Sulcata Baby Eyes

Yvonne G

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No, looks normal to me, but is that uncooked chicken in the picture?
 
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Thankyou for reply. Also is just pitting the t5 reptisun and ceramic heating enough lighting ? If so my tank is about 12" high . How far away should the lights be ?
 

Tom

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Thankyou for reply. Also is just pitting the t5 reptisun and ceramic heating enough lighting ? If so my tank is about 12" high . How far away should the lights be ?
No, that is not enough. Only a UV meter can tell you how far to mount your UV tube, but 12 inches is much too close. Probably closer to 18", but all bulbs are different and all enclosures are different.

-The UV tube is not a replacement for a basking bulb. You still need a basking area.


There are four elements to heating and lighting:
  1. Basking bulb. I use 65 watt incandescent floods from the hardware store. Some people will need bigger, or smaller wattage bulbs. Let your thermometer be your guide. I run them on a timer for about 12 hours and adjust the height to get the correct basking temp under them. I also like to use a flat rock of some sort directly under the bulb. You need to check the temp with a thermometer directly under the bulb and get it to around 95-100F (36-37C).
  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, as long as your house stays above 60F (15-16C) at night.
  3. Light. I use LEDs for this purpose. Something in the 5000-6500K color range will look the best. Most bulbs at the store are in the 2500K range and they look yellowish. Strip or screw-in bulb types are both fine.
  4. UV. If you can get your tortoise outside for an hour 2 or 3 times a week, you won't need indoor UV. In the UK, get one of the newer HO type fluorescent tubes. Which type will depend on mounting height. 5.0 bulbs make almost no UV. I like the 12% HO bulbs from Arcadia. You need a meter to check this: https://www.solarmeter.com/model65.html

More care info here:
 
Joined
Sep 24, 2021
Messages
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SPRING HILL
No, that is not enough. Only a UV meter can tell you how far to mount your UV tube, but 12 inches is much too close. Probably closer to 18", but all bulbs are different and all enclosures are different.

-The UV tube is not a replacement for a basking bulb. You still need a basking area.


There are four elements to heating and lighting:
  1. Basking bulb. I use 65 watt incandescent floods from the hardware store. Some people will need bigger, or smaller wattage bulbs. Let your thermometer be your guide. I run them on a timer for about 12 hours and adjust the height to get the correct basking temp under them. I also like to use a flat rock of some sort directly under the bulb. You need to check the temp with a thermometer directly under the bulb and get it to around 95-100F (36-37C).
  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, as long as your house stays above 60F (15-16C) at night.
  3. Light. I use LEDs for this purpose. Something in the 5000-6500K color range will look the best. Most bulbs at the store are in the 2500K range and they look yellowish. Strip or screw-in bulb types are both fine.
  4. UV. If you can get your tortoise outside for an hour 2 or 3 times a week, you won't need indoor UV. In the UK, get one of the newer HO type fluorescent tubes. Which type will depend on mounting height. 5.0 bulbs make almost no UV. I like the 12% HO bulbs from Arcadia. You need a meter to check this: https://www.solarmeter.com/model65.html

More care info here:
Thankyou this is perfect.
 
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