UVB Light

[jlyoncc1]

It’s been years since I have had a tortoise. Getting a rescue sulcata next week. I don’t remember what I used to use for lighting other than my red heat lighting. Recommendations on good brand I can order from Amazon? Also, is it at least 4 hours a day? Thanks, Dee

 

[ZEROPILOT]

ZOOMED 10.0 T5HO Strip florescent uvb
Or
ARCADIA 12% T5HO Strip florescent uvb
And no red bulbs.
How big is your Sulcata and how are you housing him/her. A CHE can provide warmth day or night. But you may need another type of heat emitter. And you'll need a basking lamp.
Someone more knowledgeable about Sulcata will chime in soon.
Welcome back.

 

[jlyoncc1]

What is CHE? Why no red bulbs for heat?

 

[wellington]

What is CHE? Why no red bulbs for heat?

Ceramic heat emitter is a che, no light just heat.
Red bulbs shouldn't be used because they need it dark at night and red bulbs can make them eat substrate or anything that shines red. The color red attracts them.
Mercury vapor bulbs, halogen and cfl coil bulbs, any with a bend bulbs should not be used either. The first two are bad on the shell and coil can be bad on eyes and not reliable for UV.

 

[jlyoncc1]

What is CHE? Is it the Ceramic heat emitter? He has a large wood enclosure for the winter and will be in the barn when it gets warm. I haven’t seen him in person but he looks to be 18-24”. I was going to use hay as substrate.

 

[jlyoncc1]

100 or 150 watt Che? He will be in the house.

 

[jlyoncc1]

Ceramic heat emitter is a che, no light just heat.
Red bulbs shouldn't be used because they need it dark at night and red bulbs can make them eat substrate or anything that shines red. The color red attracts them.
Mercury vapor bulbs, halogen and cfl coil bulbs, any with a bend bulbs should not be used either. The first two are bad on the shell and coil can be bad on eyes and not reliable for UV.

It’s starting to come back to me. Thanks!

 

[Tom]

100 or 150 watt Che? He will be in the house.

You can't use CHEs or heat lamps over larger tortoises because it is not effective and it will cause a slow-burn on the top of the carapace. The top of the shell will get too hot while the core of the tortoise is not being warmed enough as they lose heat through the bottom. Heat lamps are great for smaller species, but you need a different heating strategy for the bigger tortoises.

Here are two examples being used inside night boxes:

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