Insulating a Wood shed for Red Foot Tortoises

[LRTortoises]

We have a 10 ft X 12 foot shed and I am planning to insulate it and give half of it to my one red foot tortoise. I will be adding some more adults to my family this Christmas.

In insulating this all wood shed I am trying to figure out what kind of iinsulation would work best. Here in Little Rock they will be inside October, Nov, Dec, January and February for sure. Sometimes October might be okay.

I have a 3 ft space between all 2 X 4s in teh roof and walls and so thought about basic fiberglass insulation but I am worried about the 80% humidity in the shed.

I am wondering if Rigid insulation will give me enough insulating power.

Any thoughts? I am about to go to Home Depot and ask there but I thought people here might have already tackled this issue because of housing torts.

 

[Redstrike]

I can't speak for the insulation, but I will say a 5x6 foot area for multiple adults is tight (I presume you're using only half of the shed for them as you said above?).

http://tortoiselibrary.com/ - on this site under "Housing" --> "Enclosures" I see that two 12-inch adult tortoises require roughly 8x4 feet of space or 4,608 square inches.

Just something to consider if you house multiple tortoises together, if you just have the one, 5x6 during winter months is probably adequate and of less concern.

 

[LRTortoises]

Half of a 10 ft by 12 ft space is 5 ft by 12 feet.

 

[Len B]

You can use both, the fiberglass behind the rigid. if you get the foil faced rigid it will work as a vapor barrier to keep the fiberglass dry and if you are still concerned about moisture put a layer of poly over top of everything. By using the 4x8 sheets of the ridgid you can actually put it over the 2x4s and have real tight seal using a foil tape on the butt joints and seams.

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You can use both, the fiberglass behind the rigid. if you get the foil faced rigid it will work as a vapor barrier to keep the fiberglass dry and if you are still concerned about moisture put a layer of poly over top of every By using the 4x8 sheets of the ridgid you can actually put it over the 2x4s and have real tight seal using a foil tape on the butt joints and seams.

 

[LRTortoises]

You can use both, the fiberglass behind the rigid. if you get the foil faced rigid it will work as a vapor barrier to keep the fiberglass dry and if you are still concerned about moisture put a layer of poly over top of everything. By using the 4x8 sheets of the ridgid you can actually put it over the 2x4s and have real tight seal using a foil tape on the butt joints and seams.

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You can use both, the fiberglass behind the rigid. if you get the foil faced rigid it will work as a vapor barrier to keep the fiberglass dry and if you are still concerned about moisture put a layer of poly over top of every By using the 4x8 sheets of the ridgid you can actually put it over the 2x4s and have real tight seal using a foil tape on the butt joints and seams.

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Thanks Len, You sound like you know your insulation.
Step 1 fiberglass insulation walls and roof (Using the batting with paper backing)
Step 2 Rigid foam for roof. I may not use it for the walls maybe just for the roof.
Stpe 3 Just using a Carpet and Pad for the floor.

The tortoises will actulally be on a 4ft X 12 foot table attached to the wall. I am going to leave my self space to do 2 tiers If I want.

 

[EricIvins]

If you want the easiest, no BS insulation, go with spray foam. It may be more expensive, but you will not have to worry about it like other types of Insulation. You can either buy DIY kits online, or have hire someone to do it. Most Insulation companies offer it now......

 

[Redstrike]

Half of a 10 ft by 12 ft space is 5 ft by 12 feet.

Sorry about that, sometimes my thinking is a bit too concrete...

 

[LRTortoises]

Half of a 10 ft by 12 ft space is 5 ft by 12 feet.

Sorry about that, sometimes my thinking is a bit too concrete...

No worries. After planning it out more and more I think I am going to build it in my attached garage. It's already insulated and has electricity. I am going to build an insulate where needed a 3.5 ft x 10 foot tort enclosure.

I can cover the thing with Plastic so I can see in always.

In the two car garage I will see the torts a lot more also.

The only wall that isn't insulated is my automatic garage door and I have some friends who have insulated it with rigid back foam.

I will post pictures when done.

 

[Redstrike]

Sounds like you have a great plan for a spacious and excellent enclosure. I think I can speak for everyone on here when I say I'd love to see pictures when you've finished your project! If you're feeling particularly gracious, we also love to see sequential photos as you go through the construction process.

Best of luck, looking forward to those pictures!