heat lamps

Kat · Member Joined: Jan 30, 2008 Posts: 59

Ok, We built our new cage for Akiva right before winter started, so shes been in it for about 2 months. I finally got her all situated in there, she seems to be happy with it. The only thing that I cannot seem to get right is the heat lamps. I noticed alot on here the reccomended basking spot is 100-110... I've got a basking light and a platform for her to crawl up on to be closer to it but being the new cage is like 3 feet tall... its not getting hot enough. I've got a temp gage on the wall in the middle between the bottom and the light and it only ever reads 75-80. I belive we have the hottest light bulb, which is also a basking bulb.

I know lots of people said not to use heat pads but she really likes them, so I havent taken them out. She mostly goes under her hide and lays on them, so I'm thinking that its not warm enough for her outside. The door is made of mesh, so the heat is not staying in there well..

any ideas?

Kat · Member Joined: Jan 30, 2008 Posts: 59

oh and another thing, the heat pads are under the dirt, shes not laying directly on them.

plundus · Member Joined: Sep 26, 2007 Posts: 13

Is the basking bulb a normal spot bulb or is it a mercury vapor bulb? First of all, I would recommend getting a small temp gun (I got the smallest one for about 20$ and it works fine) The reason is that the temp on the wall is general temperature and you want to know the temp on the actual spot where the lizard is basking. The material used on the basking spot can also influence the temp - for ex. a black piece of slate which gets very hot as opposed to a wood branch which doesn't. Also, the ventilation can be affecting your temps as well as humidity level. You want fresh air, but at the same time you want to keep heat and humidity in. A couple of 4 inch diameter vented holes at the bottom (one each side) and two or three more at the top back wall should give you plenty of ventilation in a big cage and good air flow.
I would try a ceramic bulb heater on a thermostat to get the basking temps up and only use undercage heating to keep the burrow temp from dropping below 68-70 at night. If your tegu is going into the burrow to get warm then something is wrong. It should be the other way around, they go into the burrow to cool down.
I've had similar problems in my bigger cages and I'm hoping to get a night/day thermostat at some point. Then I can regulate day and night temps independently. Unfortunately, they are expensive.

Anyway, good luck.

Kat · Member Joined: Jan 30, 2008 Posts: 59

so should I cover the majority of the door(its wire mesh) with plexi glass and just leave some air vents?

plundus · Member Joined: Sep 26, 2007 Posts: 13

That would help hold in heat and especially humidity. Keeping 80% humidity level in a large cage is difficult unless you have the right conditions and are misting daily. If you look at some of the pre-made cages selling online, you'll see that they often have glass front (sliding or hinged) and the rest (top, bottom, and sides) done in melamine with a few air vents. These types of enclosures have worked well for me. If your not sure, do a test run with cardboard or something for a couple of days and see if you get up to the temps and humidity you're looking for. Then, if it works you can invest in the right materials.
By the way, what are the dimensions of your cage? Do you have a photo?

plundus · Member Joined: Sep 26, 2007 Posts: 13

OK. I've just had a look at your photos in the gallery, so you can ignore my last question. You could convert your cage no problem. A few holes and vent covers (on the inside) and the plexiglass front. The only problem is the surface treatment on the inside of the cage. Is it covered with waterproof varnish/paint or is it bare wood? It seems a bit dry in there. I use organic potting soil which is the only decent substrate I can get at a reasonable price over here and it works fairly well. That moist feel it has when you first take it out of the bag is the dampness I try to maintain. As I said I don't have a lot to choose from.

Kat · Member Joined: Jan 30, 2008 Posts: 59

I didnt pain the inside because I wasnt sure what to put in there so I figured i'd hold off on it for a bit until I researched it. The picture is before I added cypress mulch into the bedding, we had tried soil and it failed as you might have noticed, it ended up hard and dry. So I moved into mulch, I do mist it twice a day, but I think I'll be covering the door up with plexi glass, which will probably be better for her in the end seeing as she likes to climb the mesh door and fall off I'm scared shes going to break her legs or something