# Whats this? New digs?



## Max713 (Jul 13, 2011)

And into his new home.





4.5 square feet of fresh soil! The plant is looking a little sad after the remodel, I'm sure it will bounce back quickly.










An approving Kimo, looking forward to seeing what he does with his new digging material.











Just for fun, Kimo looking for trouble.












My only question, should I be at all concerned with collapses if he really get a good burrow going? Because I am...

Also, anyone have a "best" method for keeping the soil dry, other than misting?


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## tora (Jul 13, 2011)

Just pour water into it and mix. The wet soil underneath should stay wet for a good while. 
Very pretty enclosure! You do want to make sure that anything heavy enough to possibly do harm is flat against the bottom.


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## Max713 (Jul 13, 2011)

Alright, routine watering.

All the rocks/heavy objects are FIRMLY held in place by screws, or flat on the bottom. The only thing not all the way on the bottom, but I'm sure he is strong enough to flip that over if he wanted...


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## james.w (Jul 13, 2011)

Looks good. Is it just soil or soil/sand mix? 

Another thing I noticed is your bulbs are not facing directly downward, if they are MVBs they can burn out prematurely if not pointed straight down.


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## Max713 (Jul 13, 2011)

james.w said:


> Looks good. Is it just soil or soil/sand mix?
> 
> Another thing I noticed is your bulbs are not facing directly downward, if they are MVBs they can burn out prematurely if not pointed straight down.



Supposedly its a 75/25 mix in the bag, I'm not sure how much truth there is to that.

I've been told that too, and that it's possible for UVB's at an angle can hurt the Tegu's eyes? I was hoping the angle was insignificant enough to allow either of those. That 160w powersun is just too damn big, if pointed straight down the 50w spot in the fixture next to it would be at a damn near 45degree angle.


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## james.w (Jul 13, 2011)

Where did you get the soil from? Would you happen to have link for it online?

If the angle isn't too bad I wouldn't worry about it. Why do you need a 50W next to it, are you not getting high enough temps with just the PowerSun?


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## new2tegus (Jul 13, 2011)

Yes, please let us know where you got the mix from for the bedding. I'm currently using the cypress mulch from t rex, and that's only because it's a smaller cage, I know I will have to switch when he grows out of this one. Also sealing the enclosure what does everyone use?


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## Max713 (Jul 13, 2011)

james.w said:


> Where did you get the soil from? Would you happen to have link for it online?
> 
> If the angle isn't too bad I wouldn't worry about it. Why do you need a 50W next to it, are you not getting high enough temps with just the PowerSun?


I already tossed the bags, I'll go try to dig them out of the dumpster tomorrow... haha.

No, the powersun alone doesn't give me the basking temps I'm looking for. I have kimo at a 125-130 max bask temp, he seems to love it!



new2tegus said:


> Yes, please let us know where you got the mix from for the bedding. I'm currently using the cypress mulch from t rex, and that's only because it's a smaller cage, I know I will have to switch when he grows out of this one. Also sealing the enclosure what does everyone use?


I got the mix from home depot, the other bedding is Coarse Coco Husk.
I sealed mine with Drylok, it's a pretty popular sealant among herpers.


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## new2tegus (Jul 13, 2011)

Thank you very much, that's good to know, and home depot carries the coco husk too? Also do you bake your substrate before putting it in, I've heard of people doing that to kill any bacteria. Just wanted to know at what temp if you do?


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## Max713 (Jul 13, 2011)

new2tegus said:


> Thank you very much, that's good to know, and home depot carries the coco husk too? Also do you bake your substrate before putting it in, I've heard of people doing that to kill any bacteria. Just wanted to know at what temp if you do?



No, cheapest place for Coco husk is petmountain.com.
I didn't bake my soil.


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## james.w (Jul 13, 2011)

Not a big deal if you can't get the bags, I was just curious. I get mine from a local landscaping place, it is premixed as well. 

How long does he bask at those temps? Is your MVB the only UVB source in the enclosure?


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## Max713 (Jul 13, 2011)

james.w said:


> Not a big deal if you can't get the bags, I was just curious. I get mine from a local landscaping place, it is premixed as well.
> 
> How long does he bask at those temps? Is your MVB the only UVB source in the enclosure?



He will bask at those temps for up to 20 minutes or so, then he will move away to a cooler location, often to ground level underneath the basking area. He spends a lot of his time near is basking area, but not directly underneath the light.

There is also a Reptisun 10.0 tube bulb mounted to the top of the enclosure.


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## james.w (Jul 13, 2011)

The only concern I would have with basking temps that high is that he may not get enough UVB, but if he is basking long enough throughout the day he should be ok.


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## rrcoolj (Jul 14, 2011)

Tegus are adorable when they are that size. Too bad they don't stay that way for long. The enclosure looks real good and so does the tegu.

Basking spot does seem too high IMO. Why don't you just use a lower watt bulb?


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## Max713 (Jul 14, 2011)

james.w said:


> The only concern I would have with basking temps that high is that he may not get enough UVB, but if he is basking long enough throughout the day he should be ok.


He basks periodically throughout the day. Thats the beauty of such a high basking area is it encourages the Tegu to take advantage of the entire heat gradient in the enclosure. Instead of basking at lower temps for quite a while, he can have a short bask, move to another area, cruise around, etc.



rrcoolj said:


> Tegus are adorable when they are that size. Too bad they don't stay that way for long. The enclosure looks real good and so does the tegu.
> 
> Basking spot does seem too high IMO. Why don't you just use a lower watt bulb?


