# Planning out enclosure - ventilation, lighting, floor protection, etc.



## KaGaOri (Oct 22, 2016)

Hello, I would like to ask you few questions about what properties should Tegu enclousure have, to make sure I won't end up with something dysfunctional by design. What I will likely go with will be melamine cage with glass / plexiglass side sliding door - size: 8,038' long, 3,937' wide and 3,11' high (I'm European, so I measure in centimeters and had to go with whole tens and fives for convenience, hence the weird numbers). The cage will be placed in a corner of a room under bed, which will have some sort of it's own support = not lying directly on top of the cage, but there will be still very little space in between the two (about 2"). Because of this I need to make sure everything works right from the get-go, since once it'll be in it's place it will be hard to add or rework something on it. Thank you for your patience .

So, my questions:

1) Ventilation
I would like to place few vents on both shorter sides of the enclousure. I assume they should be near the top on one side and near the bottom (near expected substrate level) on the other for the air to circulate properly. Should they be up on the warm side of the cage and down on the cold side, or the opposite, or it doesn't really matter?

2) Lighting / Heating
I'm planning on having two sockets for basking bulbs set up at warm side of the cage - should that cover enough space for adult Tegu to bask under, or would I need more?

Second thing - the UVB. Should I add one more socket (or several more?) for UVB bulb right next to the basking bulbs (so Tegu will get the UVB while basking) or is it better to use UVB fluorescent tube (one, or maybe two to cover whole lenght of the cage?) along the ceiling / back side of the cage? Or should I do both, just to be safe?

Are you using any additional heat sources in your enclosures, like infrared heat lamp or heating cable? (Taken the cage will be in room where the tempeture is usually between 68°F and 75°F.) Same question for lighting - should I add more than just the UVB lights?

3) Humidity
I saw somebody using electric humidifier for their Tegu cage. Is that necessary / recommended for cage like the one I have in mind, or should spraying substrate with water regularly be enough?

4) Floor protection
Would you recommend to use something like vinyl flooring to protect floor in melamine cage, or should be melamine enough if properly sealed around the edges? I saw some scarry images of cage with rotten floor (wasn't melamine, though, I think) and would like to avoid that.

5) Securing the door
What kind of measure can I use with side sliding doors to prevent my Tegu to open it and go for a walk? My stepmother has lock on her snake's terrarium with these doors, but when I look at it I'm not sure if it would work with big cage and big and strong animal like Tegu. Do you use these, or would you secure the door in different way?

Thanks in advance to anybody who will reply .


----------



## KaGaOri (Oct 28, 2016)

Since nobody answered so far, I've decided to go ahead and draw a picture of possible enclosure layout. It's mostly about figuring out where (and how many) should the holes for power cords be and placement for ventilation grids. Right now I have there: two basking bulbs (to cover bigger area), one UVB bulb above basking spot, additional UVB fluorescent tube on back wall near the cold end of the cage (light at that end + more UVB) and heater on cold end in case the tempeture would be too low at night. As I wrote above - I've put one vent up and the other down. In theory this should let the air circulate better, but maybe that isn't necessary, or I wouldn't want that much ventilation in there anyway.

In your oppinion, would this be a good setup, or should I add something, or move something(s) elsewhere for it to work better?


----------



## Walter1 (Oct 28, 2016)

KaGaOri said:


> Since nobody answered so far, I've decided to go ahead and draw a picture of possible enclosure layout. It's mostly about figuring out where (and how many) should the holes for power cords be and placement for ventilation grids. Right now I have there: two basking bulbs (to cover bigger area), one UVB bulb above basking spot, additional UVB fluorescent tube on back wall near the cold end of the cage (light at that end + more UVB) and heater on cold end in case the tempeture would be too low at night. As I wrote above - I've put one vent up and the other down. In theory this should let the air circulate better, but maybe that isn't necessary, or I wouldn't want that much ventilation in there anyway.
> 
> In your oppinion, would this be a good setup, or should I add something, or move something(s) elsewhere for it to work better?
> 
> View attachment 11419


KaGaOri- I'm very surprised that no 0ne has yet responded. Although there are threads regarding enclosure construction and design, some of these questions are somewhat different. My three tegus summer outside and sleep in the winter, so I really don't have much of experience in enclosure design. A few things I can suggest.

