Habitat - Indoor

Hi all! I am on the last legs of a big move, which naturally comes with new tank setup options and problems.

First the problem. In our house the best place to put Blair :mrgreen:

's tank is in the sunroom. I can probably make it work elsewhere in the house, but, logistically, this room is the best. However, the room is basically all windows. In my tank I have two Enim Jeger heaters and one MegaRay bulb. I check the basking and water temps during daily feedings.

I know that windows can cause the temp to rise very quickly; however, the sun room, particularly her part of it gets the sun mostly in the morning. I can also open the window -it has a screen so she can get fresh air and natural light.

With the above, is there anything else I can do to make sure she stays safe? Especially when I am at work all day?

Secondly the set up. I would like to make a fence or enclosure around the tank -a 125 gal stock- to keep curious puppies at more distance. Any suggestions or tips on construction?

I'm not a fan by any window , that's just me. Can cook a turtle. Any good light "UVB" is blocked by glass ! Then open it and you now get drafts , not good ! What about an interior wall in sunroom? It's your call ! You will be getting more algae blooms in the water , cloudy water. More algae in tank having more maintenance to do . For natural sun I take Piggley outside for walks few times a week.
I use stock tanks. Is this a Rubbermaid structural foam tank? 100 - 150 gallons those are 25" tall , big or small puppies ? Maybe use a camcorder to see what they do by the tank when alone?
Modified doggie fence , bamboo fence , plastic lattice will bend around tank ... I think a cover using hardware cloth with say 1" holes would be easier and secure it to the rim with DIY clamps. UVA and UVB light will get through it , don't use screen wire mess to small for the light. What about electronic barrier fence? Have some for indoors very cheap and they do work. Will not take away from cosmetics of the tank and never have to deal with removing it.

Have you charted the range of temperatures in that room?

Sorry Steve I missed that . Glad you picked up on it. (working together) Chart the range of temperatures especially in a sunroom! Hope tu.es,hisc reads this one !

We just moved in, so I haven't been able to get a reliable range yet. I check the temp often, though, Water can be anywhere from 69 to 81. Basking temp runs from 70 to 104. Higher range is the late morning where there is more direct sunlight and trends toward cooler temp in the afternoon-early morning.

The room itself is air conditioned, so it stays around the house temp 68-73. We have a fan in that room that will be working soon and I will be installing curtains today to reduce some of the heat transfer from the window.

litefoot, she is in a 169 gal steel stock tank with a Mega-Ray mercury vapor blub. I am running two Penn-Plax 200 gallon canister filters and two water jets (forget the brand) or surface aeration. I've never had an issue with algae bloom but I've never had her tank in direct sunlight before. Will this be a problem?

Sorry but Yes. I tried that idea , regular curtain's will not help. I even had a UV liner sewed in and still didn't help much. http://www.homedepot.com/p/Easy-Gardene ... /100548213

I moved his tank to an interior wall , problem solved!

Air conditioning should make a big difference, but I'm not sure if you want it running that often. What are your plans for that room? Will it be a dedicated turtle room?

It won't be a dedicated turtle room. Once we get unpacked, it will be kind of an indoor porch. As soon as I get a chance to unpack my computer I can post pictures. What are your thoughts?

My first tub was steel. Where I had it the sun hit the steel and heated the water out of my control. With this hobby we all try our best to control the water and all the elements for a healthy turtle. What I done to keep it in same location was to wrap the steel tank in wall insulation ( kind with a face on it to keep fiberglass from getting all over) then for cosmetic's covered the sides with an table cloth for better looks. It blocked that direct sunlight and was able to control water temp better. May work for you ? That old steel tub lasted for years although I did have to put a liner in it after a leak ! Now a days have gone to Rubbermaid tub's , to me works and last longer , then that's just me.
Sure you find a good location in the sunroom , sounds nice wish I had one. Hell I still have things in totes from last move years ago, guess I really don't need whatever it is. But then I'm a packrat...

A nice aspect about Rubbermaids are their dark colors, so maybe that will help with what you plan for that room. You can get something larger than what you have now and you'd have less maintenance to worry about. It's nice to have this in a separate room, keeps the noise away. I have my tanks in the middle of my apartment and it's never totally quiet with the filters running.

Come on Steve ! Haha ! Get that FX out the box , super quiet more so than what you may have , quieter than your computer. And that purge sound adjust outlet as noted in other post and could get that sound down to nothing. Trust , you will fall in love with it !

Tu.es.hic yes we want some pic's of Blair!

Noise is mainly from the outlet and water surface. Water seems to evaporate pretty quickly, so it just gets louder and louder. Those old XP3s are very reliable but I think I'll crack open the FX soon.

Blair had her first recorded bask the other morning! This makes me feel a lot better. I'm always really concerned for her after a move, but I know it will take a few days for her to get comfortable enough to bask.

Ohhh, she's loving that Sun! Always happy to see them bask like that.

Habitat - Indoor :: Regulating Temperature near windows and tank enclosure

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