IBERA GREEK NIGHT LIGHT OR CERAMIC HEATER

[STBUMGARNER]

Hello all,

Tomorrow I am receiving my Ibera Greek baby tortoise. (So excited!!)

I have the 10.0 uva/uvb bulb, but my question is....

If, at night, I cannot maintain an accurate temp in the terrarium, should I use a night light? Ceramic pad? (heard those were bad)

thanks for all your help!

 

[Yvonne G]

I think the best overnight heating is supplied by using a Ceramic Heat Emitter (CHE):

 

[Tom]

Hello all,

Tomorrow I am receiving my Ibera Greek baby tortoise. (So excited!!)

I have the 10.0 uva/uvb bulb, but my question is....

If, at night, I cannot maintain an accurate temp in the terrarium, should I use a night light? Ceramic pad? (heard those were bad)

thanks for all your help!

What type of 10.0? The cfl type are not effective UV sources and some of them are dangerous. The regular tube types are not very effective and must be closer than 12" to give a little UV benefit to the tortoise.

A greek tortoise needs a night time cool down, so you shouldn't need night heat unless your house is dropping below 65 at night.

Here are a couple of threads that may help. Care for greeks and Russian is identical:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/

 

[STBUMGARNER]

I think the best overnight heating is supplied by using a Ceramic Heat Emitter (CHE):

View attachment 264909

Just ordered one, thanks!

 

[STBUMGARNER]

What type of 10.0? The cfl type are not effective UV sources and some of them are dangerous. The regular tube types are not very effective and must be closer than 12" to give a little UV benefit to the tortoise.

A greek tortoise needs a night time cool down, so you shouldn't need night heat unless your house is dropping below 65 at night.

Here are a couple of threads that may help. Care for greeks and Russian is identical:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002AQDJK/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

 

[Tom]

Just ordered one, thanks!

You'll need a thermostat to run your CHE. I like this one: https://www.lllreptile.com/products/13883-zilla-1000-watt-temperature-controller

 

[Tom]

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002AQDJK/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

I used to use those, but then I realized that they dry out the carapace and contribute to pyramiding. I use the strategy described in the thread I linked for you now.

 

[STBUMGARNER]

I used to use those, but then I realized that they dry out the carapace and contribute to pyramiding. I use the strategy described in the thread I linked for you now.

Which do you recommend I purchase instead?

 

[Tom]

Which do you recommend I purchase instead?

There are four elements to heating and lighting:

1. Basking bulb. I use 65 watt floods from the hardware store. I run them on a timer and adjust the height to get the correct basking temp under them.
2. Ambient heat maintenance. I use ceramic heating elements or radiant heat panels set on thermostats to maintain ambient above 80 degrees day and night for tropical species. You'd only need day heat for a temperate species like Testudo or DT.
3. Light. I use florescent tubes or LEDs for this purpose. Something in the 5000-6500K color range will look the best. Most tubes at the store are in the 2500K range and they look yellowish.
4. UV. If you can get your tortoise outside for an hour 2 or 3 times a week, you won't need indoor UV. If you want it anyway, get one of the newer HO type fluorescent tubes. Which type will depend on mounting height.

Please read all about it here:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/

 

[STBUMGARNER]

There are four elements to heating and lighting:

1. Basking bulb. I use 65 watt floods from the hardware store. I run them on a timer and adjust the height to get the correct basking temp under them.
2. Ambient heat maintenance. I use ceramic heating elements or radiant heat panels set on thermostats to maintain ambient above 80 degrees day and night for tropical species. You'd only need day heat for a temperate species like Testudo or DT.
3. Light. I use florescent tubes or LEDs for this purpose. Something in the 5000-6500K color range will look the best. Most tubes at the store are in the 2500K range and they look yellowish.
4. UV. If you can get your tortoise outside for an hour 2 or 3 times a week, you won't need indoor UV. If you want it anyway, get one of the newer HO type fluorescent tubes. Which type will depend on mounting height.

Please read all about it here:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/

Thank you for your much needed help and support. Sorry to ask that again. I read the Russian tortoise care sheet and it says you can use "mercury vapor bulbs" which is the one that I purchased originally. Have you just known (from experience) that this one is bad for my tortoise?

 

[Yvonne G]

Yeah, I think we may need to go back and re-do our care sheets about the lights.

 

[Tom]

Thank you for your much needed help and support. Sorry to ask that again. I read the Russian tortoise care sheet and it says you can use "mercury vapor bulbs" which is the one that I purchased originally. Have you just known (from experience) that this one is bad for my tortoise?

Years ago I did like the MVBs. They do produce good UV when new, and having the heat, light and UV all in one package is very convenient. I still use my older ones over lizards. There are three primary problems with MVBs over tortoises:

1. They are temperamental and very delicate. They cut on and off. If you accidentally bump them, they shut off and cool for 20 minutes and then blink on and off while trying to re-start. If you use them in the wrong hood, they over heat and shut themselves off. They often burn out prematurely too. Too much trouble. Too many problems.
2. At least some of them, some of the time, stop producing any UV after just 3 months. This is according to one of our members who is a vet and used his meter to check his own bulbs. This makes the lot of them untrustworthy in my view.
3. They create extremely high levels of carapace desiccating IR-A. They make tortoises pyramid, even in humid closed chambers.
4. A forth concern for some people is that they tend to cost a lot. Many stores sell them for $80 or more.

I re-did the MVB info in the sulcata section, but I left it in the Russian care sheet. I don't think MVBs, when used correctly, are terribly bad for an adult Russian, and it is a simple way to provide what they need, but I definitely wouldn't use one over a baby.

Thanks for pointing this out and reminding me to fix that element of the care sheet.