The end product should have UVB that is close enough to the tegu to be effective. Basking temp should be around 110-115 F. Cool end of the enclosure with hide should be mid-upper 70s F. effectively, a thermal gradient. Having a bed above it should act as insulation, minimize heat loss. Good ventilation is important. Stale air is bad for anything. Not sure the best method with vents. Depending on the substrate you use, such as eco-earth, its moisture might be enough to maintain the humidity you want, along with a shallow bowl of water. Difficult to tell in advance.

Come on, folks. Let's help our new member.


----------



## Mombo (Oct 31, 2016)

On the basking side is the UVB bulb going to be a MVB bulb? Otherwise it wont have enough UVB strength to reach the bottom of the enclosure likely. If you have a strong tube UVB it shouldnt have any problem giving you plenty of UVB over the entire area. I got a 4ft UVB tube one and have 2 heat lamps over my basking area so I have UVB above my basking spot and then half way across the enclosure as well. The two bulbs do a great job for me keeping the basking spot warm. I did an outdoor fixture that has the adjustable heads so I could aim them. Initially I had them aiming straight down and it ended up getting one spot really hot. I was able to spread the beams out a bit and got a really good heat spread across my giant basking rock. As he gets older if he needs more heat I can bring the beams a little closer together and heat it up more. If I did it again I would put an adjustable head in the middle so I could aim that as I please instead of the ceramic fixture that aims straight down.

I think it would be a good idea to put a socket over your cool side for a ceramic heater just in case you need it. So far I havent had to use night heat at all.

Ventilation I did 2x 2in holes high on the warm and low on the cool side for 4 total. I really had no idea how much to put I was just guessing. I just knew the more I put the more humidity I would lose so I was trying to do enough but too much knowing I could always add more..... I still dont know if I have enough haha but it seems to be doing fine and its holding humidity well. My enclosure fluctuates between 70 and 90% humidity depending on the time of the day and if I mix up the substrate a bit.

I think melamine cages will rot over time no matter what you do because of how much moisture will be in a tegu cage. The humidity will slowly destroy the wood and the tegu will in time scratch through the thin plastic/paper coating and allow moisture into the wall. I was initially planning on doing melamine but ended up deciding it wasnt long term enough. If you do use it I would still silicone all the seems just to help seal it more. I ended up using plywood and coated it with drylock and then sealed the seems with silicone. I am very happy with the finished product, seems waterproof enough to hold water haha, rough, and thick. Plus will likely wear his nails down a bit if he climbs the walls ever.

For locking the sliding glass doors you can see what I used in my enclosure thread. Shouldnt be that many thread down at this point. But they are called something like showcase locks. I got one at home depot for pretty cheap and it works really well for sliding glass doors. At this point the glass is so heavy my little tegu wouldnt be able to open the door but I put the lock on there just to create the habit.

I probably missed some of your questions but I tried! I will try and check it again later for follow ups haha. Good Luck!


----------



## KaGaOri (Nov 3, 2016)

Mombo said:


> On the basking side is the UVB bulb going to be a MVB bulb? Otherwise it wont have enough UVB strength to reach the bottom of the enclosure likely. If you have a strong tube UVB it shouldnt have any problem giving you plenty of UVB over the entire area. I got a 4ft UVB tube one and have 2 heat lamps over my basking area so I have UVB above my basking spot and then half way across the enclosure as well. The two bulbs do a great job for me keeping the basking spot warm. I did an outdoor fixture that has the adjustable heads so I could aim them. Initially I had them aiming straight down and it ended up getting one spot really hot. I was able to spread the beams out a bit and got a really good heat spread across my giant basking rock. As he gets older if he needs more heat I can bring the beams a little closer together and heat it up more. If I did it again I would put an adjustable head in the middle so I could aim that as I please instead of the ceramic fixture that aims straight down.
> 
> I think it would be a good idea to put a socket over your cool side for a ceramic heater just in case you need it. So far I havent had to use night heat at all.
> 
> ...



Thank you so much for answering, you're awesome .

