New Red Foot Owner with questions

Lyn W

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Ok I have the clamp lamp dome rated to 100w. Do I need a deep dome for the mvb?
I have read here that deep domes cause the bulbs/che to overheat and burn out quickly so I haven't used them just in case. I use a wide dome for all my lights/heat (about 11 inches diameter) MVBs are quite sensitive too any knocks when they are hot could be the end of it. If you switch them off they won't come straight back on but take about 10mins to cool - I thought I had broken mine the first time that happened but its just the way they are. The clamps have also been known to fail and cause fires so it is recommended that they are hung from a stand or bar across the enclosure so the heat is directed to a wider area.
 

Lyn W

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Have you had a look at the Enclosures thread yet for ideas on how people hang their lights? There is a section on lighting.
I have a leopard tortoise so his needs are different to RFs, so while I can tell you my preferences and some basic safety tips that are common to all, you may find your tort needs something slightly different. There's a lot to learn but thankfully there are lots of RF keepers here like Anyfoot, Lisa127 or ZEROPILOT who gladly share their experiences.
 

Ashleytortoise

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I have read here that deep domes cause the bulbs/che to overheat and burn out quickly so I haven't used them just in case. I use a wide dome for all my lights/heat (about 11 inches diameter) MVBs are quite sensitive too any knocks when they are hot could be the end of it. If you switch them off they won't come straight back on but take about 10mins to cool - I thought I had broken mine the first time that happened but its just the way they are. The clamps have also been known to fail and cause fires so it is recommended that they are hung from a stand or bar across the enclosure so the heat is directed to a wider area.
Yes all of that is the reason I didn't get an mvb right off. Right now the dome is resting on the metal screen. As soon as we finalize what we r going to do with the top I'll figure out the bulb situation. Just having trouble deciding what will work best. Thank u so much for ur input!
 

Ashleytortoise

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I think your temps are too low. You need to be between 82f and 88f. Your gauge is near the top of your enclosure, if that is correct and reading 80/75f, at Tortoise level it will be lower, I'll guess 75/70f.
Your tort won't eat if its too cold, they need heat for the digestive system to work.
I moved the hide to the other side by the light to see if it's a bit warmer. She originally went back to the hole she dug without the hide. I moved her to the hide at new spot and now she's in it. It's pretty dark inside so hoping it will b ok for now til she gets a little warmer. I also moved gauge lower. Humidity went to 70%. Waiting to see what temps say.
 

Anyfoot

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That makes a lot of sense. Didn't think about the thermostat being too high. Shld I add a Che on the other end near her hide? If they don't like bright light do I even need a basking light?
In my 2x4ft viv. I have a 150watt CHE at one end on a thermostat. It reads 88f at the maximum at this end, at the opposite end it reads 82f. This is day and night. For my light and uvb I have a fluorescent uvb tube that is 24" long. This covers the half of the enclosure on CHE side. So at the 82f end it is darker. At night my uvb goes off. The uvb tube is 8" above the Tortoise carapace.
You don't need a basking spot like some other species require.
You must test all your heat and humidity at Tortoise level.
If I had your enclosure I would make the warm end the opposite end to where your lid is open. Use 4" thick substrate, I'd use coco coir.(coconut husk) shop around, reptile shops will rip you off. Try garden centres, bargain stores.
Then on top of the coco coir in about half the enclosure put a layer of orchid bark down, I use cyprus mulch, this provides a dry surface for your tort, the coco coir provides somewhere for your tort to dig in. You need to aim for warm and humid, not a sodden substrate, just moist. I usually poor my water dish in it every other day and mix it up a bit.
Because you have an open end, your heat and himidity will naturally rise and escape. However you are also letting in air circulation. I would grow plants in there's, especially at the open end. For now leave them in pots and burry the pots right in the substrate, at some stage you could remove the pots.
I don't know how big your tank is, you may only need a 100watt CHE.
 

Ashleytortoise

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In my 2x4ft viv. I have a 150watt CHE at one end on a thermostat. It reads 88f at the maximum at this end, at the opposite end it reads 82f. This is day and night. For my light and uvb I have a fluorescent uvb tube that is 24" long. This covers the half of the enclosure on CHE side. So at the 82f end it is darker. At night my uvb goes off. The uvb tube is 8" above the Tortoise carapace.
You don't need a basking spot like some other species require.
You must test all your heat and humidity at Tortoise level.
If I had your enclosure I would make the warm end the opposite end to where your lid is open. Use 4" thick substrate, I'd use coco coir.(coconut husk) shop around, reptile shops will rip you off. Try garden centres, bargain stores.
Then on top of the coco coir in about half the enclosure put a layer of orchid bark down, I use cyprus mulch, this provides a dry surface for your tort, the coco coir provides somewhere for your tort to dig in. You need to aim for warm and humid, not a sodden substrate, just moist. I usually poor my water dish in it every other day and mix it up a bit.
Because you have an open end, your heat and himidity will naturally rise and escape. However you are also letting in air circulation. I would grow plants in there's, especially at the open end. For now leave them in pots and burry the pots right in the substrate, at some stage you could remove the pots.
I don't know how big your tank is, you may only need a 100watt CHE.
Thank you so much! I checked out Che bulbs today. Said 100w for 40 gallon tank and that's what I have. I read they need to go into a porcelain socket. They work in the ceramic socketed domes right? I soaked her again and she took some bites of kale but not sure she got anything. Then she was done. The Che bulbs r $10 cheaper on Amazon so I was going to go that route. Also with regards to the cypress mulch I cldnt find organic at the stores. Can I use not organic? There was also a diff kind. Malaluca mulch. Said it was natural but not organic. Thought maybe that would b safer? One last question do u think I shld work on a diff cover to keep more humidity and heat in? Like plastic or plexi glass of some sort?
 

