1. Get a regular Inkbird. Set it, check it once in a while, and let it do its work. 80 in spring and fall when we have warm days, 86 in winter, 70 when we have those 100+ days all summer long, or let him burrow in summer and just unplug the box.
2. Clear vinyl freezer door flaps. 8 inches wide. Over lap them about an inch. Hang them about 1/8 - 1/4 inch off the floor.
3. I show how to bring the cord in, with drip loops and all, in the first post of this thread. Make a channel to fit the cord, put the weather stripping over the cord, and the weight of the lid will hold it down. You can double up the weather stripping over this area for added security. You don't need a second cord. One cord will do it all. You can't use a CHE over larger tortoises. It will burn their carapace. If the temp in the box is warm enough, the heater won't come on. If the temp is too cool, the neater needs to come on. Weather outside is irrelevant. Keep the box warm for the tortoise, and he'll use it as needed.
4. All radiant oil heaters come with a built-in thermostat, but they don't hold a steady temp. You'll get temp swings of 15-20 degrees all night. Try it without the tortoise in there. Use the Inkbird type of thermostat to control it. You can run more than one thermostat in series for extra insurance in case one sticks on. What I do is set my Inkbird type thermostat with the built-in one turned all the way up. Once temps stabilize over a couple of days, I go in and turn the built-in thermostat down until it clicks off, and then turn it back up a little bit past where it turns back on, and then mark that spot on the dial and heater with a sharpie. If my Inkbird type malfunctions, the built in will eventually cut the heater off long before reaching lethal levels. Redundant safety.
Yes. Leave the heater to do its job 24/7. Only shut it off in summer if the tortoise is using a burrow at night instead of its box. The door flaps hold heat in just fine.
5. Dirt consumption? No. No they don't. None of my sulcatas, or any other species, eat dirt. Some tortoises will sometimes eat rocks or pebbles if they are fed the wrong foods, like grocery store produce with no amendments. MinerAll can help reduce this, but better to correct the diet too. KK is a terrible place to get tortoise advice. He means well, but has little idea about what he's doing. He learned from the same wrong sources that everyone else learns from.
1) The thermostat I use currently works fine as a regular thermostat and I've used those temp guidelines since installing (thanks)...I was commenting on the secondary app feature of being able to control it when away from home. I'm not able to utilize that side of my thermostat with my current wi-fi/router setup......
4) I previously shared my doubts about being able to setup a thermostat + heater system since it seemed complicated to me at first and you let me know that it's pretty straight forward once you have the devices in front of you; I guess I sorta blindly followed your guide on setting up my thermostat/radiator heater system without fully understanding the components and their features/functions. I have a simple heater with an on/off switch & a numberless dial. These questions and concerns didn't come up until some time after using the system. The dial IS the built in thermostat that you explain... GOTCHA. Sharpie it is.
Do you latch lock your torts in from time to time?
5) I don't mean directly or intentionally ingesting dirt, I meant from regular feeding activities where the occasional weed or grass gets uprooted or grazing after a heavy rain fall where mud splats and drys on grass blades...placing cut-up foods on a hard floor or a weathered plastic tray. So, you don't really worry about supplementations regarding this? If not KK, can you steer me towards a proper YT channel?
6) I'm sure you encounter times where you have to brush dirt back to be able to fully close the draw bridge door. Have you come up with a way to prevent your torts from being able to kick dirt into the doorway?
7) I installed the freezer flaps and tubs! After installing the flaps, do you need to regularly adjust them? I noticed that the weight of the flaps doesn't always have them fly back into position and get caught up on the highest point of the draw bridge door.
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Feel free to air me out if needed. I should have already taken care of some of these issues. Running it the way I was, did make me very vigilant on temps and his status when at home or getting confirmation from those at home when away (low temp alarm on thermostat as backup).