He's getting big quick, just hit 30" long!

Because a lower watt bulb would translate to a lower basking temp, I'm looking for at least a temp of 120, closer to 130 is even better.
Take your IR gun outside for a walk one day, you would be amazed of the surface temps you would find, even on a cool day!


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## rrcoolj (Jul 14, 2011)

Why are you trying to stimulate temperatures so high? I have never let my temps climb above 110 on the basking spot and even then my tegu only stays there for an hour or so then she goes lower places to rest that are in the 90's. It just seems a bit too high to me especially in a smaller enclosure. I just worry about temperature gradient. What are the ambient air temps like?


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## Max713 (Jul 14, 2011)

Why? Because that is the absolute best thing to do with any reptile, offer them a very large basking gradient, and letting them decide what temp they want to bask at. As long as you don't provide a temp that can cause them physical harm, or negative effects on the ambient temps of the entire enclosure, there is no problem.
Basking for an entire hour? Do you realize how long that is? Kimo can completely warm up in a matter of 10-20 minutes if he wants, like in the morning when he's trying to warm up from a cool 75F ambient night. But at the same time, he can bask at 105 or lower for hours if he wants. I just don't see the logic in not offering your animal a full spectrum. Not to say I haven't experimented, if Kimo never used his 125-130 basking area, I would lower the temps as there no point to have high temps if he doesn't like them. But he does use them, a lot!
The center of Kimo's basking rock usually registers between 125F and 130F. The edges read as low as 105F, the surrounding areas, still lit by his basking bulb are down in the lower 90s. The level underneath his basking area completely is somewhere in the mid 80's. He LOVES his 125-130 basking position. 
The entire enclosure has an excellent gradient, with a constant cool side of 80F, while maintaining proper 70-85% humidity across the board.
Providing a high basking temp has many benefits. Better metabolism, the Tegu will be more active, as it won't have to spend nearly as much time basking. Kimo moves about his enclosure throughout the day digging, looking for food, moving from different areas of the heat gradient.

I understand the 110F basking limit has been beat into Tegu owners heads time and time again, but that does not necessarily make it true! Don't take my word for it, try offering your Tegu a warmer basking position, even for a day, and see how he/she utilizes it. You aren't going to harm your Tegu with a 120F+ basking position.... If I can register 109F on a medium light rock, on a slightly overcast 70F day, what do you think temps in Argentina my reach?


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## Draco D Tegu (Jul 14, 2011)

Actually, I'm (My family hails from ) from Argentina, and depending on the location.....it's pretty much like here, it varies with locale except it's reversed. Our summers here in the states are thier winters and vice versa:

For example:

The average temperature in Argentina is 17.5 °C (63 °F). 
The range of average monthly temperatures is 13.5 °C. 
The warmest average max/ high temperature is 30 °C (86 °F) in January. 
The coolest average min/ low temperature is 7 °C (45 °F) in June, July. 
Argentina receives on average 1089 mm (42.9 in) of precipitation annually or 91 mm (3.6 in) each month.


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## herpgirl2510 (Jul 14, 2011)

Another problem besides avoiding the uvb bulb is the enclosure is not big enughto allow a big temp grade. I have my savannah in a 7.5 foot long enlosure her basking is at 130 and the other side of her age is in the high 70's your cage looks to be about 1/2 that size. I would think that would keep your whole enclosure very warm. If my basking site for my tegus gets over 100 they retreat under their hides. Tonka is out all day most days basking atthe screen dor when it gets to warm there he moves away I could not imagine if it got as high as 130.

rcjoolj sorry I missed your post saying the exat same thing I did.


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## rrcoolj (Jul 14, 2011)

Well keep in mind that my enclosure is much larger than yours and it takes an 8x4 more time to warm up. And I do offer a basking gradient. On different spots of my basking area the temperature will usually range from 102-110. And what benefits is there to warming up quicker? He is not trying to escape predators or anything. I also don't see the benefit of an increased metabolism either. And it makes sense that your tegu or any tegu would automatically seek the highest temperature to warm up. I am sure that if I gave a basking spot of 150 and my tegu just waking up at around 70 degrees would head for the hottest spot to warm up quickly but she wouldn't be there long just as yours never is. Also my tegu dosen't really need a high metabolism. She is done growing for the most part and dosen't even eat every day sometimes.

Look I am no herpetologist or tegu guru, but I would think those temperatures are there for a reason. Because by your logic I could do what your doing to any reptile and it would be fine. I can give my leopard geckos a hot spot of 110 degrees and I am helping them because they have the option of an increased gradient. But why provide those temps if they are only going to sit there to warm up for 10-15 minutes. What would be the benefit as opposed to proving a temp of 90 where they could sit longer and be comfortable. It's not the the temp 110 has been beatin into my head, it's just that every reptile I have ever kept has certain temperatures that someone found to be appropriate for that reptile. 

just my 2cents

PS:herpgirl2510 you beat me too it lol


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## Max713 (Jul 16, 2011)

Kimo seems to be enjoying the new digging material!






Picked up the phone camera just a second to late, he was doing the very funny front feet push out of his burrow.


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