The Tortoise Table

Hi! I’m new to this and just wanted to check I’ve got the right set up for my baby Hermanns.

I did a lot of research online beforehand and spoke a lot to my local reptile shop to make sure I was getting the right things. Currently I have a 3ft x 2ft table with a ceramic lamp holder and clamp rigged at one end with an 80w uva/uvb heat lamp installed. The temperature directly under the lamp at “shell height” is about 30-31degC and at the cooler end is about 24-25degC. So my first questions is is the cool end cool enough? I have read it should be about 20 but obviously this would drop at night slightly and not sure how I can cool it further.

I collected my tortoise last night from a different shop to that I had been getting advice from, as the original didn’t have any availability of Hermanns. When I collected it they checked what set up I had and instead advised I should install a uvb tube light over the table and rig a heat lamp separately. I bought the tube but not sure what the best thing to do is now! Is the tube and heat lamp set up more efficient/beneficial for my tortoise? Or will the current set up be sufficient? For information, my tortoise is 1-2 years old.

Thanks in advance for the help!!

Hi Chara and welcome to the Tortosie Table (and apologies for the delay in responding to your message).

First of all, congratulations on getting a tortoise table for your little Hermanns (what is his name by the way?) -- he will be so much happier in there than in a vivarium (which many people mistakenly buy).

To answer your questions:
1. Yes, 24C - 25C is a bit warmer than you want it, but with the warm weather we have been having the temperature in the room is often as high as that, so it is impossible to get it cooler in the tortoise table, but I wouldn't worry too much as this happens in the wild also. Can you raise and lower your lamp? If you can raise it a bit -- so that it is 29C - 30C, then it will also be a bit cooler on the cool side of the table (an dhaving your heat lamp at one end of the table instead of in the middle helps keep the cool end cooler too. Just make sure he has water and also that you bathe him frequently (in a container he can't see out of, in warm water that comes just up to where his top shell meets his bottom shell, for a bout 15 - 20 minutes every other day -- or if it is very warm then every day).

2. Regarding the merits of a UVB tube + a heat/light lamp vs. a mercury vapour all-in-one heat & light set-up -- you will get different answers from different people, I'm afraid. The all in one that you currently have set up is preferred by many people because it provides high quality UVB, and there are fewer wires and connections because there is only one bulb. It does mean, though that if that bulb blows you are without heat, light and UVB unless you have a spare. The tube + a separate heat/light bulb provides a bit more flexibility and coverage. For example, you can get a tube that pretty much covers the length of your table, so that wherever your tortoise is, he is receiving UVB.
Also, when it is warm you do need to be able to raise your heat source to lower the temperature in the table, and when you raise the all-in-one bulb you are putting the UVB further away from the tortoise). Having said all that, both methods are absolutely fine and although I have chosen the UVB tube plus a heat and light bulb, many good keepers that I know have the all in one bulb, and I think that overall it's probably the one that more people use.

You probably already have a good care sheet for Hermanns, but if not then here is a link to one.
https://www.tortoise-protection-group.o ... 014New.pdf

Nina