I have a qeustion about lighting and soil.

batmanjosh5000 · 08-12-13, 10:53 PM

Hi, i am in the middle of building my 8x4x4 savannah monitor enclosure and have a few questions. Can i put a ceramic heat emitter in the enclosure? I ask because my house temperature is about 70f all year round and i want to raise the temperature in the enclosure to 75f at night. So i figure a ceramic heat emitter would work for that. But i also feel like they get really hot and if he decides to touch it he could get a nasty burn. So are ceramic heat emitters safe to use or should i raise the temps a different way? Also i am not sure of which soil to be using. Should i use organic or inorganic topsoil? thanks!

Cmwells90 · 08-12-13, 11:32 PM

From what I know, you'd never want to use one. They're prone to overheating and that can cause burns. Also they don't do much for the ambient air temp, the reptile would have to be ON it to feel much heat, which leads back to the burns.

infernalis · 08-13-13, 12:37 AM

The basking lamps are all you need, tried, tested, proven.

Organic, can you dig up the back yard with a shovel and get away with it?

KORBIN5895 · 08-13-13, 12:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cmwells90

From what I know, you'd never want to use one. They're prone to overheating and that can cause burns. Also they don't do much for the ambient air temp, the reptile would have to be ON it to feel much heat, which leads back to the burns.

What are you talking about? There is no way the sav would get on it and they are designed to get over 200°f.

Quote:

Originally Posted by infernalis

The basking lamps are all you need, tried, tested, proven.

Organic, can you dig up the back yard with a shovel and get away with it?

I think he means as a heat source for when the lights are out because his house temps are 70°f.

@op

If I understand you correctly It should work just fine but I'm not sure what it would do to your humidity, if anything.

Cmwells90 · 08-13-13, 12:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KORBIN5895

What are you talking about? There is no way the sav would get on it and they are designed to get over 200°f.

My bad, I was thinking heat rocks.

smy_749 · 08-13-13, 05:25 AM

Korbin, checking my 60 and 100 watt ceramic bulbs with the temp gun, they get over 400 degrees from what I remember. To the OP, I'm not sure if you've already set it up or not and have run tests to see what night time temps drop to, but a deep substrate and well built enclosure should be able to maintain heat through the night to some degree, especially if your house is a constant 70 degrees. Even better if you have a insulated enclosure and no cracks for heat to escape. You could also consider heating the substrate as well. If you want to use a CHE , thats fine too

KORBIN5895 · 08-13-13, 05:56 AM

I actually knew they got hotter but I couldn't remember how hot and I don't like exaggerating.

infernalis · 08-13-13, 06:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KORBIN5895

I think he means as a heat source for when the lights are out because his house temps are 70°f..

Of course he is, a proper cage would take days to cool down a lot.

We had a power outage last winter, my house got down to the upper 40's before the power came back on, my cage only dropped 5 degrees. (it was still over 80 in my cage.)

The large mass of soil acts as a ballast, it holds the heat and gives it up slowly.

AND with burrowing animals, it's fine to just leave the lights on 24/7... since the animals will go underground when they want darkness and privacy.

KORBIN5895 · 08-13-13, 06:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by infernalis

Of course he is, a proper cage would take days to cool down a lot.

We had a power outage last winter, my house got down to the upper 40's before the power came back on, my cage only dropped 5 degrees. (it was still over 80 in my cage.)

The large mass of soil acts as a ballast, it holds the heat and gives it up slowly.

AND with burrowing animals, it's fine to just leave the lights on 24/7... since the animals will go underground when they want darkness and privacy.

Ah! I see. Thanks boss.

batmanjosh5000 · 08-13-13, 03:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by infernalis

Of course he is, a proper cage would take days to cool down a lot.

We had a power outage last winter, my house got down to the upper 40's before the power came back on, my cage only dropped 5 degrees. (it was still over 80 in my cage.)

The large mass of soil acts as a ballast, it holds the heat and gives it up slowly.

AND with burrowing animals, it's fine to just leave the lights on 24/7... since the animals will go underground when they want darkness and privacy.

Good point. My enclosure doesn't have insulation but it's pretty sealed so i don't think much heat would escape when the lights turn off. But would it be better for me to keep the lights on 24/7? Because that would give him the option to bask at night time if he wants to. But at the same time if he doesn't have a set schedule maybe he would sleep more during the daytime which i wouldn't want because id' rather see him more during the day.

Quote:

Originally Posted by infernalis

The basking lamps are all you need, tried, tested, proven.

Organic, can you dig up the back yard with a shovel and get away with it?

I don't think i have anywhere i can do that... but the top soil at lowes is pretty cheap. Shop Hapi-Gro 40-Pound Top Soil at Lowes.com Would this be good to use?

Toothless · 08-13-13, 05:37 PM

I leave one of my basking spots on 24/7 just to keep the temps up during the night. Even with those lights on all night, once the main lights turn off, Toothless goes to bed and doesn't come back out until morning. I think it would be easier just to leave the lights on 24/7, but a CHE would work as well (although you'd probably be running at a higher wattage than the halogens). I think a 24/7 basking spot for nervous ones would be beneficial- growing up my guy was always seen basking at night since he was too nervous to be out during the day.

infernalis · 08-13-13, 05:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by batmanjosh5000

I don't think i have anywhere i can do that... but the top soil at lowes is pretty cheap. Shop Hapi-Gro 40-Pound Top Soil at Lowes.com Would this be good to use?

I read this on the bag, Not sure?? why is it in there? sounds bad.

Fly Ash: Valuable Source Of Nutrients; Or Hazardous Waste Masquarading As A Soil Amendment? : TreeHugger

Fly ash - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

batmanjosh5000 · 08-13-13, 05:55 PM

I like that idea i think ill do that.

i have another question, the answer is probably obvious but i just want to make sure... Im planning on using three 50 watt halogen flood lights and want to put them in regular clamp lamps with ought the dome part (It would just be easier for me since then i wouldn't have to install any light sockets). This would work right? i wouldn't have to use ceramic light sockets or anything would i? (just to be clear i decided im not going to use ceramic heat emitters, i am going to use 3 halogen flood lights)

batmanjosh5000 · 08-13-13, 06:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by infernalis

I read this on the bag, Not sure?? why is it in there? sounds bad.

Fly Ash: Valuable Source Of Nutrients; Or Hazardous Waste Masquarading As A Soil Amendment? : TreeHugger

Fly ash - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ya that does sound pretty weird. Is there anywhere that sells just plain old dirt?

batmanjosh5000 · 08-13-13, 09:25 PM

I had to get something from Lowes tonight and while i was there i took a look at the soil. they had one that looked pretty good. It's organic and says that there's no added chemicals or anything and that it's just plain old dirt. This is what the ingredients said it "mineral soils, dolomitic limestone, and composted bark fines". Does this sound safe to use?