Sulcata Enclosure

[Nickolas]

I was thinking of designs for my sulcata's enclosure. I do not need to use a closed chamber as I can keep the whole room at a good ambient temperature and humidity. At first, I was thinking about building a plywood table that is 8' x 8'. If I did that, I would the spend the most money on plywood, silicone, and water-based polyurethane. What if I used a thick pond liner with a 2x4x8 frame? Has anyone done this before? I think it would save a lot of money, be more pliable, and I would not have to worry about it ever leaking or molding. Obviously that enclosure would not last longer than a year or so for a sulcata. That brings up the point of why build something so solid if it needs tossed out a year later? I would love to hear everyones' thoughts and experiences! (The tortoise is about 4 inches)
I wanted to make the enclosure large as it will not have daily outside time in the winter.

 

[Chubbs the tegu]

I think the heavy duty pond liner would work for that size sulcata. Im just curious if the room is kept at 80% humidity( i feel bad for the walls And ceiling in the room)

 

[Maro2Bear]

I think the heavy duty pond liner would work for that size sulcata. Im just curious if the room is kept at 80% humidity( i feel bad for the walls And ceiling in the room)

I was thinking the same thing. Also for a small hatchling, you are going to spend a ton of money to keep that entire room at minimum 80 F in Pennsylvania and really high humidity all Winter long. You could try to top off your enclosure to save resources. Heat, humidity.

A large surface area, with a thick pond liner covered with a good substrate is good.

 

[Nickolas]

Since the substrate is always damp, the water evaporates into the air. There is decent airflow in the room. I know that drafts are bad for tortoises, but it would not bother the enclosure. The temperature and humidity would be steady in the enclosure. I could try laying greenhouse roofing over the enclosure. I'm just afraid it would become like a sauna. I could make the enclosure similar to a greenhouse. I could make a teepee top with greenhouse roofing, and just leave the front area open for access. There would still be the same base of pond liner.

 

[Maro2Bear]

Since the substrate is always damp, the water evaporates into the air. There is decent airflow in the room. I know that drafts are bad for tortoises, but it would not bother the enclosure. The temperature and humidity would be steady in the enclosure. I could try laying greenhouse roofing over the enclosure. I'm just afraid it would become like a sauna. I could make the enclosure similar to a greenhouse. I could make a teepee top with greenhouse roofing, and just leave the front area open for access. There would still be the same base of pond liner.

I would say, go for the “sauna like” conditions in a smaller area. Teepee top with greenhouse roofing sounds good. No sense heating up an entire 12x12 room or larger. & let alone maintaining good humidity levels too.