CHE question

[mel262011]

I have a 100 watt CHE for my baby RF. The side the CHE is on is about 88 degrees and the side without the CHE is 76 degrees. Is this okay? The humidity is 80%, also.

Is it okay to leave the CHE on all the time?

 

[Timmytort]

If by CHE you mean ceramic heat emitter yes. You can leave them on all the time, but remember in nature temperatures tend to drop at night so in order to recreate that you may want to put it on a timer.

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

I have my lights and CHE on a timer. The power comes on at 7am, and turns off at 9pm. I have my ambient temperature in the 70's, and the hot spot at 95 F. In the summertime, nighttime temperatures are only a bit cooler than daytime temperatures indoors. In the wintertime, I let the nighttime temperatures drop into the 60's. That is good for my Russian tortoises, but probably not that great for your redfoot, which is native to tropical forests and savannas. I would let your daytime ambient temps get into the 70's to low 80's, but you should have a hot spot of 90-95 F, or else your tortoise will have difficulty digesting his food. As for your nighttime temps, I would not let them get below 70 F for your redfoot. If that is the room temperature, then you can shut of the CHE at night. However, if you need to leave the CHE on to keep the temperature in that range, then you can leave it on, since it doesn't emit light. So, to answer your question, you can leave the CHE on all the time if need be, or you can shut it off at night if it won't get to cold without it. Note: CHEs have a finite lifespan, so they last longer if you turn them off at night. I would shut it off if you can to prolong the life of the product, but again, if you need to leave it on, then do so.

As for humidity, 80% for a redfoot is good.

 

[jackrat]

I have my lights and CHE on a timer. The power comes on at 7am, and turns off at 9pm. I have my ambient temperature in the 70's, and the hot spot at 95 F. In the summertime, nighttime temperatures are only a bit cooler than daytime temperatures indoors. In the wintertime, I let the nighttime temperatures drop into the 60's. That is good for my Russian tortoises, but probably not that great for your redfoot, which is native to tropical forests and savannas. I would let your daytime ambient temps get into the 70's to low 80's, but you should have a hot spot of 90-95 F, or else your tortoise will have difficulty digesting his food. As for your nighttime temps, I would not let them get below 70 F for your redfoot. If that is the room temperature, then you can shut of the CHE at night. However, if you need to leave the CHE on to keep the temperature in that range, then you can leave it on, since it doesn't emit light. So, to answer your question, you can leave the CHE on all the time if need be, or you can shut it off at night if it won't get to cold without it. Note: CHEs have a finite lifespan, so they last longer if you turn them off at night. I would shut it off if you can to prolong the life of the product, but again, if you need to leave it on, then do so.

As for humidity, 80% for a redfoot is good.

Not trying to stir up an argument here,but I don't totally agree with something in your post. Good info on the CHE and how it works. 70's to low 80's are a little bit cool for a redfoot,though. They do best in the mid 80's. They definately don't need a 90-95 degree hot spot to digest their food. 85 degrees around the clock is fine for a redfoot.

 

[mel262011]

So should I leave it on at night because my house stays between 70-75 degrees all the time? For the last 2 days I have left it on all the time because the little one stays in its hide all the time except to eat and drink.

 

[jackrat]

Use it as needed to keep the enclosure in the mid 80's.

 

[mel262011]

okay