Anyfoot

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Thank you so much! I checked out Che bulbs today. Said 100w for 40 gallon tank and that's what I have. I read they need to go into a porcelain socket. They work in the ceramic socketed domes right? I soaked her again and she took some bites of kale but not sure she got anything. Then she was done. The Che bulbs r $10 cheaper on Amazon so I was going to go that route. Also with regards to the cypress mulch I cldnt find organic at the stores. Can I use not organic? There was also a diff kind. Malaluca mulch. Said it was natural but not organic. Thought maybe that would b safer? One last question do u think I shld work on a diff cover to keep more humidity and heat in? Like plastic or plexi glass of some sort?
A full cover is by far the easiest way to keep heat and humidity under control, but you won't be able to grow plants with no air flow. They will die eventually. Because you need to get your tort up to speed, I would cover it for now, you can think of ways to grow plants in a semi covered enclosure later. Main thing for now is get tort happy.
Yes you can use che in ceramic domes. Use the biggest dome possible, small domes concentrate all the heat into a smaller area. You are looking for an ambient not a hot spot with this species, I don't have a dome at all in my enclosed system.
I thought there was a big oharr on cyprus mulch over there, that's why I mentioned orchid bark. I've never used malaluca, but it looks OK to me, see what @ZEROPILOT says on that one.
Either way I would only use organic stuff. If its not organic it means it has had some sort of pesticide treatment at some stage. Was all this in a reptile shop or gardening shop.
How high is your enclosure?
 

Ashleytortoise

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The inside is 15" from Substrate to cover. Right now I'm using repti bark over organic mushroom compost and organic peat moss. The malaluca and cypress bags were at lowes. Wish I could find organic. Might b able to find it a smaller gardening center instead. If u don't use a dome for ur che what do u use? I added the plants because I read it can help get the humidity up. Did a little but not much. I'm going to work on tying to find a good top and the lighting today. I'll prob just get the bulb at pet store so I don't have to wait until next week for shipment from Amazon. Here she is today. Burried but head out and not in her hide. Hopefully that's improvement.
 

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christinaland128

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Welcome to the forum! There's a lot of great people here to help you out. They've been great help to me with my reds. You're baby is very cute. Also not sure if anyone mentioned this but hatchlings tend to hide a lot, so that's fairly normal. :)
 

Yvonne G

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Ok I have the clamp lamp dome rated to 100w. Do I need a deep dome for the mvb?

I'm not a fan of the deep dome. The MVB needs to be mounted in a wide dome either 10 or 12" otherwise it gets too hot inside the dome.
 

Yvonne G

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Yes all of that is the reason I didn't get an mvb right off. Right now the dome is resting on the metal screen. As soon as we finalize what we r going to do with the top I'll figure out the bulb situation. Just having trouble deciding what will work best. Thank u so much for ur input!

You won't be able to use the screen top unless you cut out holes for the light, as the screen filters out a good portion of the beneficial UVB rays.
 

Yvonne G

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Thank you so much! I checked out Che bulbs today. Said 100w for 40 gallon tank and that's what I have. I read they need to go into a porcelain socket. They work in the ceramic socketed domes right? I soaked her again and she took some bites of kale but not sure she got anything. Then she was done. The Che bulbs r $10 cheaper on Amazon so I was going to go that route. Also with regards to the cypress mulch I cldnt find organic at the stores. Can I use not organic? There was also a diff kind. Malaluca mulch. Said it was natural but not organic. Thought maybe that would b safer? One last question do u think I shld work on a diff cover to keep more humidity and heat in? Like plastic or plexi glass of some sort?

Porcelain and ceramic are the same thing.
 

Anyfoot

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The inside is 15" from Substrate to cover. Right now I'm using repti bark over organic mushroom compost and organic peat moss. The malaluca and cypress bags were at lowes. Wish I could find organic. Might b able to find it a smaller gardening center instead. If u don't use a dome for ur che what do u use? I added the plants because I read it can help get the humidity up. Did a little but not much. I'm going to work on tying to find a good top and the lighting today. I'll prob just get the bulb at pet store so I don't have to wait until next week for shipment from Amazon. Here she is today. Burried but head out and not in her hide. Hopefully that's improvement.
At 15" you will have to cut a hole in your lid slightly smaller than the dome you choose. Then sit it over the hole. Because it's only 15" high you don't have the option of hanging your heat source inside of the enclosure. This is something for you to think about further down the line when you make a bigger enclosure. You will be wasting some heat through the top of the dome, can't be helped at this point. I have 3 che's in an enclosure with domes sat on enclosure the escaping heat in my case helps warm my tort room up.
 

Anyfoot

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The inside is 15" from Substrate to cover. Right now I'm using repti bark over organic mushroom compost and organic peat moss. The malaluca and cypress bags were at lowes. Wish I could find organic. Might b able to find it a smaller gardening center instead. If u don't use a dome for ur che what do u use? I added the plants because I read it can help get the humidity up. Did a little but not much. I'm going to work on tying to find a good top and the lighting today. I'll prob just get the bulb at pet store so I don't have to wait until next week for shipment from Amazon. Here she is today. Burried but head out and not in her hide. Hopefully that's improvement.
Your tort looks good, and I like the look of your enclosure deco. My CHE is in a ceramic holder attached to a steel bracket. It came with viv like that, so didn't bother with a dome. The heat has a bigger spread and is less intense. Maybe it's not the safest for humans, CHE burns hurt. Lol.
 
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