I was thinking about going with MVB option for a while, but after I've done more reading on the subject I think I would probably like to keep my heat and UVB independent. The plan is to have there two sockets just for basking bulbs (and use just one at first, then adding second bulb as the Tegu grows bigger) and third socket just for UVB bulb. I looked over your adjustable fixture and it looks good. Maybe I could use that instead separate two fixtures for basking bulbs, though I'm not sure if the temps will be still good if I have to spread the beams to later accommodate bigger lizard.

I want to put additional fluorescent tube for additional UVB + probably a second one to provide full spectrum light over the cold end of the cage, but I'm still struggling with the exact placement for those. Right under the ceiling will be probably too far away from the Tegu. Those available for sale in my area should be put roughly 30 cm (12") above the animals, which means either hanging it lower down from the ceiling on something (would that be safe?) or moving it down over the back wall (seems like great way to get glare right into my eyes). I'm considering getting rid of fluorescent tubes altogether and just hang few more UVB and full light spectrum bulbs over the cage, but that a) might be bit of a overkill and b) seems more like recipe for christmas decoration than practical enclosure setup .

I'm totally getting the heater. For past few days it got about 30°F outside over night and since the heating season hasn't started yet (it's still too warm over the day) the tempeture can drop to somewhere around 65°F inside the room at that time. Unless my Tegu opts to brumate, he'll definitely need one.

For ventilation I think I'll go bit bigger with option to cover part of the vents with foil or something if needed. It's pretty hard to find any concrete numbers on the right size and it seems easier than adding more later.

I've actually thought melamine might be more durable than plywood, but apparently not. I've looked it up and if nothing got lost in translation and I'm looking on the right thing, there seem to be various types of it, including "waterproof plywood". Seems interesting in theory, but I'll probaly go and check it out in person before deciding I want the cage made from it. Normal plywood might work as well when coated with drylock (or some alternative available in my area).

Showcase locks are looking good - much better than those flimsy terrarium locks.

Once again, thanks for answering .


----------



## DakotaJane675 (Dec 1, 2016)

Following..lots of good info


----------



## Mombo (Dec 12, 2016)

How is this build going by the way!? Im excited to see how it turned out or is turning out so far.


----------



## Walter1 (Dec 12, 2016)

That's right everybody. Tegutalk- That's how good enclosures are built.


----------



## KaGaOri (Dec 12, 2016)

Mombo said:


> How is this build going by the way!? Im excited to see how it turned out or is turning out so far.


Sadly, I can't see myself actually building it in the near future. I had to spent (unplanned) bigger sum of money lately (you know how it is when you have animals ) and it wouldn't be smart to go ahead with it until my reserves get somewhat replenished. Especially since due to the space issues it means pretty much remodeling half of my bedroom, adding more cost to this project. So, I'm stuck at info gathering stage for now, which actually might not be a bad thing afterall - I'm not friend of impulsive pet shopping and while I have plenty of animal keeping experience, I've never kept lizard before. I wouldn't want to get Tegu and then find out, that I can't take care of it properly, either by lack of knowledge or simply by not been able to provide what it needs. I may give it a year, do my homework, find and solve any potential issues I can think of and if by then I'll still think I'm up to it + have the money needed, then I'm going to build it and get my Tegu. And yeah, I know I could get a hatchling and just put it in a big fish tank for the time being and worry about big 8x4x4 later (no problem - I could have that setup from just what I've got laying around at home right now + one trip to the pet store to get UVB + basking bulb), but that just seems a bit irresponsible to me. So, sorry guys, but it may take a while till there are any physical results to show you . Either way, I very much appreciate your interest in mine setup ideas. I'll probably hang around Tegu talk in the meantime - there is a lot of good info and a lot of experienced people here and I'm really happy to be part of this community and learn from all of you.

On the subject of my setup plan - I'm leaning towards moving my fluorescent tubes (full spectrum light + additional UVB) from the back wall to the middle of ceiling after all (saw it on most of enclosures I've found so it probably works), then putting something like a thick branch or log underneath to bring the Tegu closer to them while he's still small. It should get him to those recommended cca 30 cm (12") from the tubes to make them effective and I can take it out later as he grows bigger. Thoughts?


----------

