Heatpanels for tortoises?

[xMario]

Hello
Does anyone use a heatpanel for tortoises?

I used a spot lamp 150 watt for my sulcata after I read here that this causes his shell to dry out I changed to 70 watt normal lightbulb with a reflector they are pretty cheap and generate enough heat but they also die every 1-3 weeks so I was wondering if it would be cheaper in the long run to get a heatpanel

Has anyone a heatpanel for there tortoises?
Does it generate enough heat?
Does this dry out the carapace?

Thx for reading [emoji16]

 

[xMario]

 

[wellington]

Yes quite a few of us use them. I use one under a basking light. This way they dont lay on it too long getting their bottom warmed while the top is still cool.

 

[aqualungs]

I too am looking more into heat panels. They don’t dry out areas to the extreme that spots do. They are a more gentle heat spread out over wide areas. The CHE would be more like a gentle spot light or may more like a flood? Anyhoo I’m looking to get 2 Pro panels for my 2x4 enclosure. One to keep the cooler side 80-82 and the other to keep the warm side 86-88. Hopefully more will post pics on their setups and some suggestions.

 

[Tom]

Heat panels work great for tortoises. I run them on thermostats to maintain the ambient temperatures in my night boxes and closed chambers.

But you'll still need a basking area for a sulcata. I've never had any incandescent bulb burn out in 1-3 weeks. Something is wrong somewhere if that is the case. Maybe try a different fixture? My incandescent bulbs are on timers and usually last for 3-6 months when running 12-13 hours a day. I buy 6 or 12 packs so I always have replacements on hand. They seem to burn out at the most inconvenient times.