What floor temp is need for Adult (40lb) sulcata?

[Lisa Brooks]

West-Central Missouri. What floor temp is needed for an Adult (40lb) Sulcata? We are building a 7x14 outdoor house. It's under our solar panels so the roof is slanted. Front wall (14ft) is 5ft-back wall is 1.5ft. Insulation is R30 on walls and roof, foam board R10 floor (plywood). Tyvex under flooring and walls. There is air space between ground and flooring but has siding so no wind underneath. Heated with electrical barn heater installed in wall (has a fan to circulate air). Will have basking area. I'm wondering if I need to add some type of heated floor mat? I do have some stall mats I can add it needed. Would a heated mat under the stall mat be OK? Also do I need to use substrate with large torts? Last year I used Timothy hay, but she had overload of worms this summer and want to avoid that. Seems eating your bedding is not a good idea! If she doesn't need substrate, I'm good with that as I think it would make keeping clean easier, but at the end of the day it's whatever is right.

 

[wellington]

Sully's should be kept at 80. Same with my leopards. I make sure the floor/tortoise height is 80

 

[Lisa Brooks]

Thank you! I really appreciate you response. I'm hopeful the floor is insulated enough. We just got some roll laminate to put over the plywood and I have 2 large stall mats I can add. I'm wondering if we should do some type of radiant flooring.

Do you have a suggestion of substrate? Is it needed? I was looking at cypress mulch or I can use the bale of timothy grass.

 

[Maro2Bear]

Thank you! I really appreciate you response. I'm hopeful the floor is insulated enough. We just got some roll laminate to put over the plywood and I have 2 large stall mats I can add. I'm wondering if we should do some type of radiant flooring.

Do you have a suggestion of substrate? Is it needed? I was looking at cypress mulch or I can use the bale of timothy grass.

Cypress mulch makes much better substrate than Timothy. Ive been using cypress mulch for years - it’s cheap & available in 2-3 cubic ft bags, doesnt mildew or mold & holds moisture well (when saturated to start). The mulch is easy to add to & also absorbs all the “manure”.

You definitely want 80 ambient at a minimum.

Good luck.

ps - search on @Tom ’s “nightbox” design. Sounds like this might be what you need to build & have in your larger enclosure.

 

[Lisa Brooks]

Cypress mulch makes much better substrate than Timothy. Ive been using cypress mulch for years - it’s cheap & available in 2-3 cubic ft bags, doesnt mildew or mold & holds moisture well (when saturated to start). The mulch is easy to add to & also absorbs all the “manure”.

You definitely want 80 ambient at a minimum.

Good luck.

ps - search on @Tom ’s “nightbox” design. Sounds like this might be what you need to build & have in your larger enclosure.

Thank you!

 

[Maggie3fan]

The floor of my tort shed is plywood. I do have a heated mat in a sleeping box for my bigger tortoises. The floor is insulated and the ambient temperature in the shed is 85 degrees, but the floor stays at 75. Also, in my experience timothy hay is coarse and hard to chew, I feed my torts locally grown grass hay thru the winter, it's soft and sweet and the tortoises love it.
Mary Knobbins is 40 lbs. This is her in the sleeping box, you can see the mat in the corner, and there's enuf room for her to get off of it also. Don't put any thing on the mat like stall mats are a no no...

 

[Tom]

West-Central Missouri. What floor temp is needed for an Adult (40lb) Sulcata? We are building a 7x14 outdoor house. It's under our solar panels so the roof is slanted. Front wall (14ft) is 5ft-back wall is 1.5ft. Insulation is R30 on walls and roof, foam board R10 floor (plywood). Tyvex under flooring and walls. There is air space between ground and flooring but has siding so no wind underneath. Heated with electrical barn heater installed in wall (has a fan to circulate air). Will have basking area. I'm wondering if I need to add some type of heated floor mat? I do have some stall mats I can add it needed. Would a heated mat under the stall mat be OK? Also do I need to use substrate with large torts? Last year I used Timothy hay, but she had overload of worms this summer and want to avoid that. Seems eating your bedding is not a good idea! If she doesn't need substrate, I'm good with that as I think it would make keeping clean easier, but at the end of the day it's whatever is right.

Ground temps where they come from are between 80-85 all year long. Strive for that.

 

[LDB]

If wind can blow under the house then it will lose a lot of heat that way. Block the under side to seal the space under the floor and help insulate. I highly recommend a heat mat made for large tortoises. Check on Amazon.

 

[Lisa Brooks]

If wind can blow under the house then it will lose a lot of heat that way. Block the under side to seal the space under the floor and help insulate. I highly recommend a heat mat made for large tortoises. Check on Amazon.

Thank you for your reply. We are putting up skirting to block the wind, hopefully completed next weekend. I do have a heated floor mat that is working well so far.

 

[Lisa Brooks]

T

Ground temps where they come from are between 80-85 all year long. Strive for that.

Thank you!