130-gal Closed-Top Tank Progression Thread

[StudentoReptile]

This is a revamp of my 130-gal glass tank for my two juvenile redfoot tortoises.

Dimensions are 42" long x 36" wide x 20" high (I think...not sure on the height, but it's not as important to me as the other two).

Step 1: I started by laying some tarp as a liner. The tank has a few cracks on the bottom. I could reseal them, but the liner will make it easier to clean in the long run.


Step 2: I cut out some plastic hardware cloth for the bottom. This is for the heat cable. I also placed some large rocks to keep the liner and hardware cloth in place.


Step 3: I ran about 18' of heat rope ( Save on Flexible Heat Rope for Reptile Cages ) through the hardware cloth just to keep it in place. This will provide supplemental belly heat and also keep the substrate warm and humid.



Step 4: Added a thick layer of cypress mulch. Pretty porous, and may help start a Bioactive substrate system.


Step 5: Added a generous layer of coconut coir.


Step 6: Decorations! Artificial ferns, more small rocks, etc.

[StudentoReptile]

Step 7: I revised the lighting. It previously had a Mercury Vapor Bulb, but I felt this is too birght for the redfoots, so I switched it out with a ceramic heat emitter, which I can leave on 24/7, and a 5.0 Repti-Glo tube florescent light for UVB.




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I'm still not finishing with it yet. My main goal is to build a custom top that completely encloses it. Baby tortoises suffer some of the same issues as baby savannah monitors do (Wayne can attest) in terms of heat and humidity, so for such a large, wide tank, I want to resolve this. Below is my rough sketch.


But I really wanted to get the babies moved into the larger enclosure as soon as possible because their current quarters were getting cramped! I'm pretty satisfied with the results thus far.

Basking temps (directly under CHE): 120'F
Ambient Daytime Temp: 80-82'F
Ambient Nighttime Temp: 79-80'F
Coolest area: 75-77'F

The heat cable keeps the substrate at about 77-80'F.

[alessia55]

That looks nice!! So do tortoises only need once constant temperature rather than a heat gradient? I ask because of the heat tape running along the whole cage rather than just half of it. Also, don't tortoises like to dig? I'm wondering if that's deep enough for that.

[youngster]

That looks awesome, I want a tortoise

[StudentoReptile]

Originally Posted by alessia55

That looks nice!! So do tortoises only need once constant temperature rather than a heat gradient? I ask because of the heat tape running along the whole cage rather than just half of it. Also, don't tortoises like to dig? I'm wondering if that's deep enough for that.

Well, redfoots seem to be a special case. A lot of keepers claim their RFs do better keeping the temps more constant (at least for babies and juvies) so that's what I did. I mean, there's still the gradient from the lamp to the other side of the cage (120'F on one end and low 80s on the other). Redfoots are just really sensitive at temps below 75-ish and we tend to keep out house kinda cool anyway.

They also don't really dig that much either, at least not compared to a sulcata or a Russian. They'll kinda "nestle" and burrow a little, but I don't anticipate them burrowing straight down several inches to where the heat rope is.