Checkout my new enclosure!

[Indygirl542]

I'm new to the forum and just finished my table for my russian tortoise, Abby! I'm still planning on adding plants (live), and a few more decorations! It is 3x6 and I'm using an organic topsoil, sand mix with a 100w powersun MVB. Let me know what you think!

 

[WillTort2]

Good start, add a few more sight barriers to make it more interesting and add a few more plants.

Then of course you can take on my favorite project....add a second story to one end.

 

[Candy]

Beautiful. Very nice job.

 

[Indygirl542]

Good start, add a few more sight barriers to make it more interesting and add a few more plants.

Then of course you can take on my favorite project....add a second story to one end.

I definetly want to add a second story eventually! This was my first attempt at carpentery so I did the easy stuff for now! haha! What do you mean by sight barriers? Im scared to put anything to close the walls as she is a bit of a climber! I do plan on adding a good bit of live plants! Im currently researching the best plants to grow (or attempt to grow if she doesn't eat them all!)

 

[bouaboua]

Very nicely done. Very nice. Can't wait to see how you will built the upper level.

 

[Jabuticaba]

Hello and welcome. Good job on the tort table.


May, Aussies, & THBs
IG: @AUSSOMEAUSSIES

 

[johnreuk]

Great table, and lovely looking tort

The only thing I would do (apart from plants etc like you plan to anyway), is increase the amount of light available..... I would suspend a UV strip light so it was running from where the basking bulb is, down to about 1/4 of the way away from the cool end of the enclosure. That would create a better photogradient IMO, which would match your thermal gradient.

Kind regards,
John

 

[liamthetortoise]

I love a good old homade tortoise table , I need help how do u post ??

 

[WillTort2]

One of the easiest ways to add sight barriers is to put a partial wall across the enclosure. Make sure it is as tall as your exterior walls and put a cap board on it to minimize the climbing risk.

If you do not want to attach it to your sides then build a "X" shape that can go into the center of your enclosure away from the light. Anything that your tort has to walk around can be a sight barrier. With a limited amount of space, constructing a maze like course inside your enclosure increases the exercise your tort gets and keeps him wondering what's around the next corner.

 

[WillTort2]

The idea that John mentioned about adding a tube light to the enclosure is worth implementing. By having an additional source of UV light you run less risk of the tortoise not getting enough UV. Most of the flood and spot type UV light diminish their UV output dramatically from the 90 day point to the 12 month time. Remember they may guarantee the bulb to last for one year but I do not think they guarantee the UV output for that time. For more detailed information just search the forum for UV output or UV test.

 

[Yellow Turtle01]

Wow, nice and big! I bet shes a happy girl

 

[Indygirl542]

I have my table by two windows that I open the curtains during the day so sunlight comes in

 

[Hillygirl]

Im not an expert but I'm almost positive glass blocks UV, so unless the window is open for the sunshine to flow through, It still wont get what it needs. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[kathyth]

Glass does block UV, unfortunately.
I love the enclosure. Very nice job!

 

[Teodora'sDAD]

Nice and roomy!

 

[WillTort2]

It seems that I've read somewhere that window pane glass blocks 90% of the UV. I think the newer windows with multi panes block even more.

 

[N2TORTS]

There are two kinds of ultraviolet radiation that affect the skin: UVB and UVA. UVB (the one that causes sunburn) does not generally get indoors whereas UVA (the one that causes skin wrinkles) does so with relative ease.....
Most people believe that ordinary window glass blocks UV radiation, making any other UV protection unnecessary indoors. This is half-truth at best….. Clear glass allows up to 75% of UVA to pass. Tinted and reflective glass absorbs more of the UVA but still allows about 25-50% to pass; they also have the shortcoming of blocking more of the visible light than clear glass. There is also the so-called Low-E (low-emissivity) glass, developed to minimize heating and cooling costs. As far as UV is concerned, regular Low-E (the ones w/o special anti-UV coating, etc.) behaves similarly to clear glass: most UVB is blocked, most UVA gets through…..
Window glass falls into three major categories: ordinary (clear) glass, reflective glass (allows to see in one direction much better than in the opposite one), and tinted glass. Clear glass allows up to 75% of UVA to pass. Tinted and reflective glass absorbs more of the UVA but still allows about 25-50% to pass; they also have the shortcoming of blocking more of the visible light than clear glass. There is also the so-called Low-E (low-emissivity) glass, developed to minimize heating and cooling costs. As far as UV is concerned, regular Low-E (the ones w/o special anti-UV coating, etc.) behaves similarly to clear glass: most UVB is blocked, most UVA gets through Normal glass does not block all UV rays.
Infrared rays however are blocked by glass. This is basically how a greenhouse works. The visible light and UV light passes through the glass and is absorbed by the ground. The ground then radiates much of that energy as infrared. This infrared is trapped by the glass and cannot escape, thus creating a much warmer temperature inside.
Most commercial glasses DO absorb UV due to small defects in the composition such as Iron as well as intentional additions like Na2O….The reason for this absorption has to do with the bonding of each glass type. Most commercial glasses are sodium-silicates. These glasses consist of a connected silica network, which is broken up by the alkali (sodium). The addition of sodium breaks the network creating non-bridging oxygen’s, which lowers the melting temperature as well as reducing the energy of electromagnetic radiation needed for absorption. In combination with small amounts of iron impurity, which leads to intense UV absorption bands, these non-bridging oxygen’s prevent the transmission of UV light.
It should be noted that different glasses have different UV edges (the frequency of UV light that begins being absorbed). Borosilicate glass with small amounts of alkali will actually transmit further into the UV spectrum as a result of the boron anomaly, with fused silica (pure SiO2) glass transmitting the furthest.
In essence, the more loosely the electrons are bound, usually because they are not involved in covalent bonding in the case of non-bridging oxygen’s, the less UV light is transmitted.
The process of photochromitism utilizes this effect where charge transfer bands from added transition metals cause glass to change color when exposed to UV light. This is the result of electron transitions within the glass to more excited states. When the glass is no longer exposed to UV light the electrons return to their equilibrium position and the glass clears.
Fluorescent lighting….There are two common urban myths about fluorescent lighting and UV exposure. The first myth says that fluorescent lighting generates hazardous amounts of UV rays, rivaling direct outdoor sun exposure. The second one says that the first myth is complete nonsense and that fluorescent lighting generates no UV rays whatsoever…….
For more info ……..check out - http://www.smartskincare.com/skinprotection/uv-indoors.html (very informative article ....or check out …"Greenhouse Misnomer convection"....Dr. Glass


JD~

 

[Indygirl542]

Abby is actually Abe! Stupid petsmart.. I actually wanted a male anyway!

 

[Indygirl542]

Made a few changes to Abe's table! Added some live plants and hung my uv strip for some extra lighting! Still planning my second story...