General Care Discussion :: As far as heat lamps go....

[Rae]

I'm a little short on cash at the moment, and the idea of shelling out for a heat lamp is pretty daunting, especially since I'm going to be buying quite a large aquarium, filtration system, etc etc this weekend. I'm new at this.

Since I live in a very warm part of the world (Vallarta, Mexico.) would it be okay to just..move the aquarium out onto the terrace for a while every day? Just for a few weeks? I would hate to see Otto get sick, I've had him for like 2 days am already totally in love.

Anyway, thats my question... would leaving him in the sun for a while be the same as having him under a heat lamp? Obviously I need to get an actual lamp so he can come out and warm up whenever he likes (Hypothetical 'he' of course. We just DECIDED he's a boy.), right? I don't want to hurt him.

[Tenodera]

Well you could save the heat and UVB lamps for last since they can go for quite a while without basking. and you should move the tank outside since the sun can warm up the tank very fast and it might over heat your turtle. He'll be fine until you can buy the lamps. But you could take him out into the shade for a little bit. Don't put him in the direct sunlight since that may over heat him, also.

He can get UVB from the shade, too

[N4784N R4613]

I think he meant you should NOT move the tank outside.

[megcornell]

A regular house bulb can be used as a UVA light you realize? You don't need anything special for heat. UVB lights are expensive, but your turtle will live perfectly fine if he's without for a while.
Putting the tank outside is a bad idea, the water will quickly overheat.

[DavidY]

Yeah, aquariums are notorious for cooking in the outdoor sun since the glass lets all the light and heat in but prevents it from cooling off. A nice wide shallow tray with some fresh water and a basking rock in the middle might be a good idea for your turtle to sit out and get some natural sunlight a couple of days out of the week. Just make sure you can stay with him the entire time since they are very good at escaping and they are easy prey for birds and other animals. But even 15 minutes to an hour a few times a week is better than nothing and will be very beneficial.

Also it's a good idea to have the outdoor tub partially shaded so the turtle can get out of the sun if he gets too hot.

[powerofvoodoo]

You don't need to get a fancy petstore lamp, all you need is the lightbulb. I use desk lamps for my cages and it's a lot cheaper than buying the expensive lamps at petstores (although I may rethink it for my UVB bulb because my lamp is defective and keeps burning out my UVB bulbs). Here, UVB bulbs cost about $10-$15 and I use a regular lightbulb for UVA.
Unless you really just don't have the money (which is understandable) it's not a lot more after shelling out for an aquarium and filter, to throw in a lightbulb on top of all that and you can use lamps from around the house.

[marisa]

If you're in Mexico and the weather is nice, you could take him outside, but not in a glass tank---you could cook him. If you could bring him out in something like a plastic container with water, shade he can get to and make sure he's not getting overheated (ideally supervise him while he's outside), he would be getting what he needs in terms of his UVB needs. Inside, he'll need a UVB light and heat light (that regular lightbulb). If he could get direct sunlight several times a week, you could, for the time being, just have a regular bulb over his basking area in the tank inside so he can get out of the water and dry off if he wants to.

[Rae]

Thanks, everyone.

[Tenodera]

Oops I mean you shouldn't. Darn plastic wrap!