Confused about Lighting
 

I have recently purchased a 2year old sulcata, who appears to be settling in well. However I am getting rather confused as to what lighting is needed, there's so much different information out there it's hard to know what's the best thing to do.
I currently have an Arcadia 160w D3 UV Basking lamp, which is one for about 10hours a day. Is this sufficient, or should I get another heat lamp?
Thanking you, Moira.

Hi Moira

I think we need to know what temperature are you getting at the hotspot. I don't keep sulcatas, but they do need daily good UV exposure. Your arcadia lamp should be providing that for him alright but the temperature depends partly on what height it is set up and also what the general temp in the room is.

Please can you tell us now hot it is directly under the lamp and also the temp a couple of feet at least away.

Thanks for the reassurance. The thermometer sits at about 30degrees at the lamp, but the room can drop to maybe 10degrees! So I was wondering if I'd need another heat lamp, that doesn't emit light and could be left on at night? Her enclosure 3ft x 4ft so the temp can vary quite a lot from where the lamp is.
Many thanks, Moira.

Under the basking lamp should be 32 to 34C and should try to keep it around 20C at night. So yes extra heat is needed for over night.
If possible a viv would be the best way to go for the winter as they hold the heat better.

Danny

Hi Moira

I believe Sulcatas should be provided with temperatures between 23 and 29C during the day with access to a cooler area. At night the temp should not go below 16C. I am taking these numbers directly from the Sultaca Station caresheet here:

http://www.sulcata-station.org/pdf/sscaresheetrev.pdf

I believe this to be good info but as I say, I don't keep Sulcatas myself. There will be people on here that keep them but they haven't noticed you yet. I hope you might be able to get some chat going with people more familiar with these lovely tortoises. Feel free to check out people's profiles to see what species they keep, or search the forums using 'sulcata' and 'sully' and see what and who turns up!

But, yes it looks like you will need additional heat for your sully. Ceramic heat emitters work well for night time for many of us and they can also be used during the day. I don't know if you have a warmer room that you could move the enclosure into? Even just for winter? You can also provide additional heat with halogen lamps which I am a fan of. These don't have uvb of course but they can be great for heat.

Hope this helps a bit!

Edit: Just seen Danny's post and his advice will be better than that which I just pinched from the Sully Station caresheet.

Thanks so much, will get another heat lamp sorted and check temperatures then.
Thanks :)

So I've just purchased a ceramic heat lamp, hopefully this will sort out the temperature and keep Miss.Marples happy!
Thanks so much for the advice :)

I don't have sulcatas but leopards which require similar care and although mine are out in the sun most days,even now!, I have a cover over their pen which keeps the heat in from their halogen heat bulb instead of it wafting up into the ether. It's just a piece of perspex bought from a DIY store with a hole cut in for the heat/light lamp. They have a "cave" at one end which they sleep in.

Thanks. Yes I got a ceramic heat lamp but it doesn't seem to spread much heat across a rather large enclosure, so I have created a hole in the hide box and she now has a lovely warm shelter for night.
She still sleeps for the majority of the day, and goes for a few dats without eating?! But has not lost any weight and is pretty active when she is out and about. Is there anything else I should worry about?

There really isn't a 'best'. In fact UVB is not a necessity. Calcium metabolism can be facilitated through other perfectly acceptable means as far as many reptiles and amphibians are concerned.

It depends on the diet you feed and the supplementation you provide... if any.

There's tons of information out there... much of it is misleading... I suspect for the sake of simplicity.

If you're here to learn... specific questions are going to be your best bet because this is a really complex issue.