Temperature under the lamp?

[Tomos]

I will be receiving my new baby spur thigh in a month or so time and have got every thing ready ... I think

Tortises table, Mega Ray 100w self ballasted bulb, lamp stand, nutrubol, tortise block, cuttlefish, clamp lamp, fertilized top soil, slate for feeding off and a shallow water dish for wading and drinking, and weed seeds to grow

my question is what temperature is ideal for below the lamp? and what's a cost effective way of measuring that ? Is it worth getting a timer switch for the lamp.
How long each day should the lamp be on ?

Do I need to bath the young tortise nightly? I have heard it helps dehydration?
Do you feed at a set time or make food stuff available all the time ?
If so feed morning or night
How often do you add a supplement
I was thinking of coir rather than a top soil /sand

These questions and any other information greatly received

Thank you

[Merlin M]

Well I would avoid fertilized top soil and just get sterilised with nothing added, but coir is a good option too.
I use a times for my lamps on from 7am till 8pm
and aim for 34C under the lamp and 20C in the cool end.
I feed every morning (well about 12 really) and I put limestone flower on every meal, switching to nutrobal twice a week. I also leave some living lettuce in the table so they can eat whenever they want

I bath mine a couple of days a week, but they are a few years old now.

[Tomos]

Thank you, yep I meant sterilised top soil
I have got some nutrubol ready, I will check out the limestone you also use

[Merlin M]

I thought you might have meant sterilised but had to be sure!!
I usually just get my limestone flour from the shelled warrior shop its basically just calcium carbonate

[Laura Mac]

I have fresh food twice a day and have some plants growing for a munch whever he fancies it. Remember it will take your new arrival a while to adjust to the change. I am nearly at the2week mark with my spur thigh and he is slowly coming round. Make sure you bath him every day especially if he is not eating well at the start. I use nekton. And my cuttlefish is still there but untouched as yet.

[Alan1]

Originally Posted by Tomos

I will be receiving my new baby spur thigh in a month or so time and have got every thing ready ... I think

Tortises table, Mega Ray 100w self ballasted bulb, lamp stand, nutrubol, tortise block, cuttlefish, clamp lamp, fertilized top soil, slate for feeding off and a shallow water dish for wading and drinking, and weed seeds to grow

my question is what temperature is ideal for below the lamp? 33-35c
and what's a cost effective way of measuring that? a digital infrared thermometer
Is it worth getting a timer switch for the lamp? it's up to you, I don't use one and please note, you can't use a thermostat with that bulb though a timer is okay
How long each day should the lamp be on? 12-16 hours

Do I need to bath the young tortise nightly? I have heard it helps dehydration? I would say each morning would be best as you don't want them wet all night really
Do you feed at a set time or make food stuff available all the time? If so feed morning or night? I feed every morning and it's available all day though it does dry up
How often do you add a supplement? I do it every day whether that's by sprinkling it on or feeding pellets
I was thinking of coir rather than a top soil /sand. I am now using coir which I get from IKEA and it's called Kokosnot
These questions and any other information greatly received

Thank you