2nd oil filled radiator. I am thinking of a larger one and perhaps building a small wall around it or a lower shelf to hold it. This is my daughter's sulfate and he is about 10 years old now or will be in Feb. I have no clue what he weighs but we can still lift him some. We have on the floor a piece of linoleum to help protect the floor but we have to replace it at least 1x a year and we use natural cypress mulch on top of it for his substrate. I wish I had seen Toms houses prior to building but I'm kinda stuck with what I have. I also need to find some new food sources for him. He now eats a lot. I've been buying store bought greens and bags of Timothy and was supplementing with grassland pellets. But I need a new source as it's too expensive and what I get is being used quickly. I do have buyers regret, but I didn't buy him my daughter did and living in a sub division is not a really good place. My daughter was hoping to live where he would have more area to roam but so far this hasn't happened. We are committed to him and are trying to keep him healthy and not so bored. I am also welcome to suggestions. Oh and we are in the New Orleans area so similar temps? And yes Donut will destroy anything, in fact his house sits inside a chain link dog pen, we built it in there because of the slab and thinking chain link would keep him safe from predators but now he just bulldozes right thru the chainlink so it has big holes in it and the gate is now gone as well.

My Scooter eats Bok choy, endive, escarole and I give him mazuri pellets, hay and he does eat grass. I do go around the property and get all the weeds here likes and will fill his dish full with weeds. You can get cactus for him, and if you go on the website called tortoise table you can see all the grasses, weeds, plants, flowers etc he can eat. I've heard of people going on tortoise sites and ordering grass. In Arizona someone was having grass delivered to them from a tortoise website. Vintage tortoise is a website I know of but if you Google tortoise food other sites come up. I know it gets expensive but maybe if you order in bulk it won't be so bad.

 

[Mikki]

I've been using this one for more than 10 years. Long lasting and reliable. They used to be $30 all day long and I'd buy several at a time, but, well... you know how that goes.

I recommend getting two of them so you always have a spare on hand and ready. Just store the second one somewhere and leave it packed up in the box. You are not likely to ever need it, but better safe than sorry.

Optimus H-6003 Portable Mini 700W Oil Filled Radiator Space Heater w/ Thermostat - Walmart.com

Buy Optimus H-6003 Portable Mini 700W Oil Filled Radiator Space Heater w/ Thermostat at Walmart.com

www.walmart.com

Tom,
I have a question please if you'd give me your opinion. Have you heard of Greenbrook tubal heaters? They come in different sizes and watts, you can get a guard to go over them and They have a thermostat on some of them. Just wondering what you thought about those vs these oil filled radiators.
Thank you

 

[Tom]

Tom,
I have a question please if you'd give me your opinion. Have you heard of Greenbrook tubal heaters? They come in different sizes and watts, you can get a guard to go over them and They have a thermostat on some of them. Just wondering what you thought about those vs these oil filled radiators.
Thank you

I've never heard of those, so I looked them up. The website doesn't say what it is or what is inside that tube. Looks cool, but I have no experience with them. Maybe I can find something on them on YT...