2nd hatchday and Brumation breaks

[Chris.]

If you are very concerned about fire resistance, you can pay attention to the material Superisol. This fire-resistant board is designed for boxes separating the chimney from the wooden structures of houses. It is a good heat insulator that can withstand temperatures of 1000 degrees Celsius . I used it in my fireplace insert and stone cladding, as well as in the construction of the chimney and wooden structures of the house. But you need to think about the heat dissipation from the lamp base, otherwise its life can be significantly reduced.

That are some good points you made there, thak you Nick, I didn't really think of that.
Let's see what the next summer does, this year it was rarely an issue..

 

[NickAVD]

That are some good points you made there, thak you Nick, I didn't really think of that.
Let's see what the next summer does, this year it was rarely an issue..

Yes, finding heat-insulating material is not a problem. But you have me stumped with the lamp. Yes, it can be insulated in a box made of superisol, but I am afraid that it will heat up too much and get damaged. It needs a ventilation duct.

 

[xp29]

You guys hit on my next question lol. I know in Germany your habitats are bigger than in the US I kindda assumed you had the lights mounted inside but wasn't sure.
Personally if I were building that setup I would cut the holes considerably larger than the light so it isn't close enough to heat the wood, and use metal brackets to mount them to. I'd just cover the inside with screen so my beardie couldn't touch the bulb. That would also help not to not overheat the light and fixture.
I had not thought about insulation though. I think the easiest thing would be to use a piece of tyvex or similar insulating foam board and attach it directly to the bottom of the upper habitat. You would need maybe an inch more height in the air gap, but on a setup thats already pushing 5 foot what's one more inch?
(Sorry tne metric system still baffles me, if I tried to do the conversions it would be the size of my house )

 

[Chris.]

You guys hit on my next question lol. I know in Germany your habitats are bigger than in the US I kindda assumed you had the lights mounted inside but wasn't sure.
Personally if I were building that setup I would cut the holes considerably larger than the light so it isn't close enough to heat the wood, and use metal brackets to mount them to. I'd just cover the inside with screen so my beardie couldn't touch the bulb. That would also help not to not overheat the light and fixture.
I had not thought about insulation though. I think the easiest thing would be to use a piece of tyvex or similar insulating foam board and attach it directly to the bottom of the upper habitat. You would need maybe an inch more height in the air gap, but on a setup thats already pushing 5 foot what's one more inch?
(Sorry tne metric system still baffles me, if I tried to do the conversions it would be the size of my house )

Only the basking bulb is half in half out:

The reason was to gain some additional, usable height and distance to the bulb. The gap is 15cm\~6 inch or so, which is a lot of height inside a 80cm/32 inch tank.
The other bulbs (tube and a led strip) are fully inside:

One inch might not be much but the setup as it is has exactly the hight of my doorways right now, which might come in handy in the future...

 

[xp29]

Only the basking bulb is half in half out:
View attachment 93148
The reason was to gain some additional, usable height and distance to the bulb. The gap is 15cm\~6 inch or so, which is a lot of height inside a 80cm/32 inch tank.
The other bulbs (tube and a led strip) are fully inside:
View attachment 93149
One inch might not be much but the setup as it is has exactly the hight of my doorways right now, which might come in handy in the future...

I built Puff a large habitat inside an apartment. When I moved it cleared the door by only about 1/8 inch. I got very lucky so I get exactly what you mean.
I like the way you mounted the basking, simple and effective. The only thing I would alter is the size of the hole. I wouldn't be comfortable with the bulb being that close to the wood. (But I'm paranoid like that lol)

 

[xp29]

I built Puff a large habitat inside an apartment. When I moved it cleared the door by only about 1/8 inch. I got very lucky so I get exactly what you mean.
I like the way you mounted the basking, simple and effective. The only thing I would alter is the size of the hole. I wouldn't be comfortable with the bulb being that close to the wood. (But I'm paranoid like that lol)

One huge benefit I see in that setup though, is that the heat resides inside the habitat. The footprint of the fixture has such a small surface area above the ceiling that there probably isn't much heat being radiated in that space.

 

[NickAVD]

Only the basking bulb is half in half out:
View attachment 93148
The reason was to gain some additional, usable height and distance to the bulb. The gap is 15cm\~6 inch or so, which is a lot of height inside a 80cm/32 inch tank.
The other bulbs (tube and a led strip) are fully inside:
View attachment 93149
One inch might not be much but the setup as it is has exactly the hight of my doorways right now, which might come in handy in the future...

Now I understand how the heating lamp is installed. If you want to reduce the heating of the upper terrarium, then you will only need to stick a heat-insulating plate to the bottom of the upper terrarium. A 3 cm plate is ideal, you can make a hole in it for a hook on which the lamp is hung.
but it seems to me that with such an air space of 15 cm you should not have big problems and heat insulation is not really necessary.
I also wanted to ask you, does the wood around the lamp heat up?

 

[Chris.]

You are both right and in hindsight the hole could have been bigger.
Unfortunately I do not remember the exact temps but I did check it with a temp gun because I'm paranoid as well. The socket was really hot and the bottom of the bulb obviously but I think the middle part were the hole is was not that crazy.....let me check, I'll turn on the bulb for half an hour or so and get back to you.

 

[NickAVD]

If the terrarium were smaller, the hole would need to be larger to keep the cold areas cool. But with such a large size, I think the extra heat inside won't hurt, the main thing is that the wood doesn't get hot. You can just touch the area around the lamp with your hand and check, we're all a bit paranoid.

 

[Chris.]

So the socket at the hottest point is 300°F/145°C. The bulb at the bottom is 370°F/185°C. The cone of the bulb is 250°F/120°C. The wood on the hottest point is 140°F/60°C.

Correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think it is getting anywhere near the point where the osb-wood is gonna catch fire (google sais that would be at around 450°F/230°C).

 

[xp29]

So the socket at the hottest point is 300°F/145°C. The bulb at the bottom is 370°F/185°C. The cone of the bulb is 250°F/120°C. The wood on the hottest point is 140°F/60°C.

Correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think it is getting anywhere near the point where the osb-wood is gonna catch fire (google sais that would be at around 450°F/230°C).

I bake wood at 250°- 275° to sanitize it, I've never had any even scorch let along ignite.

 

[NickAVD]

I agree with everyone, everything will be fine with wood